BUFFALO, N.Y. - Bridget Niland, Director of Athletics and Special Assistant to the President at Daemen College, has been named to the Power 100 Women, a ranking of the most influential women in Western New York published by Buffalo Business First.  

Niland was ranked No. 89 in a list that included political leaders, college and university presidents, law firm partners, health care administrators and chief executives from numerous fields, just to name a few.  Niland was the only intercollegiate athletics administrator to be included in the rankings.

"This is a well-deserved recognition of a professional who is influential in athletics, not only regionally, but nationally," said Dr. Gary A. Olson, President of Daemen College.  "Most recently, Bridget Niland has done much to transform athletics at Daemen college, and we are all proud of her, and her inclusion in this list of influential professionals."

A member of the Daemen College faculty since 2006, Niland took over as Director of Athletics in July of 2014, guiding the College to completion of its NCAA Division II membership initiative which was announced last month.  Her most recent contribution to the initiative came following her oversight of the entire project as the College's Faculty Athletics Representative.

While shifting her role to include oversight of the day-to-day operations and growth of Daemen Athletics, Niland has maintained her teaching responsibilities as an Associate Professor in the Business Administration Department, also overseeing the Sport Management specialization and business law curriculum.  She also serves as an adjunct instuctor on sport law and intercollegiate athletics at the State University of New York at Buffalo (UB) and Niagara University.

Prior to joining the Daemen faculty, Niland worked as the Associate Director of Academic and Membership Affairs at NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis, Ind., drawing experience that would prove to be invaluable to Daemen in its recent quest for Division II membership.  She also continues to provide consultation work to the NCAA, working primarily with schools transitioning to the Division I level of competition, while also working with USA Collegiate Sports, an affiliate of Harris Beach, PLLC.

Since taking the reins of Daemen Athletics, Niland has played an integral role in the addition of women's triathlon and bowling teams, both of which will commence competition in the 2015-16 academic year.  She has also expanded Daemen Athletics' fundraising footprint, championed the expansion of full-time athletics staff from 11 to 17 employees, and has overseen enhancements to Daemen's existing athletic complex, while also planning for what the future may hold in that area.

Holding Bachelor's, Master's and Law Degrees, all from UB, Niland was also named, earlier this year, as one of six recipients nationwide for the Borden Perlman Professional Development Grant, awarded by the Division 2 Athletic Directors Association (D2 ADA) to help cover expenses associated with travel and registration for the 2015 National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Convention which was held in Orlando, Fla. in June.

Power 100 Women was compiled by Buffalo Business First based on years of observing the area's business community, and represents a selection of individuals from the eight counties of Western New York.  The rankings were released in five separate installments last week.