An October concert by the United States Marine Corps Band which drew more than 1,000 visitors to the West Liberty campus has been selected as the West Virginia Conference's winner of the NCAA Division II Community Engagement Award of Excellence.
The Community Engagement Award of Excellence is an annual award established by Division II in support of the divisionfs community engagement drive. The award rewards institutions for their creativity in advancing that initiative.
All Division II schools were encouraged to submit their best community engagement promotion for consideration with winners chosen from each NCAA Division II conference. West Liberty and 20 other conference winners will receive a $500 grant that can be used to support additional community engagement programs.
We set a goal a year ago to win the conferences Community Engagement Award and, thanks to the efforts of our SAAC (Student-Athlete Advisory Council) members, we did it, said West Liberty athletic director Jim Watson. The prize money we received was really secondary to the wonderful experience we had hosting this prestigious group.
Members of the SAAC helped organize the event, which was held in the main arena of West Libertys Academic, Sports, and Recreation Center. Athletes from the women's basketball and volleyball programs assisted in setting up for the concert, ticket management and ushering guests to their seats.
West Liberty president Robin Capehart dedicated the event to area service veterans and welcomed a number of local veterans groups as special guests. Free tickets were made available upon request to Ohio Valley residents and more than 1,000 took advantage of the opportunity.
West Liberty was honored to welcome what many regard as the best concert performance band in the country to our campus, Capehart said, and we were happy to open the event to the public.
Founded in 1798, the United States Marine Corps Band is the oldest professional music organization in America. President Thomas Jefferson assigned the band to perform at official ceremonies for the Commander in Chief and the Commandant of the Marine Corps. It has performed for every U.S. President since John Adams.
