June 18, 2009

BERKELEY - California's Sandy Barbour, who oversees a 27-sport program that has won a combined 53 team and individual national championships during her tenure at the school, has been named one of four regional Under Armour Athletic Directors of the Year by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).

Barbour joins Penn State's Tim Curley, Georgia's Damon Evans and Tulsa's Lawrence "Bubba" Cunningham as the Football Bowl Subdivision regional winners. She will be recognized during the 44th Annual NACDA Convention at the James J. Corbett Luncheon on Saturday, June 20, at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Fla. NACDA will honor recipients in the FBS (formerly Division I-A), Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA), Division I (formerly Division I-AAA), Division II, Division III, NAIA, and Junior/Community Colleges, along with one international winner.

"Sandy Barbour's leadership of our Athletic Department has been exemplary and I know that she is a well-deserving recipient of this honor," Chancellor Robert Birgeneau said. "Throughout her time in Berkeley, she has shown that student-athletes can succeed at high levels both in the classroom and on the playing field. Sandy has helped develop a model program, and with the building of the Student-Athlete High Performance Center well underway, I am excited about the future of Cal Athletics."

NACDA Executive Director Mike Cleary said that the AD of the Year Award is essential because it highlights the efforts of athletics directors at all levels for their commitment and positive contributions to campuses and their surrounding communities.

"Before the program's inception, our Honors and Awards Committee recognized a need for an award such as the AD of the Year," said Cleary. "The program brings to light the exceptional jobs done by athletics directors across the country. These 29 winners exemplify that, providing us with a group of outstanding athletics directors who excel at their jobs."

Barbour arrived at Cal in September 2004 and has helped the Athletic Department become a mainstay among the Top 10 in the annual Directors' Cup standings. The Golden Bears finished in the top 15 during each of her first four years in Berkeley and in the top 10 three times, including a high of seventh in both 2006 and '08. Cal is currently fifth in the 2008-09 Directors' Cub standings.

On the academic front, the cumulative GPA for all of Cal's nearly 900 student-athletes is 3.0, with approximately 175 earning academic all-conference distinction. Center Alex Mack won the Draddy Trophy in December, an award that is presented to the top scholar-athlete in all of college football.

During the most recent academic year, the Bears captured their first NCAA title in women's swimming, the football team earned a school-record sixth consecutive bowl appearance with an invitation to the Emerald Bowl and the women's basketball team advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 for the first time. In addition, Cal earned national runner-up performances in women's tennis, men's and women's crew, and rugby. Overall, 10 programs finished among the nation's Top 10.

Cal sent a school-record 46 athletes and coaches to the Beijing Olympics last summer and they returned with a school-record 17 medals.

Barbour, who was also a finalist for National AD of the Year honors presented at the 2009 Sports Business Awards, is a member of the NACDA Executive Committee, the NCAA Diversity Leadership Strategic Planning Committee, the NCAA Women's Basketball Discussion Group and the WBCA Defensive Player of the Year Selection Committee. She is also on the Pac-10 Executive Committee and Pac-10 Television Committee, in addition to serving as chair of the Pac-10 Finance Committee. Barbour was named the National Administrator of the Year by the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletics Administrators in 2006.