WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Palm Beach Atlantic's Assistant A.D. for Athletic Communications, TJ Budd, has been selected by the NCAA leadership development office and Board of Governors Committee to Promote Cultural Diversity and Equity as one of 22 senior-level administrators to participate in the NCAA Pathway Program, with the goal of preparing these individuals to attain positions as directors of athletics or conference commissioners. Budd was one of just five administrators chosen from NCAA Division II.
 
Budd has been at PBA since 2015 and was promoted to the position of Assistant Athletic Director in 2018. He serves as a member of the Palm Beach Atlantic Senior Leadership Team, overseeing 10 programs as a sport administrator. Budd took the reins of PBA's yearly peer-to-peer fundraising effort while providing oversight of all athletic communications, multi-media and sports broadcasting for PBA's 18 programs.
 
"I'm extremely honored and privileged to be selected for this year's Pathway program," Budd said. "I want to thank Courtney Lovely Evans for her support, encouragement and recommendation to pursue this program. It is evident that this is the premier leadership development program and I'm excited to learn and grow over the next year from some of the best leaders in the NCAA membership."
 
The Pathway Program spans the course of a year, providing participants with many engagement opportunities through experiential learning. The touchpoints focus on advancing cohort members to the top role in an athletics department or conference office, while building their skills to thrive in their current duties. 
 
"TJ plays an instrumental role on the department's administrative leadership team," PBA Director of Athletics Courtney Lovely Evans said. "Since joining our staff in 2015 he has aided in the growth of the national recognition of the Sailfish brand while also contributing in the department's mission of developing Christian Game-Changers. This is a wonderful professional development opportunity that will further enhance his influence in our department and campus as well as prepare him for future leadership opportunities."
 
Participants will engage with a diverse curriculum that features case study assignments, exploration of culture development, sessions-led by higher education and athletics leadership, and a thorough mock interview process. The Pathway Program cohort begins its journey with an engaging stretch of virtual programming and connection from June 21-30.
 

The Division I Pathway Participants include:

 

Kristen Brown, Deputy Athletics Director, Texas A&M      Lauren Cevis, Deputy Athletic Director/Senior Woman Administrator, Jacksonville K. Renia Edwards, Senior Athletic Director/Senior Woman Administrator, Compliance & Student-Athlete Affairs, Mississippi Valley State Carl Hairston, Associate Director of Athletics for External Affairs, North Carolina A&T      Raymond Harrison, Senior Associate Athletics Director, NC State.    Byron Hatch, Assistant Commissioner, Southeastern Conference     Carl Heck, Senior Associate Athletic Director - Capital, Facilities & Events, Penn State Lisa Liotta, Associate Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator, Canisius   Jeff Mitchell, Deputy Director of Athletics, Southern Mississippi Alison Quandt Westgate, Associate Athletic Director - Academics & Student services, UMass Lowell Kurt Svoboda, Associate Athletic Director for External Communications and Public Relations, Michigan Jaunelle White, Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis

 

The Division II & III Pathway Participants include:

 

TJ Budd, Assistant Athletic Director, Palm Beach Atlantic      Gregg DiNardo, Associate Director of Athletics, Amherst Stephanie Dollar, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator, Massachusetts Boston Betsy Feutz, Assistant Vice President/Senior Woman Administrator, Lindenwood (Missouri)      Chelsea Herman, Senior Associate Athletics Director/Senior Woman Administrator, Cal State San Bernardino Summer Hutcheson, Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Washington University in St. Louis Sara Higley, Senior Associate Athletic Director, Ferris State   Marie Stroman, Associate Executive Director, Middle Atlantic Conference Alexandra Vernon, Associate Director of Athletics for Compliance, Business, and Internal Operations/Senior Woman Administrator/Director of Club Sports and Intramurals/Assistant Softball Coach, Knox Terrence Warren, Associate Athletic Director for External Affairs, Queens (North Carolina)