The UNC-Chapel Hill School of Law will host Big Ten Conference Commissioner Jim Delany on Thursday (Feb. 7) as the featured speaker for the inaugural Carolina Law Alumni Speaker Series.
Delany, who earned his undergraduate and law degrees at Carolina and was a member of the men’s varsity basketball team, will present “College Sports and the Media: The Past, Present and Future” from noon to 1 p.m. in the School of Law’s rotunda. The event is free and open to the public. A reception will follow.
Only the Big Ten’s fifth commissioner since its founding in 1896, Delany is currently serving his 19th year in that role. He has led the Big Ten through significant periods of change and growth that have helped the conference maintain its preeminent position as one of the nation's leaders in providing quality athletic and academic experiences for young people.
A native of South Orange, N.J., the 59-year-old Delany served as counsel for the N.C. Senate Judiciary Committee from 1973 to 1974 and was staff attorney for the N.C. Justice Department from 1974 to 1975. Delany’s distinguished career in administering intercollegiate athletics began at the National Collegiate Athletic Association, where he was an enforcement representative from 1975-79. For the next decade, he served as commissioner of the Ohio Valley Conference, where he oversaw the growth and enhancement of conference athletic programs for men and women.
School of Law contact: Matt Marvin, (919) 962-4125 or mmarvin@email.unc.edu