Jacqie McWilliams Parker is a pioneering leader in collegiate athletics. Since 2012, she has led the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA)—the oldest historically Black athletic conference in the U.S as Commissioner and taken the organization to unprecedented heights. Her appointment made history, as she became the first female and the first African-American female commissioner across all NCAA divisions (I, II, and III). A former two-sport CIAA student-athlete at Hampton University, McWilliams Parker has combined her deep institutional knowledge and nearly a decade of experience at the NCAA National Office to transform the conference.

McWilliams Parker explained that her experience as a student-athlete gives her unique insight as Commissioner. With the power of sports, she believes that college athletes can discover their purpose.

“I was a two-sport athlete at Hampton University from 1987 to 1991. I was a walk-on for both basketball and volleyball. They didn't have scholarships for volleyball at the time, and basketball had already given out its scholarships,” McWilliams Parker said. “So I came in in preseason and tried out and made both teams. We won the 88 national championship my freshman year, and we won the CIAA volleyball championship my freshman year, and I was Player of the Year for volleyball, all conference, all tournament for volleyball my entire career.”

“We won the volleyball championship in 1990. So we won my freshman year, and in my senior year, I was the MVP of the tournament. I always tell people basketball, for me, is a little blurb. We had a lot of transition with a new coach, and for me, it was just trying to get through four years of my scholarship,” she recalled.  “It was tough, but I'm in the CIAA Hall of Fame with my basketball team and in the Hall of Fame at Hampton twice as an individual. Sports gave me a chance to go to college.”

Throughout her distinguished career, which includes managing the Women’s and Men's NCAA championships, McWilliams Parker always had in the back of her mind that she wanted to lead the CIAA. 

“I may have recognized when I was working at the NCAA that I wanted to be commissioner. I knew that I loved the work, and I love the CIAA. I think after I left, I wanted to go back and be the commissioner of that conference,” McWilliams Parker. “Then it became my dream job. So for it to actually happen is surreal. To actually speak it into existence with the leadership  I worked with at the NCAA, and it was 20-something years ago. I've been at the CIAA for 13 years. It's a surreal thing.”

McWilliams Parker embodies a new era of leadership in collegiate sports where Black women are leading in executive roles. She hopes that her journey will inspire other women to blaze their own trail in athletics.

"So there are eight of us now who are women of color. But let me just give props to the interim, Shauna Brown, who was Deputy Commissioner of the American East Conference, and then Peggy Davis, who was the interim CIAA commissioner before I became the first full-time,” McWilliams Parker shared. “So to be full-time in the position in the first representing all three divisions, is incredible."

“We all have our firsts, but I think the challenge for African American women in the industry is that there’s a lot about the work that continues to have to be done for us to even get in these positions,” she continued. “Many of us are prepared to be in the position, while some of us think we should not be in the position. But the preparation and the opportunity, that's what we all want."

“All of them are my friends. We're in a chat. I believe that I've helped all of them in some kind of way to position themselves, to have the courage to interview, and to see themselves in a commissioner role,” she added.

During her tenure, McWilliams Parker has helped to position the CIAA to be a thriving conference committed to innovation and financial viability. So far, she’s secured major media and corporate partnerships with brands such as Under Armour, steering the iconic CIAA Basketball Tournament, which is now held in Baltimore, Md.,  and championing equity and student-athlete well-being.

“Because we have such a diverse group of students in our conference and institutions, from private and public, and we don't shy away from the hard things,” McWilliams Parker explained. “ I'm proud that I work for 12 presidents who value advocacy. They value opportunities and access for what the CIAA is allowed to do in our media rights, you know, to have the deal with HBCU GO and ESPN during basketball season to give that exposure.

"I'm proud that we've been able to help create our sports network platform to showcase all of our sports to the best of our ability. But we still have work to do.”

One of the keys to McWilliams Parker's success is realizing that she is not in it alone. Along with Sonja O Stills of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), Charles McClelland of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), and Anthony Holloman of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) have created the HBC4Us Association, “a landmark alliance dedicated to protecting the integrity, legacy, cultural value, and competitiveness of HBCU athletic programs.”

“We started our HBCU Alliance. We're not incorporated or anything like that. I think it's just a way for us to make sure that folks know that we're aligned as for HBCU conferences, and that we are working collectively to make sure that our voices are heard in a way that supports and advocates for the four of us,” she explained. “We know individually, we have our own missions and visions, but at the end of the day, we're still all trying to do the same to do the same thing. We try to promote and support one another. “

“It’s been a blessing to have my three best friends, whom I will call colleagues, and to be able to work through some of the challenges that we have as commissioners. Sometimes it's a lonely spot. It doesn't have to be when you can lean on, you know, your colleagues who are dealing with some of the same issues that you have,” McWilliams Parker continued.  “So I call them my friends, my brothers, my sisters. They call me their Madam Chair. I feel like I am most proud that we've been able to find a way together to navigate this space of college athletics, but it's a different time.”