Fox named AAC AD of the Year

MILLIGAN COLLEGE, Tenn. (May 18, 2020) – Mark Fox, Milligan College vice president for athletics and student development, has been named Appalachian Athletic Conference Athletics Director of the Year, announced the AAC league office Monday afternoon.

"Thanks to all the coaches, staff and student-athletes at Milligan for making my role at Milligan such an enjoyable one," Fox said. "We continue to work hard to achieve excellence on the field of play and in the classroom. Our world is one that is based on competition, and we are able to do that with a group of schools in the AAC that continue to push us and keep us on our toes."

After missing much of last spring due to illness, Fox returned to lead Milligan athletics in one of its most successful years in recent memory. Fox led the athletic department in contributing to Milligan's record enrollment, a result of good recruiting and retention numbers across the board, as well as the addition of Milligan's Esports program. Incoming student-athletes maintained an average grade-point average of 3.74 and an average ACT score of 24.4. Milligan's student-athlete population last fall, which was 448 student-athletes, made up 34% of Milligan's overall student body.

"In addition, thanks to President Dr. Bill Greer and all of the Milligan community for doing such a great job in creating an excellent institution where students can continue their athletic pursuits while getting the invaluable academic training to launch their professional careers. I am especially grateful that our student-athletes can do this within the context of the Christian faith. That is what makes Milligan unique and fill a niche where demand is growing. Finally, I appreciate all of the athletics directors in our conference for this recognition, and for their support and friendship."

In addition to leading a department that contributes to the size and strength of the academic community, Fox has led the department to excellence in athletic competition as well. At the unfortunate and abrupt ending to the 2019-2020 athletic year, Milligan stood at No. 12 in the NAIA Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup standings with 352 points. The next closest AAC institution ranked No. 49 with 168 points.