INDIANAPOLIS – The Southwest Minnesota State University Athletics Department is one of 17 institutions to earn the 2011 Division II Community Engagement Award of Excellence the NCAA announced on Monday.
 
The national winner will be recognized June 2 at the Division II Community Engagement Workshop in Indianapolis and will receive a $500 award.
 
SMSU was named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference winner for its “Smokefest/Family Day/Mustang Stampede” event held last September.  It's the third time SMSU has earned the conference award in the last four years. SMSU's annual “Ag Bowl” was honored in 2008 and 2009.
 
“We are honored to receive the NCAA Division II Conference Community Engagement Award of Excellence for the third time as the top civic engagement event of the year in the NSIC,” said Chris Hmielewski, SMSU director of athletics. “This year, we submitted a number of our community engagement activities (Mustang Mail, Ag Bowl, the Pink Zone and Lakeview Day) to the NCAA Community Engagement Committee for consideration.”
 
The Community Engagement Award of Excellence recognizes Division II institutions that successfully “build bridges” with the communities in which they are located. The commitment to help member institutions build stronger civic relationships is a central part of the Division II philosophy.
 
SMSU hosted its fourth annual “Smokefest” competition on Sept. 16-18, 2010, an event sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society.  Over 30 teams competed in several different barbecue competitions with the winners advancing to the Jack Daniels national championships. The two-day event was open to the public and featured a street dance and a BBQ food/beverage garden.
 
On Saturday, Sept. 18, a wide variety of events were held that included groups from across the campus community.  The day was also “SMSU Family Day”, where students invited parents, siblings and grandparents to come to campus and celebrate Mustang Spirit. Also held was the first-ever “Mustang Stampede 5k Walk/Run to Benefit Women's Athletics”, with nearly 150 walkers and runners completing the 3.1-mile course around campus.  
 
Following the event, the SMSU women's soccer team hosted Concordia, St. Paul, the volleyball team hosted Minnesota State, before the SMSU football team capped the day hosting Bemidji State.
 
“This year's award recognizing Family Day, Mustang Stampede and Smokefest is a direct result of the vision of our Athletic Development team,” Hmielewski said.  “It would not have been possible without the support of many hard working staff members, student-athletes, community and booster club members. Our sincere appreciation also goes out to the community of Marshall and the regional businesses who sponsored these civic engagement events.”
 
Other 2011 conference winners were:
 * Arkansas Tech (Gulf South Conference): Project Feed Arkansas.
 * Chowan (Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference): Girls and Women in Sports Day.
 * Colorado Christian (Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference): Extreme Community Makeover.
 * Cal San Diego (California Collegiate Athletic Association): UCSD Blood Drive.
 * East Coast Conference: Fitness Challenge.
 * Fairmont State University (West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference): Put Your Best Fairmont Forward.
 * Franklin Pierce (Northeast-10 Conference): Community Halloween.
 * Holy Family (Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference): Build a Library with
 * Limestone (Conference Carolinas): Playground build.
 * Newman (Heartland Conference): Division II Game of the Week.
 * Nova Southeastern (Sunshine State Conference): Miracle League Program.
 * Pittsburg State (Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletic Association): Ladies Night at the Pitt.
 * Saginaw Valley State (Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference): GLIAC Pink Wave.
 * Shippensburg (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference): MentorSHIP Program – Kids Night Out.
 * Southwest Minnesota State (Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference): SMSU Family Day/Smokefest/Mustang Stampede.
 * Texas A&M-Kingsville (Lone Star Conference): Living the Dream Relay.
 * Wingate (South Atlantic Conference): Union County Special Olympics.