Free Tickets Sunday, May 10 for WLS Guests

Personnel from Chicago Professional Sport Teams are supporting the WLS with their valuable time, and we hope you support them and ALL the sponsors who assist in our efforts to keep professional development affordable for those in our industry!

The Chicago Red Stars Women's Professional Soccer team, featuring 2008 USSoccer Female Athlete of the Year, Carli Lloyd and her Gold Medal winningteammate Lindsay Tarpley, would like to invite all the WLS participants to Chicago. The Red Stars' General Manager, Marcia McDermott, will be facilitating a session at the WLS on Monday. As part of her involvement, the Red Stars invite all the participants out to their Sunday, May 10th game vs Sky Blue FC with a complimentary ticket. Kickoff is at 5:00pm. Don't miss this great chance to support Women's Professional Sports at beautiful TOYOTA PARK in nearby Bridgeview,IL.

To ensure that you are seated with the rest of the WLS participants and to arrange to have your complimentary ticket waiting for you at the TOYOTAPARK's Will Call, please email or call David Quinn with the Red Stars at Dquinn@chicagoredstars.com or 708.496.9518. To learn a little more about the Red Stars link here:http://www.chicagoredstars.com/ - We hope you will be able to join us for a fantastic night of soccer!

Thank you again for being part of the WLS-Chicago experience. Till next week.....

WLS Highlights - Two Weeks & Counting!

Lauren Lappin, currently an assistant softball coach at Northwestern University, will be on hand to excite WLS participants about being in Chicago which is bidding for the 2016 Olympic Games. Lappin was an alternate at the 2004 Athens Olympics and USA's catcher/infielder in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

With two weeks until the kick-off, it is time for WLS participants to finalize plans and gear up for intriguing programming focusing on professional development and hot topics in leadership and sports ranging from the effects of proposed legislation to shorten playing seasons to managing grades, games, and tighter budgets.

There will plenty of time for play, too! Browse the bookstore on site or head out to a great line up of restaurants on Monday evening following the poolside reception. Within two miles of the Wyndham Drake, you can dine at a host of great eateries. Check out the list! See you soon...and don't forget to support our great sponsors who help make the WLS an affordable educational program for everyone!

For ground transportation via a town car from O'Hara or Midway, the code is wls35 and the rate is $24 from either airport. Reservations can me made at 888-638-0222 or online at http://www.chicagoluxurylimousines.com/. You must use the code to receive the correct fare.

NACWAA Says "Hello"!

Hello Everyone,

I am very excited that I will not only be attending the NCAA & NACWAA Women’s Leadership Symposium, but that I am also presenting. I will be sharing information about the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators’ membership benefits and outstanding educational and professional development programming. I will also discuss how the sisterhood connection that NACWAA creates enhances and creates opportunities for women in athletics. Finally, we will discuss the best ways to navigate the NACWAA NETWORK of phenomenal women. I am requesting that any NACWAA members that will be attending the WLS join us for this session to help demonstrate just how powerful a resource NACWAA is.

I look forward to meeting all of you soon!

Shelley C. Davis, ATC
Director of Education and Professional Development
National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators

WLS BLOG SPOT - March Update

Hello WLS Participants! The registration deadline is April 15 so hurry and tell your colleagues to join you in Chicago! Another appproaching deadline is April 1. If you know of an administrator in the Midwest deserving of this honor, please notify Alfreeda Goff at agoff@horizonleague.org for consideration of the CVU Leadership Award by NEXT WEDNESDAY!

Great news....FOLLETT BOOK STORE will be on site with plenty of titles to browse through including Christine Brennan's "Best Seat in the House." Christine will be on site to autograph copies.

Get ready to connect with Christine and the 100+ coaches and administrtors from over 60 universities, 7 conference offices, 2 sport consulting firms, and 4 Chicago Pro sport teams! If anyone wishes to save on expenses, we have had offers to share a hotel room. Contact btiell@tiffin.edu if you want to connect with another WLS participant.

We want to highlight one of our recent sponsors - Athleticlink.com Check out http://www.athleticlink.com/, a proud partner of the WBCA, NFCA, IWLCA and Women's Sports Foundation. Athletic link offers Job Postings for $55/15 days • $95/30 days and Unlimited annual postings of ALL JOBS for $435. They have offered the same low prices for eight years. Consider joining your colleagues who have saved their budgets and increased their reach!

May 11-12 will be GREAT! Stay tune for more updates and please reach out to us for any of your WLS needs.

Greetings WLS Participants!

Greetings WLS Participants! I'm Dr. Bonnie Tiell, Co-Chair of the NCAA & NACWAA Women's Leadership Symposium in Intercollegiate Athletics. Our organizing committee is extremely excited for the 100+ participants who have already registered for the program in Chicago, May 11-12, 2009.

March is a busy month, but I wanted to stay connected to help make the upcoming symposium a great professional development expereince for everyone. Make sure to check the http://www.wlsathletics.com/ web pages periodically for updates such as a slightly revised agenda and a new "Chicago City Highlights" page. In the interim, we have two requests for our participants:

#1 - Please consider reaching out to colleagues at other institutions who may not be aware of the WLS. Our primary marketing tool is the NACWAA weekly updates which do not reach every NCAA, NAIA and NJCAA institution. Simply e-mail the http://www.wlsathletics.com/ link to individuals you know in other athletic departments and conference offices.

# 2 - Please nominate someone for the Claire Van Ummersen Leadership Award by April 1st. Send someone to the WLS in Chicago for FREE! All you need to do is e-mail agoff@horizonleague.org with the name (and a brief description) of someone with a minimum of five years of experience who has been instrumental in the development of women in the industry. You can access more information at the CVU Award Nomination link.

Finally, please consider the generous support of our WLS sponsors who help make the program affordable in these trying economic times that have limited professional development funds for many athletics departments. Thank you especially to our title sponsors (The Horizon League, Big Ten Conference, and the Mid American Conference) and to the many other organizations and institutions who are sponsoring special sessions.

Look forward to reading messages from some of our committee members or presenters in future posts on our WLS Blog Spot! Feel free to comment and add to the conversation. Enjoy March Madness and stay tune for another WLS Blog coming soon!