Leon G. Kerry

Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer

Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) 

Leon G. Kerry is commissioner and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Formerly the business manager, he was promoted to commissioner in 1990. Commissioner Kerry has guided the 95-year old CIAA conference to unprecedented success through a combination of savvy marketing, innovative technology and corporate sponsorships. 

• In 2005, Kerry brokered a contract with ESPN that made the CIAA Tournament the first NCAA Division II conference tournament televised as part of ESPN's Championship Week.
  
• He has partnered with local and regional media outlets to have CIAA games broadcast in syndication on FOX, UPN, and WB affiliates.
  
• Under Commissioner Kerry, corporate sponsor retention rate is a phenomenal 92 percent over the past 16 years. Corporate partners have enabled Kerry to secure $7.2 million in scholarship money for the member institutions and an additional $23 million for other championships and television.
  
• In 1998, Kerry secured the largest sponsorship package in history among HBCU conferences and Division II when Coca-Cola North America signed a five-year, $2 million agreement with the CIAA. He surpassed the preceding record when Coke renewed the contract at $3 million for another five years in 2003.
  
• Kerry is also committed to promoting all 16 CIAA championships in baseball, football, men's and women's tennis, golf, men's and women's indoor/outdoor track and field, men's and women's cross-country, softball, volleyball, and bowling.
  
• An outspoken proponent of women's sports, Commissioner Kerry added bowling and women's tennis, now in its sixth year of sponsorship.
  
• His many honors and awards include: The Meritorious Service Award from Livingstone College in 2004; 2002 NCAA Fellows Award; 2003 Making Better Communities Award; the 2002-2003 Who's Who in Executives in Business; the NAACP Leadership award in 1992. In addition, Kerry was inducted into the CIAA Hall of Fame in 2005.
  
• He is a native of Hampton, VA with a degree in business administration from Norfolk State University as well as a degree in banking from the American Institute of Banking.
  
• Kerry is also a decorated U.S. Army officer serving both active duty and in the U.S. Army Reserve.
• Kerry and his wife of 33 years, Angela, reside in Chesapeake, VA. They have two grown daughters and one grandchild.