The SACSA Joe Buck Travel Award offers a unique opportunity for graduate students, emerging professionals, and recent members of the Southern Association for College Student Affairs (SACSA) to participate in the 2025 SACSA Annual Conference. By alleviating financial barriers, the award facilitates professional development, networking, and engagement within the SACSA community.

Honoring Dr. Joe Buck: Purpose and Legacy of the Travel Award

The Joe Buck Travel Award is named in honor of Dr. Joe Buck, SACSA’s first Executive Director. Established to support early-career professionals and newer SACSA members, the award provides financial assistance for conference-related expenses, including travel, registration, and other costs associated with participation in the annual event. Each recipient of the Joe Buck Travel Award receives $300. This funding, administered by the SACSA Foundation, reflects the organization’s commitment to making professional development opportunities more accessible and supporting the growth of emerging student affairs professionals. By easing the financial burden of attending the annual conference, the award enables participants to fully engage in educational sessions, networking opportunities, and other career-enhancing experiences.

Program Goals: Fostering Professional Development and Engagement

The Joe Buck Travel Award program is guided by the following objectives:

• To recruit and support new and talented professionals within the SACSA community.
• To reduce financial barriers for individuals seeking to attend the annual conference.
• To incentivize engagement with conference activities and initiatives.
• To promote sustained involvement with SACSA as a professional development resource and community.

Application Procedure

Applicants seeking consideration for the Joe Buck Travel Award are encouraged to complete the online application by the priority deadline: September 1, 2025.

Apply here

Applications are reviewed promptly by a committee led by a member of the SACSA Executive Council. Recipients selected by the priority deadline are encouraged to complete conference registration by the Early Bird Registration Deadline: September 12, 2025. Applications may continue to be reviewed after the deadline, subject to remaining funding availability. Questions about the Joe Buck Travel Award criteria, requirements, or process may be directed to Member at Large Danielle Molina at mal1@sacsa.org.