Kevin Lennon, NCAA Vice President for Academic and Membership Affairs, will be the keynote speaker for the 62nd Annual Dowagiac All-Sports Awards Reception.

The awards reception, formally known as the All-Sports Banquet, will be held Thursday, June 2 at 7 p.m. at Dowagiac Middle School.

Lennon has been with the NCAA for 22 years and currently serves as the vice president of academic and membership affairs. Prior to joining the NCAA in 1986, he worked at the University of Notre Dame. After a two-year stint at the NCAA, Lennon served as assistant commissioner of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. He returned to the NCAA in 1989 and was promoted to vice president in 1998.

His primary responsibility is overseeing the work of the academic and membership affairs and student-athlete reinstatement staffs. The academic and membership affairs staff assists member institutions, conferences and student-athletes in their efforts to achieve and maintain full compliance with NCAA rules and regulations.

He serves as the lead staff member working with the NCAA Division I Committee on Academic Performance and the NCAA Division I Board of Directors on the academic-reform initiatives and has been the primary liaison with the Knight Commission. Kevin also charged the NCAA Working Group to Review Initial-Eligibility Trends looking into secondary-school issues.

The All-Sports Awards Reception takes place annually to honor student-athletes from Dowagiac High School. Most valuable player awards are presented as well as the outstanding male and female freshman athletes of the year, the male and female senior athletes of the year, and numerous athletic scholarships.

There is no charge for this event. Refreshments will be served immediately following the event.

For more information, contact the Dowagiac Athletic Boosters at 782-4471.