CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – The Patriot League has announced the hiring of Emily Parkins as its Director for Championships and Sport Management. Parkins joins the League after spending two years at the NCAA office in Indianapolis, Ind.
 
In her new role Parkins will coordinate the planning and administration of the Patriot League’s 23 championships while also working with the League’s sport management and governance team.
 
“The range of experiences that Emily brings to the Patriot League will provide a valuable asset in the office and to our member institutions,” Commissioner Jennifer Heppel said. “Emily has excelled as a student-athlete and most recently with the NCAA national office and we are excited to have her join our team.”
 
“I am very excited for the opportunity to be a part of such a distinguished league,” Parkins said. “I look forward to providing unforgettable championship experiences for Patriot League student-athletes across 23 sports.”
 
In her most recent role with the NCAA, Parkins served as a Coordinator of Playing Rules and Officiating, Championships and Alliances since December 2014. She managed all aspects associated with the planning and execution of the National Collegiate Women’s Bowling Championship. She was a liaison to the Women’s Bowling Committee where she conducted site visits, assisted with the bid process and facilitated championship selections. Parkins also provided support to 16 NCAA playing rules committees and the Playing Rules Oversight Panel by distributing memos to the membership regarding playing rules updates, composing comment period surveys and assisting with all other aspects of the playing rules process.
 
Parkins began her career with the NCAA as a Championships and Alliances Postgraduate Intern in June 2014. Prior to her promotion, she managed numerous projects in the playing rules department, while serving as a team member for the planning of the FCS football, women’s volleyball, men’s ice hockey and baseball Division I Championships.
 
Before joining the NCAA, Parkins served as a Championships and Media Relations Intern at the Centennial Conference in Lancaster, Pa. She assisted with all aspects of the conference’s daily media relations operation and championship administration. She had also spent two academic years as a Graduate Assistant in the Athletics Department at Millersville University, assisting the Associate AD for Compliance, while serving as a main point of contact for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). While working at Millersville, she earned her Master of Education in sport management in 2014.
 
Parkins, a Harleysville, Pa., native, earned her Bachelor of Science degree in business administration with a minor in Spanish from Shippensburg University in 2012, where she was a four-year letterwinner on the softball team. She earned Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Scholar-Athlete honors four times, while earning National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Scholar-Athlete recognition twice in 2010 and 2011. Parkins is also a member of the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators (NACWAA) and the Collegiate Event and Facility Management Association (CEFMA).