Deslyn Haywood was promoted to Deputy Director of Athletics/Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)/Senior Woman Administrator (SWA) effective July 1, 2026. In this senior administrative role, she oversees the department's internal operations, including athletics operations, NCAA compliance, student-athlete welfare, academic success, and institutional eligibility. Haywood also provides strategic oversight of game operations, facilities coordination, travel logistics, and championship event administration while serving as the sport administrator for the men's and women's cross country, women's soccer, men's wrestling, women's wrestling, and men's and women's track & field programs.
Following a distinguished 15-year career in financial aid administration, Haywood joined Allen University Athletics on March 1, 2021, as the Athletics Compliance Officer, where she was instrumental in helping lead the University's transition from the NAIA to NCAA Division II. She was subsequently promoted to Director of Athletics Compliance/Senior Woman Administrator, then Associate Athletic Director for Compliance/Senior Woman Administrator, before being named Deputy Director of Athletics/Chief Administrative Officer/Senior Woman Administrator. In recognition of her leadership throughout Allen University's successful NCAA Division II transition, Haywood received the University's prestigious Top Hat Award in August 2021, one of the institution's highest employee honors presented by the former Allen University President Dr. Ernest McNealey.
Prior to joining Allen University Athletics, Haywood served five years as Senior Financial Aid Counselor at Allen University. She also spent 10 years at Benedict College, where she held positions as Student Financial Services Counselor, Financial Aid Counselor, and Assistant Director of Student Financial Aid & Scholarships. During her tenure at Benedict College, she was recognized as the Outstanding Administrator of the Year for the 2015–16 academic year.
A former three-sport scholar-athlete, Haywood competed in basketball, volleyball, and track & field at Voorhees College, where she excelled both academically and athletically. Prior to her collegiate career, she was a standout basketball player at St. Croix Central High School in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Haywood was a two-time V.I. Sunstroke Classic Girls All-Star selection and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player in 2000.
Haywood also represented the U.S. Virgin Islands in international competition. She was a member of the 2001 U.S. Virgin Islands Junior National Basketball Team that captured the gold medal at the Junior National Basketball Championship in the Bahamas. She later competed with the U.S. Virgin Islands Senior Women's National Basketball Team from 2000–2004, helping the team earn a silver medal at the 2002 Centro Basket Women's Championship in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.
A 2000 graduate of St. Croix Central High School, Haywood earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from Voorhees College and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Benedict College. She later earned a Master of Business Administration from Strayer University and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Sport and Athletic Management at Northcentral University.
Haywood's contributions to collegiate athletics have earned national recognition. In 2026, she received the National Association for Athletics Compliance (NAAC) Rising Star Award, presented to emerging leaders who have demonstrated exceptional promise and impact in collegiate athletics compliance.
Haywood is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, Women Leaders in College Sports, and the National Association for Athletics Compliance (NAAC). She is the proud mother of James Rice II and the late Jamie Rice, and stepmother of D'Asia Gregg, a former student-athlete at Virginia Tech.
