Sarah Otey serves as UAA Commissioner and is assisted by two full-time staff members. Melissa Curtis is the Assistant Director for Operations and Member Services, and Tim Farrell serves as Sports Information Director.

UAA Staff:

Sarah Otey, Commissioner

Sarah Otey was named the second commissioner in the history of the UAA on May 15, 2024 and began her tenure on July 1, 2024. Since joining the UAA, she has worked to enhance branding, governance processes and championship experiences. As part of her efforts to improve the profile, visibility and impact of the UAA, the association signed a five-year media rights agreement with FloSports, added six representatives to NCAA national committees, and has grown the UAA staff.
 
Prior to the UAA, she spent the previous three years as commissioner of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC), where she became the second full-time commissioner in the conference's history and the first woman to hold the post, both of which are also true as commissioner of the UAA. 

She worked for the NCAA for nearly nine years, including positions as director of the NCAA's Academic and Membership Affairs (AMA) and associate director of AMA for Division III. During her time as associate director for Division III, she was the NCAA liaison for the UAA, managed Division III interpretations and legislation, and served as a governance liaison to a variety of committees, including the NCAA Division III Management and Presidents councils. 

Otey played basketball and graduated magna cum laude from Division III Washington & Lee University with a degree in psychology. The two-time academic all-conference honoree went on to earn a Master of Education in exercise physiology from the University of Virginia.

Melissa Curtis, Assistant Commissioner for Operations

Melissa Curtis serves as office manager and assistant to the Commissioner handling a wide array of duties. She has served in that capacity almost since the opening of the Association Office, joining the UAA staff in the summer of 1988. She oversees the Association's extensive awards and recognition programs, production of all Association publications, and the purchasing, accounting, and other day-to-day operations of the Association.

Prior to joining the UAA staff, Melissa worked in several University of Rochester departments including Security and Traffic, Medical Center Computing, and the Department of Microbiology and Immunology. She also works as a professional photographer and does volunteer service in wild animal rescue and care.

Timothy Farrell, Assistant Commissioner for Communications

Timothy Farrell is in his second tenure with the UAA, returning in 2012 after serving as the Association's first full-time SID from 1992-2000. I

In 2025, he led a contingent of UAA student-athletes at the Black Student-Athlete Summit in Chicago and moderated the first Division III panel in the Summit's history with five student-athletes, including two from the UAA. He worked with Division III student-athletes across conferences and institutions to create videos in which student-athletes shared what the experience meant to them.

His writing and Curtis' editing have combined win three Division III and D3SIDA Recognition Awards, including one for the race and racism series. In 2025, he wrote a story on some of the many siblings combinations who have competed in the UAA, sometimes at the same school and other times at different UAA institutions. He previously authored a four-part series entitled, "West Africans in the UAA." He works extensively with Black student-athletes in the UAA and across Division III. He authored the award-winning "UAA Conversations About Race and Racism" series in 2020-21.

Tim began his NCAA career with the UAA in 1992 when the concept of a conference Sports Information Director was relatively new in Division III. In 2000, he became the first Assistant Director for Conference Operations for the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC). After a two-year stint with the NESCAC, Farrell served 10 years as the Empire 8 Athletic Conference's Assistant Commissioner/Sports Information Director.

Now residing in Cleveland, Tim is an active member of several social justice organizations, including International Campaign to Free Kamau Sadiki and Spirit of Mandela. He has consistently worked with those who are incarerated and is a member of the missions committee at his church. Since 2012, he has been a board member  of GLSEN Northeast Ohio (which focuses on LGBTQ+ issues and education in schools) and is a member of the founding board of directors of the 10K Street Dance/Hip Hop Dance platform in Cleveland.

Natalia Herrera, NCAA Pathways to Excellence Grant Recipient