AE NCCS National Volleyball Championships

FAQ

What's special about the NCCS National Volleyball Championships?

What distinguishes the NCCS National Volleyball Championships?

1. History/Tradition

• The championships started out as an independently organized men’s tournament hosted on college campuses in 1985
• The first women's division was added in 1995, at the insistence of NIRSA, when we took over tournament management
• By 2000, the event had outgrown the college campus and moved to a convention center setting
• A total of 3,298 teams (35,057 students) have participated in this event since 1985

2. Professional development

• Prior to 2000, the tournament was hosted at NIRSA member schools.
• Since 2000, the year the tournament moved to a convention center, a total of 186 NIRSA volunteers (20-25 campus recreation professionals a year, often sport club administrators) have contributed to this tournament, gaining valuable professional development in the process.
• Volunteer experience is grounded in learning outcomes and professional development goals consistent with NIRSA’s mission and the NCCS guiding principles.

3. Participant development

• We are a higher education association
• NIRSA fosters student development in all its programs and activities
• Learning takes place everywhere, not just the classroom
• Players are people. NIRSA believes in educating the whole student and creating opportunities that extend beyond the tournament.
• There are many opportunities for growth and development at the national volleyball championships, including:
  • Giving back to the communities hosting our tournament (for example, helping with children, painting homes, working in a soup kitchen).
  • Players can attend a coaching or officiating education session where they can gain insight on the process of becoming certified in those respective disciplines.

4. Research

• A survey was administered by the National Research Institute to 2,749 sport club volleyball participants who attended the 2007 NCCS Volleyball Championships
  • Results: Participants gained in life skills, acceptance and appreciation for diversity, social interactions, communication, character, leadership, and beliefs about themselves.
  • Participants demonstrated the greatest gains in travel planning skills, school pride, sense of belonging, and overall leadership development.
  • Participants were also significantly more engaged than the standard college student population with on and off-campus groups, communicating with faculty members, and providing leadership for a club or organization.
• A three-year longitudinal study (NCCS Learning Outcomes Project) is upcoming in partnership with the National Research Institute at The Ohio State University
  • Teams who participate in the 2010 AE NCCS National Volleyball Championships can take part in the study
  • Schools can use the results to better position themselves with university administrators and demonstrate the value of recreational sports in higher education

5. Sponsorships (see Sponsorships FAQ )

6. Championship finals

• The Gold Division Finals are played in a grander separate arena in front of 3,500 enthusiastic fans. This venue is complete with music, scoreboard, public address announcer, team march-in, pregame introduction and post-match awards ceremony.

7. Safety & Security

• Safety and security of everyone in attendance is of paramount importance.
• A university-approved Team Liaison is assigned to represent each team and promote the standards of conduct.
• Standards of conduct infractions are documented so that staff can communicate more effectively with Sport Club Directors following the event.
• Convention center security is increased on the last day of the championships, when the Division I finals are being played.
• NIRSA volunteers work directly with hotel security, walking the halls of each floor each evening to help identify and address potential problems before they can escalate.

What about all the misinformation circulated by another organization that NIRSA doesn't have anything to do with volleyball and is only hosting a national championship to make a lot of money?
Read the truth about the NCCS National Volleyball Championships.