Howard Community College Receives NJCAA Grant to Start Intercollegiate Women’s Flag Football
2024年5月14日 - 1:21AM
Howard Community College (HCC) President Daria J. Willis today
announced the launch of a women’s flag football program for the
college. The program will begin with support from the National
Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Foundation awarding a
$10,000 grant to start the team. HCC will begin competition in the
spring 2025 season.
"HCC has always tried to lead with an eye towards opportunity
and equity for all students,” said Dr. Willis. “This program will
be a major element of promoting women’s participation in sports at
all ages, and expanding our college’s championship footprint across
men’s and women’s on-field, on-court and esports programs. This is
truly a great day for Dragon Country!”
“We are elated to add women’s flag football to the list of sport
offerings at our dynamic institution,” said HCC athletic director
Mike Smelkinson. “Our intramural flag football league has been a
big hit this past year and we are happy to offer the chance for
current students to play competitively against other institutions.
We are also eager to hit the recruiting trail, as high schools in
the state of Maryland and in the region are implementing and
growing the sport. We can offer young women at these schools the
chance to continue their athletic and academic careers at Howard
Community College.”
The NJCAA marked women’s flag football as an emerging sport as
interest in it continues to rise nationwide. The NJCAA Foundation
partnered with NFL Flag and RCX Sports to help kickstart this
exciting opportunity.
In the last four years under Smelkinson’s leadership, Howard
Community College has added intercollegiate esports, women’s
softball, and launched a sideline cheerleading squad with plans to
make it a competitive program. The addition of women’s flag
football continues the trend of growth in athletics at one of the
nation’s top-performing two-year institutions and parallels its
expansion with the 2025 planned opening of the athletics facilities
in the state-of-the-art Kahlert Foundation Complex.
"The NJCAA Foundation is excited for the continued growth of
women’s flag football at the two-year level. Through this
partnership with NFL Flag and Reigning Champs Experiences, we are
able to provide more resources and opportunities for
student-athletes wanting to participate in women’s flag," said
Brian Luckett, NJCAA Foundation Executive Director. "The NJCAA
Women’s Flag Football Grant assists NJCAA member colleges in
starting flag football programs while expanding sport opportunities
at the two-year level.”
Howard Community College was recently named among the nation's
top two-year colleges by Niche, an online college selection and
data resource for families. HCC ranked #92 among all two-year
institutions and the top community college in the Baltimore
metropolitan area. HCC enrolls nearly 22,000 credit and non-credit
students of all ages from more than 104 countries and yields more
than $343 million in economic impact as one of Howard County's
largest employers.
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About HCC
Since 1970, Howard Community College (HCC) has been a preferred
college choice for students and families in Howard County,
Maryland. A public community college, HCC offers associate degree
and certificate programs, as well as workforce development training
and continuing education classes, to nearly 22,000 credit and
noncredit students each year. HCC received the 2019 Malcolm
Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s only
presidential-level honor for performance excellence in
organizations
About NJCAA Foundation
The mission of the NJCAA Foundation is to enhance the NJCAA
national organization, student-athletes, member colleges and local
communities through financial support, scholarships, program
initiatives and community service.
ABOUT RCX SPORTS
RCX Sports is the premier youth-sports experiences business,
running and operating leagues, camps, combines, tournaments and
events.
RCX works with professional leagues, national governing bodies,
sports-centric businesses and brands to reimagine youth sports
experiences. RCX produces events with world-class partners
including the NFL, Jr. NBA, NAIA, Rivals.com and the 2022 World
Games.
RCX is committed to improving the accessibility and inclusivity
of sports by enhancing the youth sports experience and creating
opportunities for all athletes to play. We believe sports have the
power to transform lives and that every athlete should have the
opportunity to experience the value of sports. For more
information, visit www.rcxsports.com.
ABOUT NFL FLAG
NFL FLAG is an NFL-licensed property of more than 1,600
locally operated leagues and over 500,000 youth athletes across all
50 states. NFL FLAG is a fun and accessible non-contact program
available for girls and boys ages 5-17. Players benefit by being
physically active through non-contact, continuous action while
learning the fundamentals of football as well as lessons in
teamwork and sportsmanship. RCX Sports is the official operator of
NFL FLAG.
Jarrett Carter
Howard Community College
443-518-1800
prmarketing@howardcc.edu