Senate Resolution 9

A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING THE LASTING FINANCIAL AND ATHLETIC IMPACT OF HIGHLY REGARDED COMMISSIONER OF THE SOUTHWESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE AND NEWLY APPOINTED MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE NCAA DR. CHARLES MCCLELLAND, AND COMMENDING HIM FOR ELEVATING THE NATIONAL IMAGE OF THE SWAC.

WHEREAS, Dr. Charles F. McClelland, a native of Jackson, Mississippi, was named the sixth Commissioner of the Southwestern Athletic Conference during the summer of 2018. Highly regarded as one of the top sports administrators in the country, McClelland currently oversees a conference with a total of twelve member institutions (effective 2021-2022 academic year) which boasts 18 sports which compete at the NCAA Division I level and Football (FCS); and

WHEREAS, under his tenure the Southwestern Athletic Conference has been at the forefront of league expansions with the additions of Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman in the Summer of 2020. Beginning with the 2021-2022 academic year, the Southwestern Athletic Conference boasted 12 total members spanning across six states including three members based in Mississippi (Alcorn State, Jackson State, Mississippi Valley State), two in Alabama (Alabama A&M, Alabama State), two in Louisiana (Grambling State, Southern), two in Texas (Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern), one in Arkansas (Arkansas-Pine Bluff), and two in Florida (Florida A&M, Bethune-Cookman); and

WHEREAS, other notable changes in the conference under his tenure also include the purchase of a corporate office building to serve as the new headquarters for the league. The three-story structure is equipped with over 40 individual offices, two large conference rooms, a walk-in reception/waiting area, and over 30 parking spaces. The league's new headquarters fittingly serves as the primary location for conference operations, annual business meetings, along with the onsite filming of multimedia content for distribution via social media and the SWAC Digital Network (SDN); and

WHEREAS, in the summer of 2025 the Southwestern Athletic Conference announced the creation of SWAC TV, an exclusive streaming platform that delivers users league athletics content across all 18 conference sponsored sports. For the first time in history, SWAC fans and supporters have a high quality, technologically advanced streaming platform solely dedicated to broadcasting live events and delivering high-definition on-demand league content; and

WHEREAS, upon its initial launch, SWAC TV was available for download on Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple TV, Google Play, and Android TV. The free platform features preseason, regular season and post-season live events across 18 league sponsored sports while also featuring unique feature content, sports talk shows and podcasts; and

WHEREAS, in addition to his duties at the league office, McClelland was selected as a member of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee in March of 2019. In July of 2022, McClelland was named chair of the committee for the 2023-2024 season. With his selection, he became the first person representing an HBCU league or institution to chair the committee. The 12-member committee is responsible for selecting, seeding and bracketing the field for the NCAA Tournament. Conferences are divided among committee members so they can focus on monitoring assigned teams throughout the season. Committee members, with the exception of the chair, have conferences for which they serve as either the primary or secondary monitor; and

WHEREAS, prior to arriving at the conference office, McClelland served as the Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics at Texas Southern University located in Houston, Texas. He initially took over the helm of TSU Athletics in April 2008 as Director of Athletics. In February of 2015 McClelland was promoted in title to Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics. McClelland supervised a total of 16 sports - nine women's and seven men's at Texas Southern. His daily duties included fundraising, managing budgets, team scheduling, marketing and keeping abreast of current National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rules and regulations; and

WHEREAS, perhaps the most significant first was accomplished when the 2017-2018 TSU Men's Basketball Team won an NCAA Tournament Game against North Carolina Central in the NCAA First-Four. Exposure for the Texas Southern Athletics Program was also a major focus under McClelland's tenure, and in 2015, McClelland signed a deal with Root Sports to televise all TSU home football games. Root Sports is a regional television station that covers 5 States (Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Eastern New Mexico) and is also the home of the Houston Rockets and Houston Astro's professional teams; and

WHEREAS, before arriving at TSU, McClelland served as the Athletics Director at Prairie View A&M University for seven years. While at Prairie View, McClelland collected a remarkable (18) Championships amongst various sports. Additionally, he increased football scholarships to the NCAA I-AA maximum of 63 grant-in-aids. In 2007 Prairie View A&M's football team captured the program's first winning season in over 30 years; and

WHEREAS, in October 2025, the NCAA board appointed five new members to the Board of Governors Finance and Audit Committee highlighted by SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland being selected to served on the committee. The NCAA Board of Governors Finance and Audit Committee is a governance body of the NCAA; and

WHEREAS, for his efforts, McClelland was named one of 29 winners of the AstroTurf Athletics Director of the Year Award (2007) as presented by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA). He was also selected as the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) West award winner. McClelland was the first Athletic Director from the SWAC to receive this prestigious award. In 2025 he was inducted into the Texas Southern Athletics Sports Hall of Fame in recognition of his exemplary years of service to the institution; and

WHEREAS, a 1993 graduate of Prairie View A&M, McClelland earned his Bachelor's Degree in accounting and in 1997 received an MBA from Prairie View A&M. He earned his doctoral degree in Higher Education Administration from Texas A&M University in 2011. McClelland's extra-curricular affiliations include membership in the Prairie View A&M University National Alumni Association, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., and the Rotary Club of Birmingham; and

WHEREAS, McClelland is a former member of the NCAA Leadership/Management Council. At the time it was one of the highest ranking councils in the NCAA, the Leadership/Management Council was responsible for establishing direct general policy, the strategic plan for the NCAA and advised the board of directors on administrative bylaws and regulations. He is also a past president of the Houston Touchdown Club and continues to serve on the board of directors. McClelland served as chairman of the SWAC Council of Athletics Directors, a position he held for ten years; and

WHEREAS, McClelland is married to Ashlee McClelland and is the father of sons, Cainan and Ashton and daughter, Cooper; and

WHEREAS, it is with great pride that we recognize the dedication, expertise, and commitment to excellence of a sports administrator whose leadership of Historically Black Universities has made a lasting impact on our community, state and nation: NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby recognize the lasting financial and athletic impact of highly regarded Commissioner of the Southwestern Athletic Conference and newly appointed member of the Board of Governors of the NCAA, Dr. Charles McClelland, and commend him for elevating the national image of the SWAC and extend to him the greetings of the Mississippi Senate.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Dr Charles McClelland, forwarded to the corporate office of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.