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Southwestern Athletic Conference commissioner Charles McClelland received a contract extension through the 2032 academic year, the conference’s council of presidents and chancellors announced Friday.

McClelland became commissioner of the SWAC in the summer of 2018 and has helped the league raise its profile in terms of football and men’s basketball.

“Over the course of the past five years the Southwestern Athletic Conference has made significant strides towards becoming one of the most widely recognized and visible athletic conferences in the country,” SWAC Council of Presidents and Chancellors Chairman Quinton T. Ross Jr., said in a news release.

“The visionary and dynamic leadership of Commissioner McClelland has helped propel our conference to prominence on a national stage while also increasing the availability of financial resources that have positively impacted the overall student-athlete experience. We are undoubtedly excited about the continued upward trajectory of our league under his leadership.”

McClelland also was highly visible during the latter stages of the 2023-24 college basketball season while serving as the chairman of the Division I Men’s Basketball Committee that selects at-large teams and handles seeding for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

McClelland was the first person from an HBCU league or institution to chair the committee. His five-year overall stint on the committee ended last season.

–Field Level Media