DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Student-athletes from the five Little East Conference women’s swimming and diving teams competing at the recent LEC Championships lent their support to the UMass Dartmouth Student-Athlete Advisory Committee’s canned food drive with donations coming from every team.



Swimmers and divers from Plymouth State University, Keene State College, Western Connecticut State University and Eastern Connecticut State University responded to a request from UMass Dartmouth swimming and diving coach Cathy Motta to assist her athletic department’s SAAC-sponsored holiday canned food drive.

“Our SAAC is brand new and it was a great idea to ask the other schools coming to the LEC Championships at UMass Dartmouth to help out,” said Motta. “I can’t say enough about the support we received from the other coaches and teams. They all brought bags and boxes of canned foods and helped us fill an entire storage bin for our SAAC’s first community service project.”

The reestablishment of the SAAC at UMass Dartmouth was one of the early priorities of new Athletic Director Ian Day.

“I think a well-run SAAC can be an important part of the athletic experience for our student-athletes,” said Day, who took over at UMass Dartmouth in September. “It is important for them to learn the values of student leadership and to gain experience in these types of community service projects.”

Four UMass Dartmouth SAAC members attended the Little East Conference SAAC meeting in Providence, RI over the weekend and are planning additional community service projects during the spring 2008 semester.

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