CLEVELAND -- The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) announced the Association's Hall of Fame Class of 2026. The list of inductees includes:
Al Bean, University of Southern Maine;
Jeff Bourne, James Madison University;
Peggy Davis (posthumous), Virginia State University;
Earl Edwards, UC San Diego;
John Jackson, Dean College;
John Parry (posthumous), Brown University;
Fran Reidy, Saint Leo University; and
Kulwant Singh, De Anza College. The group of deserving individuals will be honored in conjunction with the 61
st Annual NACDA & Affiliates Convention at Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nev., at the beginning of the Association-Wide Featured Session on Monday, June 8, starting at 4 p.m.
Peggy Davis, Virginia State University (posthumous)
Peggy Davis, Virginia State University's (VSU) associate vice president for athletics who led the institution's sports programs to numerous championships and accolades over nearly three decades, passed away October 16, 2024. She was a longtime fixture in NCAA Division II athletics.
Davis was hired to be VSU's head women's basketball coach in 1997. Seventeen years later, she became the school's athletics director. During her 27-year tenure, Davis guided VSU's athletics programs to 26 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Championship titles, 20 NCAA Division II tournament appearances, and saw the university's coaches earn 44 Coach of the Year honors.
She oversaw numerous athletics facility improvements on the campus to include the $84 million Multipurpose Center which opened in February 2016 and renovations to Rogers Stadium, VSU's football and track facility.
In 2020, under Davis' leadership, VSU received the NCAA Division II Award of Excellence. She was honored the following year with MOAA's Distinguished Service Award for her work advancing diversity and inclusion in college athletics. She served as MOAA President from 2017-19, guiding the Association to increased membership and providing additional programming and professional development opportunities.
Davis made history as the first woman to serve as interim commissioner of the CIAA and went on to earn CIAA Athletics Director of the Year accolades seven times. In 2010-11, she was recognized by NACDA as an Athletics Director of the Year (ADOY).
She was inducted into the VSU Hall of Fame in 2008 and the Howard Payne University Hall of Fame in 1996, her alma mater where she was the school's first women's basketball All-American.
In December 2024, the CIAA Board of Directors selected Davis as the posthumous recipient of the 2025 Jimmy Jenkins Legacy Award, bestowed to an individual who has provided an environment that supports athletics and academic excellence through educational opportunities and community involvement; focused always on the personal growth, mental wellness and development of the student-athlete athlete and its members.
