General | 6/3/2024 2:58:28 PM
Empire 8 Conference Executive Director Chuck Mitrano will receive the Major Donald Holleder Award at the Rochester Press-Radio Club’s Celebration of Champions at the Rochester Red Wings game at Innovative Field on June 11.
“Empire 8 is bursting with pride and appreciation for Chuck Mitrano!” said Nazareth University President
Dr. Beth Paul, who serves as the Chair of the Empire 8 President’s Council. “This recognition is so well deserved - through exceptional leadership and serving as a role model with such integrity, Chuck has earned recognition regionally and nationally for excellence in collegiate athletics. It is an honor to work with him.”
The Major Donald Holleder Award is presented to a person whose active life has exhibited the highest level of sportsmanship, character, courage, and achievement consistent with the name of Donald Holleder, a former Aquinas Institute and U.S. Military Academy football star who was killed in a Vietnam War battle while attempting to rescue several wounded members of his battalion.
“Chuck is considered a national leader and authority on Sportsmanship and is a most deserving recipient of this prestigious honor,” said Tony Wells, who has served as a member of the Rochester Press-Radio Club Awards Selection Committee since 1985.
Previous winners of the award have included national figures such as Olympian Wilma Rudolph, New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin, Buffalo Bills head coach Marv Levy, former NFL running backs Rocky Bleier and Gale Sayers, Syracuse men’s basketball head coach Jim Boeheim and Paychex Inc. founder Tom Golisano, among several others.
“As a lifelong Rochesterian working in athletics, I am very familiar with the history and significance of the Rochester Press Radio Club and the Major Don Holleder award,” said Mitrano. “I am deeply honored and proud to receive this recognition.”
In August 2001, Mitrano joined the Empire 8, becoming the youngest Commissioner in the history of the NCAA at that time. Throughout his tenure with the conference, Mitrano has stressed the importance of athletics playing an intentional educational role consistent with the institutional mission of higher education. He created the “Conduct Foul Program” which tracks fouls that are deemed unsporting by that sport’s playing rules. The program was eventually adopted by all Division II and III and has become standard in all divisions and many high schools across the country.
The Empire 8 has become highly influential amongst Division III conferences. In the past three years, E8 sponsored and passed six NCAA Division III legislative amendments, three times more than any other conference in that period. In total, the E8 has sponsored and passed 11 legislative proposals.
Mitrano has served on several national committees. Most recently, he chaired the NCAA Division III Championship Committee where he successfully led and effort to create the NCAA Power Index (NPI), an algorithm that improves the NCAA team selection criteria and rankings and ushered in the first-ever expansion of DIII Championships providing more access and opportunities for all student-athletes. He has also served as President of both the NCAA Division III Commissioner's Association and United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA), the first primary Commissioner of any division to ever hold the post.
In 2024-25, the Empire 8 will expand to 12 full-time member institutions, largest in league history.
Mitrano also serves as the Commissioner of the United Volleyball Conference (UVC) and the United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC). Before arriving at the Empire 8, Mitrano was the Assistant Athletic Director at RIT, Sports Information Director (SID) at RIT and was named SID at St. John Fisher while still a senior in college at the age of 20.
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
EMPIRE 8 SOCIAL MEDIA
YouTube –
Facebook –
Twitter –
Instagram