COLUMBIA, S.C. – Benedict College President Roslyn Clark Artis and Director of Athletics Willie Washington announced that Benedict will add men's volleyball as its 15^th NCAA Division II sponsored sport, beginning with the 2020-21 season.

The addition of men's volleyball was announced at a press conference on Wednesday morning in the DHS Campus Center, along with the announcement that Benedict will receive a $150,000 grant from First Point Volleyball Foundation and USA Volleyball to support the new program.

"It is only fitting that the HBCU of the year should take the lead, as we always do, in new initiatives," said Artis. "We are pleased to announce that Benedict College will be among the six schools in the SIAC conference who will begin men's volleyball in the 2020-2021 academic year. The SIAC will be the first historically black college and university conference to start men's volleyball. It is fitting that the HBCU of the year be in that number."

"This will offer more opportunities for more athletes to come in and be a part of an already great program," said Washington. "Because of the grant we are receiving, that grant is going to make it possible that we can build the program and sustain the program."

Washington announced that Gwendolyn Rouse, Benedict's women's volleyball coach for the past 32 years, will assume the additional duties of coaching the men's team.

"It will really be an easy transition due to the fact that I am currently a certified volleyball official for boys and girls," Rouse said. "For the last five years I've been working with boys as well. I appreciate the opportunity and look for great things to come from the men's volleyball program."

The men will begin playing in the 2020-21 season. Along with the other five schools starting men's volleyball in the SIAC – Central State, Kentucky State, Paine, Morehouse and Fort Valley State - men's volleyball is played by nine Division II schools in Conference Carolinas, including Erskine (Due West), Limestone (Gaffney) and North Greenville (Tigerville) in South Carolina. Four schools sponsor the sport in the South Atlantic Conference, including Coker (Hartsville). The season begins in January and runs through March, with the NCAA Tournament in April.

Wade Garard, CEO of First Point Volleyball Foundation, was also on hand to announce the grant. A total investment of $1 million is being made ($600,000 from First Point Volleyball Foundation and $400,000 from USA Volleyball) to support the six colleges and the league in starting the sport.

"It is a pleasure to be here and partnering with USA Volleyball to provide a $150,000 gift to Benedict College," said Garard. "There is some momentum here and it is fun to be a part of that momentum. Boys volleyball is by far the fastest-growing team sport in America for boys. Forty-one high schools in the state of South Carolina called into an info call a year ago expressing interest and wanting to learn more about starting boys volleyball. There is momentum here in the region as well. We see this as the beginning of big things in Columbia, South Carolina and the region, and our partner, Benedict College, is a big part of that."

"We are extremely pleased to receive this generous investment from the First Point Volleyball Foundation and USA Volleyball," said Gregory Moore, Commissioner of the SIAC. "I am convinced that the impact of this gift will not only be felt on the campuses of those participating SIAC member colleges and universities, but this gift could also serve as a catalyst for increasing African American participation in men's volleyball throughout the United States. Moreover, as the one of the most popular sports internationally - particularly in Sub Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America, HBCU sponsorship of men's volleyball will also create international recruitment opportunities for SIAC member institutions. Finally, much credit must be accorded to the Presidents and Athletic Directors of all of the participating SIAC member institutions for collectively working together to embrace this historic opportunity."
 

About the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
The SIAC is a NCAA athletic conference consisting primarily of historically black colleges and universities with headquarters in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. The SIAC includes 14 member institutions (Albany  University, Kentucky State University, Lane College, LeMoyne-Owen College, Miles College, Morehouse College, Paine College, Savannah State University, Spring Hill College, and Tuskegee University), which are located within a contiguous six-state footprint (Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee and Ohio). The SIAC sponsors seven men's and six women's sports and is a proud member of the NCAA Division II. For more information, visit www.thesiac.com.

About First Point Volleyball Foundation –
Founded in 2016 by Wade Garard and John Speraw, Head Coach of the USA Men's National Team and UCLA Men's Volleyball, First Point Volleyball Foundation exists to provide opportunities for young people to mature and develop through volleyball. Specifically focused on growing boys' and men's volleyball in the United States, First Point Volleyball Foundation initiates and celebrates FIRST POINTS whether that is a first point of a new NCAA team, or a new high school team, or a first point of competitive volleyball for a 12 year-old. First Point Volleyball has raised $3.1 million in less than three years and has helped start 17 new collegiate men's volleyball programs. The Foundation has three strategic initiatives: (1) Growing collegiate opportunities; (2) Growing high school boys' opportunities; and (3) Extending our Reach Diversity Initiative – expanding volleyball opportunities to boys and men of color. For more information, visit www.firstpointvolleyball.com.

About USA Volleyball
Founded in 1928, USA Volleyball is a non-profit organization recognized by the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) as the National Governing Body for the volleyball disciplines of beach, indoor, sitting, snow and beach ParaVolley in the United States. With more than 370,000 registered members, USA Volleyball conducts national championship events, coaching and referee certification programs, and grassroots development across all disciplines in a lifetime sport in which all can participate. USA Volleyball's teams have won an Olympic medal in every Olympic Games since 1984, four Paralympic medals since 2004 and numerous World Cup, World Championship and Continental Championship titles. For more information on USA Volleyball, visit www.usavolleyball.org. #PathtothePodium

About Boys' and Men's Volleyball in the United States
Boys' volleyball is the fastest growing team sport in the United States for high school boys, growing at 22 percent over the last five years. The second-fastest growing sport grew by only 10 percent and football decreased 9 percent over the same five-year period. With 63,563 boys playing high school now it is projected that 100,000 boys will be playing by 2026. Minnesota added 1,000 boys volleyball players and 51 high school teams in the last two years alone. Colorado just officially sanctioned boys' high school volleyball and sanctioning initiatives and pilots are underway in 18 additional states. New Men's Volleyball programs have been initiated in 80 universities in the last five years alone – mostly at the DII, DIII, and NAIA levels. In 2018, First Point Volleyball Foundation provided Saint Francis College-Brooklyn (a Division I institution) a $100,000 grant to add Men's Volleyball beginning in 2019-2020.