Eastern Kentucky University President Dr. Michael Benson was selected by his fellow university presidents to represent the Ohio Valley Conference on the NCAA Division I Presidential Forum at the May 31 meeting of the Board of OVC Presidents. President Benson’s term begins Sept. 1, 2019.
The Presidential Forum assists the NCAA Division I Board of Directors in its strategic mission of governance of Division I Athletics, and helps to uphold its core values of leadership of intercollegiate athletics at the campus, conference and national level. Presidents and chancellors are elected from each of the 32 Division I conferences, and meet four times a year.
Benson is familiar with leadership roles in intercollegiate athletics having served as chair of the OVC Presidents’ Council and vice chair of the Presidents’ Council for the Big Sky Conference. More recently, he fulfilled a four-year term as a member of the nine-person NCAA Honor Committee, the group charged with selecting individuals to receive the association’s highest recognitions. The last two years on the Honors Committee, Benson served as Chair – the first president from any university in Kentucky to fill that role.
“I’m honored to be selected by my peers to represent the Ohio Valley Conference in this important role in Division I Athletics,” Benson said. “Our athletic program, our teams and our student athletes deserve every opportunity to represent their universities to the best of their abilities, and to have leadership that works on their behalf.”
Benson replaces Dr. Phil Oldham from Tennessee Tech University on the forum.
Benson was named Eastern Kentucky University’s thirteenth president on August 1, 2013. He previously served as president of Southern Utah University, Snow College, and as special assistant to the president at the University of Utah.