General | 4/8/2025 3:13:00 PM
DURHAM, N.C. – Former North Carolina Central University Director of Athletics Dr. Ingrid Wicker-McCree will be inducted into the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) as part of the Class of 2025.
The induction ceremony will take place during NACDA’s 60th annual convention, June 8-11 at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Fla.
Having served as AD for the Eagles from 2008 until her retirement in 2022, Wicker-McCree began her decorated tenure at N.C. Central in 1994, when she was hired as head coach of the volleyball and softball programs.
She became the first coach in NCCU history to win conference championships in multiple sports, capturing the school’s first-ever Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) titles in softball (1998) and volleyball (1999, 2004, 2005).
A three-time CIAA Volleyball Coach of the Year (1999, 2002, 2005) and former member of the NCAA Division II National Volleyball Committee, Wicker-McCree earned 239 match victories in 12 seasons as head volleyball coach at NCCU.
A Durham native, Wicker-McCree also spent 10 years (1998-2008) overseeing the athletics department’s internal operations before being named AD. She served in a variety of leadership positions in both conference and national level organizations, most notably as president of the CIAA Executive Board from 2004-06, becoming only the second woman to ever hold that position in the league’s history. In addition, she served as a member of the NCAA’s Division II Legislation Committee, NCAA Research Committee and the NCAA Division I Council.
As AD, Wicker McCree led N.C. Central’s reclassification as a Div. I program and membership in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in 2011. She was instrumental in several facility renovations, including the first Sports Nutrition Station, new video boards and locker room upgrades. Wicker McCree and her team led successful marketing and fundraising campaigns, including the first-ever initiative to raise funds for NCCU women’s athletic programs, the Director of Athletics Women’s Network (DAWN).
Under her leadership, NCCU Athletics increased student-athlete support services by hiring a learning specialist and a full-time mental health counselor in partnership with the Division of Student Affairs and hired the first sports nutritionist. NCCU was also the recipient of a $694,000 grant from the NCAA to improve academic success, and in 2020, launched the first Leadership Academy to enhance student-athlete leadership development.
Wicker McCree’s focus on the student-athlete also led to the creation of the AD’s Captains Council, where she met quarterly with team captains for leadership breakfast sessions discussing the importance of their roles as leaders and role models.
Since their successful transition to the D-I level, NCCU has won four MEAC football titles, the 2022 Cricket Celebration Bowl, four men’s basketball titles (and NCAA Tournament appearances), and the 2023 softball championship.
In addition to her undergraduate degree in criminal justice from George Washington University in 1989, Wicker McCree earned a master’s degree in recreation resources administration from N.C. State University in December 1991 and completed doctoral studies in higher education administration at N.C. State University in June 2008.
Wicker McCree was recognized by her peers in 2014 as the Women Leadership in Sports FCS Athletic Director of the Year and in 2018 as NACDA FCS Athletic Director of the Year.
Wicker McCree is a current member of five Halls of Fame: N.C. Central Alex M. Rivera Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006 with the 1998 CIAA Softball Championship team members, then again in 2023 as a head coach.
In 2012, she was inducted into the George Washington Athletics Hall of Fame for her success as a volleyball student-athlete, and in 2016, Wicker McCree was also inducted into the CIAA John B. McLendon Hall of Fame.
She was also inducted twice in the C.E. Jordan High School Hall of Fame as a member of two state championship volleyball teams: in 2015 and as an athlete in 2024.
In 2022, an endowed scholarship, the Dr. Ingrid Wicker-McCree Legacy Endowed Scholarship Fund, was established at N.C. Central in her honor.
For more information on NCCU Athletics, visit NCCUEaglePride.com, or download the NCCU Eagles Athletics app.
