SAN ANTONIO (Aug. 13, 2019) – The Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) Athletics Department has announced that Professor Stefanie N. Becerril will be the new Faculty Athletics Representative (FAR). Professor Becerril takes over the position after the passing away of Dr. Cary Guffey this summer. Dr. Guffey was OLLU's FAR since the university began competing in athletics in 2007. He was a treasured member of the Saints family and will be missed.
As a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), OLLU is bound by eligibility standards. These rules exist for the common good of all participants, and Professor Becerril will be responsible for ensuring OLLU's athletes abide by these standards. Athletes failing to comply with expected standards will face institutional sanctions, which may affect their eligibility to participate in the athletic program.
Student-athletes are responsible for upholding and maintaining personal eligibility status. However, coaches, the athletic director, assistant athletic director, and Professor Becerril will be available to assist students to better understand and comply with NAIA requirements.
For a student to be eligible for any NAIA-recognized intercollegiate competition at OLLU, Professor Becerril will ensure that the student conforms to the following regulations:
An entering freshman student must be a graduate of an accredited high school or be accepted as a regular student in good standing as defined by the enrolling institution.
An entering freshman student must meet two of the three entry-level requirements:
- A minimum score of 18 on the Enhanced ACT or 860 on the SAT (for tests taken on or after April 1, 1995);
- An overall high school grade point average of 2.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale;
- Graduate in the upper half of the student's high school graduating class.
The class rank must appear on the student's transcript, leaving certificate or other academic document. If the student's class rank does not appear on the above-mentioned documents, a letter from the student's principal or headmaster, written on the school's letterhead and with the school's official seal, stating that the student meets the class rank requirement can be accepted.
Becerril will be graduating with her Ph.D. this semester from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She earned her master's degree and Bilingual Certificate in Communication and Learning Disorders from OLLU in 2012. She earned her undergraduate degree from Augustana College in Rock Island, Ill. There, she was a student-athlete and letter winner for the women's swimming and diving team, and she had an all-time top 10 time in the 400 individual medley.
Becerril has been working at OLLU since 2018 and teaches courses on school-age language and literacy disabilities and serves as the director for the Communication and Learning Disorders Bilingual Certificate Program and the Multi-Lingual Lab.
Originally from Chicago, she loves living in downtown San Antonio in the King William-Southtown area with her husband and their rescue dog Sheshe.