The MEAC has found its next conference commissioner – and it didn’t have to look very far.
Sonja Stills has been picked by the MEAC to over as the league’s commissioner. Stills currently serves as the Chief of Staff and Chief Operating Officer of the conference under Dr. Dennis Thomas, the conference’s outgoing commissioner.
“I’m honored to be named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s next Commissioner,” Sonja Stills said in a statement via the MEAC. “I’ve learned a great deal in my tenure with the conference and look forward to continuing the MEAC’s history of excellence. Thank you to the MEAC Council of Presidents and Chancellors for this opportunity and thank you to Commissioner Dr. Dennis E. Thomas for your leadership and mentorship over the past 19 years.”
Stills has been credited with numerous improvements in the conference, working with corporate sponsors and managing the conference’s budget.
“On behalf of MEAC institutions’ presidents and chancellors, I am thrilled to welcome Ms. Stills as our next commissioner,” said Johnson O. Akinleye, Ph.D., chancellor of North Carolina Central University and chair of the MEAC Presidents and Chancellors Council. “Her extensive portfolio, experience and service with the MEAC make her uniquely prepared to elevate the conference in the coming years. As a proven leader who is making history for the MEAC, she is equally passionate about providing opportunities for our diverse student-athletes and building a portfolio of athletic and academic successes.”
Stills has worked closely with Thomas for nearly two decades. She now inherits the challenge of helping the league find a way to thrive moving forward after losing five schools since 2009, including three in 2020.
“Congratulations to Sonja Stills,” Thomas said in the league’s statement. “I’m thrilled to see her hard work, determination, discipline and integrity being rewarded. Sonja has always demonstrated vision and a passion for student-athlete achievement, which is why I’m confident she will lead the MEAC to its next level of success.”