Columbia, Maryland, May 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Howard Community College (HCC) President Daria J. Willis today announced the launch of a women’s flag football program for the college. The program will begin with support from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Foundation awarding a $10,000 grant to start the team. HCC will begin competition in the spring 2025 season.
“HCC has always tried to lead with an eye towards opportunity and equity for all students,” said Dr. Willis. “This program will be a major element of promoting women’s participation in sports at all ages, and expanding our college’s championship footprint across men’s and women’s on-field, on-court and esports programs. This is truly a great day for Dragon Country!”
“We are elated to add women’s flag football to the list of sport offerings at our dynamic institution,” said HCC athletic director Mike Smelkinson. “Our intramural flag football league has been a big hit this past year and we are happy to offer the chance for current students to play competitively against other institutions. We are also eager to hit the recruiting trail, as high schools in the state of Maryland and in the region are implementing and growing the sport. We can offer young women at these schools the chance to continue their athletic and academic careers at Howard Community College.”
The NJCAA marked women’s flag football as an emerging sport as interest in it continues to rise nationwide. The NJCAA Foundation partnered with NFL Flag and RCX Sports to help kickstart this exciting opportunity.
In the last four years under Smelkinson’s leadership, Howard Community College has added intercollegiate esports, women’s softball, and launched a sideline cheerleading squad with plans to make it a competitive program. The addition of women’s flag football continues the trend of growth in athletics at one of the nation’s top-performing two-year institutions and parallels its expansion with the 2025 planned opening of the athletics facilities in the state-of-the-art Kahlert Foundation Complex.
“The NJCAA Foundation is excited for the continued growth of women’s flag football at the two-year level. Through this partnership with NFL Flag and Reigning Champs Experiences, we are able to provide more resources and opportunities for student-athletes wanting to participate in women’s flag,” said Brian Luckett, NJCAA Foundation Executive Director. “The NJCAA Women’s Flag Football Grant assists NJCAA member colleges in starting flag football programs while expanding sport opportunities at the two-year level.”
Howard Community College was recently named among the nation’s top two-year colleges by Niche, an online college selection and data resource for families. HCC ranked #92 among all two-year institutions and the top community college in the Baltimore metropolitan area. HCC enrolls nearly 22,000 credit and non-credit students of all ages from more than 104 countries and yields more than $343 million in economic impact as one of Howard County’s largest employers.[***]
