CLEVELAND, Ohio – The UNC Pembroke athletics department was well-represented as the National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators (NACMA) kicked off its virtual convention that spans much of the month of June. Assistant Athletics Director Jack "Bull" Slavin was featured as part of NACMA's Young Professional's Workshop, while the external operations team picked up six more of the organization's "Best Of" Awards for its efforts during the 2019-20 athletic season.
 
Initiated in 2003, the NACMA "Best Of" Awards program honors outstanding achievement in marketing and promotions. Awards are presented in 16 categories, with each category divided into three groups based upon school size and conference affiliations to promote fairness. Nearly 1,000 entries were received for the 2019-20 year. The winners were recognized during the 2020 NACMA Virtual Awards Ceremony on May 27.
 
UNCP falls into Group III which represents all Division II Institutions, Division III Institutions, NAIA Institutions, Junior College Institutions, Community College Institutions and Canadian Institutions.
 
The Braves earned a silver medal under the category of Digital Promotion for their marketing efforts across men's basketball's Social Media Night. The department earned five bronze laurels under the categories of Schedule Poster, Revenue-Generating Idea, Revenue-Producing Video, Single-Game Sales Campaign and Static Promotional Advertisement.
 
The schedule poster award came as a result of the team's work on the 2019 football poster, but four others came as a result of the marketing efforts during football season as well. The replica t-shirts, as well as the miniature gold helmets, sold near the conclusion of the campaign spawned the honor for revenue-generating idea, while the revenue-producing "Touch Of Gold" video was a part of the Homecoming efforts. The single-game sales campaign award was lauded thanks to its Gear Up segment on ESPN that aided ticket sales for Homecoming, while graphics promoting season tickets for the 2019 football season was the reason for the static promotional advertisement award.
 
Slavin, a key member of the UNCP Athletics external operations team, was a speaker for the second time during the spring semester at the Young Professionals Workshop on June 2. He also served as a panelist at the Peach Belt Conference's inaugural career forum on January 30 in Evans, Ga.
 
"I was extremely humbled and honored to be featured and represent Division II institutions as a part of NACMA's Young Professional Workshop," Slavin said. "I was included among some of the hardest-working marketing professionals across the country, and it was exciting for me to be able to share all of the great things that we are accomplishing here at UNCP. I am excited to implement some of the ideas that I discussed with other young professionals and industry leaders and apply them to our marketing strategy in 2020-21 and beyond."
 
UNCP's 2019-20 external operations team was comprised of:

• Jack "Bull" Slavin, Assistant Athletics Director/Marketing Partnerships
• Adam Hardin, Assistant Athletics Director/Executive Director of Braves Club
• Lamar Courmon, Director of Creative Services
• Morgan Sheehan, Associate Athletic Communications Director
• Jen Smith, Director of Fan Engagement
• Jon Gross, Associate Director of UNCP Sports Network
• David Jarman, (former) Associate Director of UNCP Sports Network
• Jahvae Giddens, (former) Assistant Director of Braves Club
• Todd Anderson, Associate Athletics Director/Communications & Strategic Initiatives