\u201cThe faculty athletic representative is vital to the success of our athletics program,\u201d Haeger said. He explained that the position is responsible for four key aspects: academic integrity, NCAA compliance, enhancing the student-athlete experience and communication with university administrators.<\/p>\n
That responsibility now falls to Destefano, who already has hit the ground running to learn the nuances of the position. It\u2019s a pace suited for Destefano, a former college athlete who values the life-lessons he learned as a football player at Wright College in Chicago.<\/p>\n
\u201cStudent-athletes learn the importance of maintaining strong personal values\u2014such as committing to a goal, cooperating with others and being ethical in your actions,\u201d Destefano said. \u201cThey learn that success is not just measured in wins or losses but by \u2018how you play the game\u2019 and what you learn from the experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
Destefano said his goals as faculty athletic representative include ensuring that academics remain the primary focus of NAU\u2019s athletics program and ensuring gender equity and student-athlete wellbeing.<\/p>\n \u201cWith Tom\u2019s experience as a former college athlete and his academic expertise in student development and counseling, he will be a wonderful asset to our student-athletes,\u201d Haeger said.<\/p>\n Destefano will be following in the footsteps of Sjoberg, who taught psychology at NAU for 40 years before retiring from teaching in 2006, and has served as faculty athletic representative since 1998. Reporting to the Office of the President, Sjoberg has led the university through two successful NCAA certifications and has worked closely with athletic department personnel on issues related to academic integrity, rules compliance and student-athlete welfare.<\/p>\n Sjoberg said serving in the role has given him a new perspective on college athletics. \u201cPrior to this I knew college athletics mostly from a fan\u2019s perspective and from those student-athletes in my classes. I didn\u2019t understand how much is actually required of them to really succeed as both students and athletes.\u201d<\/p>\n He added that the success of NAU\u2019s athletics program requires the work of faculty, staff and administrators across campus who are willing lend their time and effort helping NAU\u2019s student-athletes succeed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"![\"Wayne](\"http:\/\/stage.headlessnauedu-b6hgdzckfdgxgzhe.westus-01.azurewebsites.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/sjoberg.jpg\")