DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Bethune-Coookman University Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Lynn W. Thomspon has been named an Under Armour AD of the Year Award (ADOY) recipient today by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).  

The award spans seven divisions (NCAA FBS, FCS, Division I-AAA, II, III, NAIA/Other Four-Year Institutions and Junior College/Community Colleges). Winners will be recognized on Tuesday, June 9 prior to the Featured Session at 4 p.m. during NACDA's 55th Annual Convention at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas.
 

The ADOY Award highlights the efforts of athletics directors at all levels for their commitment and positive contributions to student-athletes, campuses and their surrounding communities.
 

"The future of our industry continues to look bright with athletics leaders like these at the helm of departments across the country," said Bob Vecchione, NACDA Chief Executive Officer. "Out of our 28 ADOY winners, 22 are receiving this honor for the first time in their careers. It is exciting and inspiring to see the new faces coming up through the ranks and earning well-deserved recognition for their efforts on their campuses."
 

Thompson, the nation's longest-tenured Div. I Athletic Director, was one of four Football Championship Series (FCS) ADs honored, joining Villanova's Mark Jackson, Harvard's Robert Scalise and Neil Sullivan of the University of Dayton. Thompson is the only HBCU athletic director to receive this honor on any level in 2020.

He is the third AD from the MEAC to be honored in as many years; North Carolina A&T State's Earl Hilton III was named for the award last year, and North Carolina Central's Dr. Ingrid Wicker McCree was honored the year prior.
 

Thompson's lengthy and impressive resume includes serving as the first African-American to chair the NCAA Baseball Rules Committee and as a member on the NCAA I-AA Football Committee and the NCAA Football Issues Committees, creating policy for intercollegiate athletics on a national level. He has also served the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference as chairman of the MEAC Basketball, Softball, Track and Field and Baseball Tournaments, and has been selected five times as an NCAA Peer Reviewer for the athletics certification process. 

He currently serves on the NCAA Committee on Academics, one of the associations most important committees, which oversees the academic standards of intercollegiate athletics and is a member of the  Board of the Florida Sports Foundation and the MEAC Hall of Fame.