EAST STROUDSBURG – Former East Stroudsburg University women's basketball standout Lori Pio Jacques '96 M'00 has been named to the 40th Anniversary Tribute Team as part of the NCAA's celebration of Division II athletics throughout 2013.

She is one of two representatives from the PSAC, along with Bloomsburg's David Williams, a men's tennis player from 1978-81. The team is comprised of 48 former student-athletes – one male and one female from each of the division's 23 current conferences, plus two at-large nominees. The tribute team was developed through a partnership with the Division II Conference Commissioners Association.

“This group of former student-athletes is meant to reflect the core values of Division II athletics,” said Josh Looney, associate director of Division II. “Commissioners have helped identify a diverse group of championship individuals from Division II's 40-year history. Not only did these former student-athletes act as champions in athletics and in the classroom, they've gone on to live championship lives as well.

“This group is a true representation of Division II's commitment to providing its student-athletes a 'Life in the Balance' that extends beyond athletics.”

Jacques, a 2006 inductee to the ESU Athletic Hall of Fame, was also a member of the Warriors' 1994-95 PSAC championship team which was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 2010.

She graduated from ESU in 1996 with a bachelor's degree in Management, and returned for her Master of Education in Health and Physical Education with a concentration in Sport Management in 2000. She is currently the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Alumni Relations at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth.

She was a graduate assistant coach at ESU during the 1999-00 season, returning to a program that she helped lead to two NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, three straight PSAC East titles, and the 1994-95 PSAC championship during her career.

She was a three-time All-PSAC East selection for the Warriors, earning first team recognition as a junior and senior. She averaged 18.6 points and 10.5 rebounds as a junior on ESU's PSAC championship team, the only one in school history. The Warriors won the PSAC East regular season title in each of her last three seasons (1994-96) and played in the NCAA Tournament in 1994 and 1995.

She was a two-time ECAC All-Region first team selection and ranks first at ESU in career rebounds (1,023), fifth in scoring (1,527 points) and first in field goal percentage (52.1).

Jacques has served at UMass-Dartmouth since 2010. She previously worked as Director of Alumni Outreach at Northeastern University from 2005-10, as Assistant Director of the Boston College Alumni Association from 2003-05, as Assistant to the Associate Athletic Director for Athletic Development at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst from 2001-03, and Events Coordinator for the Block V Club at Villanova University in 2000-01.

Bloomsburg's David Williams, a men's tennis athlete for the Huskies, currently serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Make-A-Wish Foundation®. Williams joined the organization in 2005 after spending 10 years at Habitat for Humanity International. The PSAC raised the most funds of any NCAA Division II conference during the 2011-12 academic year with a record-setting amount of $37,890.

About Division II / 40th Anniversary Tribute Team

Division II gained its own unique intercollegiate athletics identity when Divisions I, II and III were formalized during a special NCAA Convention held in 1973. Prior to 1973, the NCAA was organized into two divisions – “University” and “College”.

The year-long 40th Anniversary celebration will feature a number of initiatives branded by Division II's tradition, history and community influence. A special 40th Anniversary highlight video was unveiled to Division II membership during the 2013 NCAA Convention, officially kicking off the celebration.

Each member of the Division II 40th Anniversary Tribute Team will receive a commemorative 40th Anniversary gift and is slated to have his/her accomplishments profiled through Division II media channels.

Conferences were asked to submit a list of nominees representative of Division II's ideals. The only requirement was that the nominees exhausted their athletics eligibility within the past 40 years and attended a college or university active in Division II.