Marist’s Black Student-Athlete Alliance Earns Rawlings Community Spotlight Honors
Marist’s Black Student-Athlete Alliance Earns Rawlings Community Spotlight Honors

Marist’s Black Student-Athlete Alliance Earns Rawlings Community Spotlight Honors

Bookmark and Share

EDISON, N.J. (Nov. 19, 2020) – The Rawlings Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Community Spotlight is a weekly feature of those giving back in an effort to make a difference in their communities. This week, the MAAC highlights Marist College and its recently formed Black Student-Athlete Alliance.  
 
Marist’s Black Student-Athlete Alliance formed this summer with stated goals of creating an uplifting community while giving a voice to Black and Brown student-athletes.
 
The Alliance holds a monthly group meeting, with its first taking place in July. In September, BSAA teamed with Marist’s Black Student Union to hold the Marist Students March Against Racial Injustice, which drew approximately 700 participants. In October, the Alliance held its first town hall meeting. Members of BSAA’s Leadership Board have regularly participated in calls with Marist’s IDEA Committee, which meets weekly and consists of 14 department staff members and coaches. 

 As the fall semester draws to a close, BSAA is striving to conduct virtual community outreach, both in the Marist community and the local Poughkeepsie community.
 
Director of Men’s Basketball Operations Dorian Long and football Defensive Line Coach/Recruiting Coordinator James Groce currently serve as advisors. BSAA’s Leadership Board consists of five student-athletes:
 
•           Co-President: Trinasia Kennedy, sophomore (women’s basketball)
•           Co-President: Arthur Pinckney, red-shirt sophomore (football)
•           Vice President/Director of Marketing: Chidera Udeh, senior (volleyball)
•           Director of Engagement: Jordan Jones, red-shirt senior (men’s basketball)
•           Secretary: Christopher Watkins, freshman (football)
 
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) celebrates its 40th year of competition during the 2020-21 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona College, Manhattan College, Marist College, Monmouth University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.