Why Drexel?
After an almost 30 year career in intercollegiate athletics as a head coach and athletics administrator, I reached a point where I realized that working on the academic side of the house is where I wanted to be. My doctoral work inspired me to look at athletics as a piece of the larger higher education arena, and Drexel’s Goodwin College of Professional Studies is a perfect launch pad to continue my research in this area.
What did you do before Drexel?
Most recently, I was the Director of Athletics, Intramurals and Recreation at Penn State Abington. I was fortunate to be on campus at a time of great growth and change in the intercollegiate athletics program. We went from a non-affiliated, marginally competitive 8 varsity sport program when I arrived to a full membership in NCAA Division III with 14 sports. It was a 5 year process to guide the College through the difficult process of becoming a member, but we did it.
I’ll let those who wish to learn more about my professional career find me at my Linked In profile.
What are some of the more unique experiences you’ve had?
I’ve been fortunate to be a part of some really cool things. My Salisbury field hockey team won the school’s first ever National Championship (and went undefeated, too). I coached for almost 10 years at Ohio State and took them to a top 5 ranking and their first ever NCAA appearance. It was there I saw more of the inner workings of a “big time” athletics program, too. Field Hockey took me all over the world -I’ve coached in Europe, and the Caribbean, and was the voice for men’s and women’s field hockey at the 1996 Olympic Games. I have worked at 4 Big Ten institutions: Purdue, Ohio State, Minnesota and Penn State.
I’ve also attended the 2009 Tour de France as a guest of the Livestrong Foundation and hung out at the finish line with Lance Armstrong’s entourage (yes, Matthew McConaghey was there). The sprint up the Champs d’Elysse is one of the most awesome sights I have seen.
For the past 6 years, I have been covering collegiate field hockey for the Big Ten Network, ESPN and the NCAA. I have had the privilege of calling the last 3 Division I Final Fours. I enjoy sharing my love of the sport with novice and seasoned fans alike. I also get a kick out of helping the talent and the crew understand a game most of them have never seen before!
What will you focus on at Drexel?
I am thrilled to be working with such a high quality faculty team-frankly; it was a major reason for me to come. Dave, O’Brien, Ellen Staurowsky, Jim Reese, Brett Burchette and Amy Giddings are tremendous professionals that I will learn a great deal from. Collectively, I think we put Drexel’s Sports Management Program in a unique position to become one of the industry leaders in training the next generation of administrators. I’m also very excited about the collaborative research potential that exists within this team-I think we are going to do some very interesting things.
