Shelley Davis is in her seventh year as Big South Conference Senior Associate Commissioner in 2023-24. She serves as the conference’s Senior Woman Administrator, oversees women’s basketball operations, and is the conference administrator for volleyball and men's and women's golf. Davis also manages the conference’s internal affairs and serves as a liaison to various conference governance groups.
Davis joined the Big South staff in October 2017 from Howard University. She served as Howard’s Deputy Athletic Director her last two years at HU where she supervised women's basketball, volleyball, and the men's and women's track and field programs. She also managed all human resource functions of the departments and had administrative oversight of External and Internal Operations, and the budget and finance units. Davis served as HU’s Interim Director of Athletics from January-September 2015 and led the athletic department through the launch of the new Bison logo. She was instrumental in the rebranding efforts, which led to new designs of the Burr Gymnasium and Court. Davis also revamped the season ticket program for basketball and football with the introduction of the Bison Backer Season Ticket Package -- which increased season ticket sales and more than doubled participation from past years. Further, during her short stint leading the department, Davis identified and developed strategic partnerships for Athletics and negotiated contracts resulting in more than $500,000 in additional revenue.
She joined Howard in July 2011 as Senior Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator. In her role, Davis served as a member of the senior leadership team and was responsible for the administration of the internal operations of the 19 intercollegiate sports, the 40 staff members and coaches and 375 student athletes that make up the department.
Prior to her time at Howard, Davis served as the Assistant Commissioner for Championships and Senior Woman Administrator at the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). As Assistant Commissioner, Davis was responsible for the planning, operations, and management of the SWAC Conference Championships and other events.
Before her tenure with the SWAC, Davis served as the Director of Education and Professional Development at the National Association of Collegiate Women Athletic Administrators (NACWAA), where she planned and directed all aspects of the educational and professional development programming, including the marketing and promotions, budget management, development, and administration of three annual leadership institutes. Working in this capacity also allowed Davis to be involved in Title IX and Gender Equity education initiatives, in addition to diversity education programming.
Davis has also served as an Assistant Athletic Director at North Carolina A&T State University. While at A&T, she was responsible for compliance matters and student-athlete services. Davis played a key role in the success of hosting the 2006 NCAA Division I East Regional Track and Field Championships on campus. She assisted with the event operations and served on the Local Organizing Committee for the event and several other high caliber track & field meets, including the USA Track & Field Youth Championships.
Davis started her athletics career as a Certified Athletic Trainer, and held positions in Sports Medicine at both Virginia Union University and North Carolina A&T prior to transitioning into athletics administration. She served as Interim Head Men's and Women's Track and Field Coach at Virginia Union for a brief stint.
Davis is currently a participant in the NCAA Pathway Program, is a graduate of the 2014 NACDA Senior Administrator Mentoring Institute and the 2011 NCAA Minority Male and Female Leadership Institute, in addition to several other leadership institutes. She previously served on the NCAA Division I Championships and Sports Administration Cabinet and the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Issues Committee.
Davis graduated with honors from North Carolina Central University, and was honored by her alma mater as one of its Forty Under Forty Distinguished Alumni Awardees in 2014. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. A native of Durham, N.C., Davis is the proud mother to two children, Donovan and Kennedy.