Dr. Frank Messina, Collat's endowed Alumni & Friends Professor of Accounting, recently was elected vice president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's 1A Faculty Athletics Representatives (1A FAR) Board.
Messina has served as UAB's FAR since 2008. 1A is an organization of faculty athletics representatives at NCAA Division I institutions in the Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly known as Division 1A.
The mission of the 1A Faculty Athletics Representatives is to advocate for effective interaction and academic and fiscal balance between an institution's academic mission and its intercollegiate program. Its Board addresses issues unique to Division 1A institutions, requiring a careful balancing of academic vs. athletics interests, of student-athlete welfare vs. competitive success, and of cost containment vs. additional revenue generation.
The faculty athletics representative is a designation created and mandated by NCAA. FARs must be members of an institution's faculty and may not hold an administrative or coaching position in the athletics department. The FAR serves as a liaison to the athletics department. The 1A FAR is an advocate for the appropriate balance and effective interaction between an institution's academic mission and its intercollegiate athletics program.
All FARs who serve at NCAA Division 1A institutions are members of 1A FAR.
"Dr. Messina is a great advocate for all student-athletes and their well-being," said Kurt Zorn, Ph.D., a professor at Indiana University and current president of 1A FAR. "Frank is a valued active member of our Board and we welcome his leadership as the new vice president." The 1A Board is made up of one FAR from each of the 10 FBS Conferences.
Messina currently serves as the only FAR in the nation to the NCAA Division I Football Oversight Committee. Messina recently was honored with UAB's 2020 President's Award for Excellence in Support of UAB and Shared Governance opens a new website.