Membership

Mississippi/Alabama Conference revisits its origin

Southern Miss hosts 85 attendees for education, fun, and a bit of good old-fashioned competition

Willie Ehling, Region II Vice President, University of Central Florida; Mike Giles, Sr., Director, Recreational Sports, University of Southern Mississippi; Greg Jordan, CRSS, NIRSA President, Oakland University

Willie Ehling and Greg Jordan

This year’s Region II Mississippi/Alabama Conference, held on February 3-4, was hosted by The University of Southern Mississippi, the site of the original conference back in 2000. The conference’s directors, Jillian Salvatore and Sarah Moscript, were excited about bringing it back to Southern Miss.

With NIRSA President Greg Jordan and Region II Vice President Willie Ehling in attendance, the 2006 conference got off to an exciting start on Friday night with a social event at the 21st Annual Southern Miss Coca-Cola Classic Rodeo in Hattiesburg.

Saturday morning brought the educational portion of the conference. With roundtables and presentations ranging from Hurricane Katrina aftermath and new NIRSA/CAS standards to yoga and body composition assessment, much information was shared and discussed. In conjunction with the conference, Southern Miss hosted a lifeguard competition. The University of Mississippi won first place, with Southern Miss and Mississippi State taking second and third places, respectively.

During lunch, Mitch Williams, sports director for WDAM-TV in Hattiesburg, gave the keynote speech. Mr. Williams spoke of using our profession and positions to help others in need.

After lunch, the state student business meeting was held. The meeting was conducted by Melanie Freeman, the Region II Student Rep from North Alabama; Jillian Salvatore, the Mississippi State Student Rep from Southern Miss; Kim West, the Alabama State Student Rep from North Alabama; and Brent Boostrom, the Florida State Student Rep from Central Florida.

In all, 60 students and 25 professionals from nine different schools attended the conference.

Thanks to Tyler Williams, Assistant Director for Marketing/PR, Recreational Sports, The University of Southern Mississippi, for this article.