UMES' Nelson Townsend Named to NACDA 2012 HOF Class

Nelson Townsend, a 1962 graduate of then
Maryland State College (UMES) holds
the distinction as A.D. of moving Buffalo
and Delaware State from NCAA
Divisions III and II, respectively, to
NCAA Division I.
(Photo Courtesy: UMES Athletics)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The 2012 Hall of Fame class includes: Nelson Bobb, University of North Carolina Greensboro; Bob Bottger, St. Louis Community College Meramec; Rudy Carvajal, Cal State Bakersfield; Oval Jaynes, Jacksonville State University; Laing Kennedy, Kent State University; Andrea `Andi' Seger, Ball State University; and Nelson Townsend, University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

The inductees will receive their awards on Tuesday, June 26 at NACDA's 47th Annual Convention at the Learfield Sports Directors' Cup Awards Luncheon, located at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas.

Nelson Townsend began his storied athletics administration career when he was named director of athletics at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) in 1975, and again, in 2003. During his career, Townsend oversaw athletics programs at Delaware State, Florida A&M and the University at Buffalo.

While at Buffalo, he became the first African-American AD in 1987, and worked to move the athletics program from NCAA Division III to Division I in just three-and-a-half years. During his time at Delaware State, Townsend oversaw the athletics department transition from Division II to Division I.

During his time as an administrator, he served on various committees, including the NCAA Olympic Liaison Committee, NCAA Nominating Committee, Board of Directors for the Boy Scouts of America and National Education Association.

In February, Townsend was inducted into the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Athletics Hall of Fame, which only has 199 total members. This marked the second time that he has been inducted into a collegiate hall of fame. In 1987, he was selected into the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Hall of Fame.

About NACDA: NACDA, now in its 47th year, is the professional and educational association for more than 6,500 college athletics administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 2,200 athletics administrators annually attend the NACDA Convention. Additionally, NACDA administers 11 professional associations, including six for the separate business units that report directly to the athletics directors and two foundations. For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com.

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