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COLUMBIA -- Columbia College athletic director and head men's basketball coach Bob Burchard has been selected to represent the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) on the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Board of Directors. This honor is especially important as Burchard is the first NAIA representative to have a seat at the table.

"I am very excited about the appointment to the NABC Board of Directors as the NAIA representative," said Burchard. "This is the first opportunity for the NAIA to have an appointment to this prestigious board and I am honored to have been selected to serve."

The appointment came shortly after the Cougars finished the 2011-12 season in the second round of the NAIA National Championships under the direction of Burchard in his 24th year. Burchard guided his squad to a 27-7 record earning conference coach of the year honors after winning the American Midwest Conference Regular Season and Tournament Championships. On top of the successful season Burchard was also inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in March.

"Membership in the NABC has been extremely instrumental in my development as a college basketball coach. I sincerely hope my service back to our association will not only be effective but also motivation for younger coaches to seek the benefits of professional development."

Burchard has been heavily involved with the NABC through programs like Coaches vs. Cancer since its inception and even received a Guardians of the Game pillar award for leadership in 2010.

Fellow members of the board include; Ernie Kent, Larry Gipson (Northeastern State University), Phil Martelli (Saint Joseph's University), Page Moir (Roanoke College), Ron Hunter (Georgia State University), Dale Clayton (Carson-Newman College), Tom Izzo (Michigan State University), Jeff Jones (American University), Bill Self (University of Kansas), Paul Hewitt (George Mason University), Bo Ryan (University of Wisconsin), Charlie Brock (Springfield College), Lorenzo Romar (University of Washington), Mike Brey (University of Notre Dame), Tim Carter (South Carolina State University), Trent Johnson (Louisiana State University), Lennie Acuff (University of Alabama in Huntsville), Mark Gottfried (North Carolina State University), Jamie Dixon (University of Pittsburgh), Brad Stevens (Butler University), Jim Boeheim (Syracuse University), and Dave Archer (National High School Basketball Coaches Association).

The NABC was founded in 1927 by Forrest "Phog" Allen, the legendary University of Kansas basketball coach. Formation of the NABC began as an emergency measure for the presentation of a united opinion the Joint Basketball Rules Committee, then the central governing authority of the game, announced without notice that it had adopted a change in the rules which virtually eliminated the dribble. Allen, a student of basketball founder James Naismith, organized coaches to take a stand in a nationwide protest which successfully postponed the adoption of the rule change for one year. This marked the beginning of this collective group of coaches to serve as Guardians of the Game. Since its inception, the NABC has contributed numerous ideas and programs to help preserve and enhance the positive aspects of college basketball.