Joe Onderko was named the first full-time executive in the history of the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) on July 1, 2006 and begins his 20th year as the league's chief administrator in 2025-26. His title was changed from executive director to commissioner in the summer of 2012.
Onderko reports directly to the PAC Presidents' Council, composed of the presidents of the conference member institutions, and is responsible for all operational aspects of a 13-member (12 full-time, one associate), 24-sport NCAA Division III athletic conference founded in 1955.
In January, 2024, Onderko began a four-year term on the NCAA Division III Strategic Planning & Finance Committee. The Strategic Planning and Finance Committee monitors and updates the Division III Strategic Plan consistent with the Division III philosophy statement and the goals and objectives within the plan. The committee also monitors the administration of the Division III annual operating budget and reports to the Management Council on a regular basis regarding that topic.
This appointment continues Onderko's representation of the PAC on national committees. He finished serving a two-year term (2019-21) as President of the Division III Commissioners Association (DIIICA) after serving as DIIICA Vice President from 2017-19. Previously, he served on the NCAA Division III Financial Aid Committee from 2007-11 and on the NCAA Division III Championships Committee from 2012-16, where he was the national liaison for the NCAA Division III football, wrestling and baseball sport committees.
Onderko also previously served a two-year term on the DIIICA executive board from 2012-14 and was co-chair of the local organizing committee for the 2012 ECAC-SIDA Workshop in Pittsburgh.
Onderko recently led the PAC in hosting two NCAA Division III national championships - the 2021 Men's Golf Championship at Oglebay Resort in Wheeling, W.Va., and the 2022 Women's Basketball Championship at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. The PAC and Onderko will add to their championship hosting experience in the coming years, as in partnership with SportsPITTSBURGH, they were selected to host five NCAA Championships between 2026-28. That span will begin with the Division III Women's Volleyball Championship in the Fall of 2026 at Duquense's UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse and return to Duquesne in March, 2027 for the Division III Men's Basketball Final Four.
Onderko, 55, previously worked full-time for 11 years (1995-2006) as sports information director at PAC member Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pa., while serving as PAC Information Director on a part-time basis for five years (2001-06) and two years as Information Director of the NAIA Keystone-Empire Collegiate Conference (KECC) (1996-98). Prior to Westminster, Onderko served as assistant SID at NCAA Division I Virginia Commonwealth University (1992-95) in Richmond and was a public relations intern for the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers (1992). While at VCU, he served as Assistant Media Coordinator of the 1994 Women's Final Four.
A native of Jamestown, Pa., he and his wife, Pam, have three daughters: Erin, Lauren and Alison. Onderko was inducted into the Robert Morris University Sport Management Hall of Fame in 2018.