NEW YORK -- The BIG EAST Conference hosted a league-wide forum Monday to discuss student-athlete name, image and likeness (NIL) and the legislative proposals that will be considered for vote at the 2021 NCAA Convention in January.  
 
Commissioner Val Ackerman, Co-Chair of the NCAA Federal and State Legislation Working Group and member of the DI Legislative Solutions Group, led the forum.  The participants, which included athletics directors, senior athletic administrators and head coaches, were joined by key NCAA staff members who have been instrumental in advancing the association’s work related to NIL over the past 18 months. 
 
The forum provided BIG EAST participants with a description of the Legislative Solution Group’s work to date, an overview of the current federal and state legislative landscape, and perspectives on how to effectively create a campus-wide NIL implementation plan. 
 
At the conclusion of the forum, Ackerman announced that the BIG EAST is forming a working group to assist its member institutions as they prepare to operationalize the anticipated NIL framework.  The working group will have at least one representative from each of the league’s 11 institutions, as well as two student-athletes.  The working group roster will include athletic directors, SWAs, FARs, compliance administrators, coaches, external relations staff and marketing personnel.
 
“The NCAA’s anticipated liberalization of NIL rules represents a ground-breaking development for student-athletes, coaches, administrators and a wide range of commercial enterprises,” said BIG EAST Commissioner Val Ackerman.  “We are committed to assisting our schools as they gear up to administer this complex new set of rules and maximize the benefits that will be made available to their student-athletes when the rules go into effect next year.”  
 
BIG EAST Name, Image and Likeness Working Group

Roster Name	Institution	Position
Molly Sullivan	Butler	Assoc. Athletic Director/ Administration/SWA
Geno Auriemma	Connecticut	Head Women’s Basketball Coach
Joe Willman	Creighton	Director of Marketing & Broadcast Services
Rachael Saunders	Creighton	WBB Student-Athlete/Conference SAAC Representative
DeWayne Peevy	DePaul	Director of Athletics
Dan Trump	Georgetown	Senior Associate AD for Internal Operations
Malcom Wilson	Georgetown	MBB Student-Athlete/NCAA National SAAC Representative
Steve Wojciechowski	Marquette	Head Men’s Basketball Coach
Joe Nicastro	Providence	Associate AD/Compliance Athletic Administration
Sharon See	St. John’s	Faculty Athletics Representative
Tatum Colitz	Seton Hall	Senior Associate AD for Compliance & Student-Athlete Development/SWA
Mark Jackson	Villanova	Vice President and Director of Athletics
Brian Hicks	Xavier	Associate AD for External Relations

 
The topic of student-athlete name, image and likeness has commanded attention and fueled debate throughout college athletics.  College sports leaders, including university presidents, conference commissioners, athletic directors and other campus administrators, are continuing to craft the NCAA’s NIL guidelines, with a planned vote on the proposed legislation at the 2021 NCAA Convention in January and expected implementation at the start of the 2021-22 academic year.