Beyond the Field had the opportunity to sit down with new Athletic Director, David Harris, to get know the new AD.
David Harris was named Director of Intercollegiate Athletics at UNI on February 24, 2016. Before coming to UNI, David served as a Senior Associate Athletic Director at Iowa State. There he was the sport administrator for football, men's basketball, and wrestling, while having oversight responsibilities for student-athlete development, compliance, athletic training, and strength and conditioning. Prior to Iowa State, David worked in the athletics department at the University of Wisconsin as the Associate Athletic Director of Student Services from 2002 until 2006.
Prior to his career of working in athletics, David played football at Ole Miss. David earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in 1993 and his MBA in 1995 from Ole Miss. David started working in athletics in 1998 at his alma mater, where he was hired in the Academic Support department. In this role, he was able to help student-athletes plan for life after graduation and their playing careers, something that David likes doing.
David always had the dream of becoming an athletic director, all that he needed was the right place and right opportunity. He wanted to find a university that had a strong focus on academics, had a fairly good athletic program, and was accepting of his family. He found the right fit at UNI. David mentioned that during his short time at UNI, he has met some amazing people and supporters and that the Cedar Valley is a great, safe place to raise his two children, Kaitlyn and Wesley.
So far, David has enjoyed his time at UNI. He noted that UNI has been most welcoming of him and his family and that the staff is enjoyable to work with. He also noted that people in the area want to contribute and want to be apart of a great program. The people that David have met are more about helping others than helping themselves and that gives UNI a blue collar feel.
David has many favorite memories of working in athletics and during his time as a football players at Ole Miss. "One of the memories at the top of my list would have to be being named as Athletic Director here at UNI." Other memories noted by David were playing football at Ole Miss and all of the relationships he made while being a player there. In his professional career he noted that being apart of Wisconsin's NCAA hockey championship and Iowa State's championships in the Big 12 Basketball Tournament.
Finally, David offered some advice for those looking to get into athletics. He said that you must understand the commitment and lifestyle of athletics. "It isn't just a 9-5 job, you work all day, nights, weekends, and holidays. You have to be ready to take on that kind of commitment and to try to be good in this area you must be willing to make that commitment." David noted that those who are willing to work in this type of job must improve themselves everyday in a very competitive environment. "You must be able to handle every challenge that comes your way and be all in to working hard."
Monday, April 11, 2016
Saturday, April 9, 2016
Behind the Scenes: Compliance
Beyond the Field sat down with Assistant Athletic Director for Compliance, Ben Messerli for a behind the scenes look at the Compliance Department the University of Northern Iowa.
Ben got his start working in compliance at the University of Tennessee, where he volunteered with the compliance office when he was in graduate school. He also volunteered within other departments during his time at Tennessee. Once Ben completed grad school, he applied for 150 jobs in three different areas: Compliance, Event Management, and Athletic Academics. He was offered a post-graduate position as a Compliance Assistant at the University of North Dakota and then earned his first full-time job at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. He then came to UNI almost two years ago to serve as the Assistant Athletics Director for Compliance.
The Compliance Office at UNI provides guidance in regards to NCAA rules, regulations, and standards. The most important aspects are to educate, support, monitor, and enforce NCAA rules and regulations. The Compliance Office is in charge of monitoring and certification for initial eligibility in regards to practice, financial aid, and competition. The Compliance Office coordinates all facets of the National Letter of Intent program and departmental grant-in-aid offers to prospective student-athletes, as well as monitoring all aspects of student-athlete financial aid. The Office also approves prospective student-athlete official visits and monitors all official and unofficial prospective student-athlete visits.
One of Ben's favorite things about his job is working with all of the team/athletes and not just specific teams. Working at an FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) level school allows Ben to work with all the sports and get experience with all facets of the job. Most FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) compliance offices mix up how they are set up. They either work with specific sports or specific bylaws. Ben gets the opportunity to work with all sports and all bylaws at UNI.
There is a somewhat negative connotation that comes with working in "compliance." Ben noted that most people only hear of compliance when something negative happens with the NCAA. Other than this minor issue, Ben stated that he doesn't mind many areas of his job.
Ben always pictured himself working in the sports industry because he always enjoyed sports. He said that he never pictured himself doing anything else. He really enjoys watching UNI teams/athletes compete the most. No matter where he has been, it is always his favorite part to see athletes compete. He enjoys knowing what hard work has been done behind the scenes by all departments to make events at UNI have the best atmosphere possible.
Finally, Ben offered this advice for those looking to get involved within athletics. "My biggest advice is to be willing to get involved. If you don't know what exactly what you want to do, try different areas. Working in different areas of athletics helps you see how everyone works together. Volunteering is not bad, and infarct, normal. Get involved."
Ben and the Compliance Office play a key role in the behind the scenes operations at UNI and many people do not understand the hard work that they do for the university. The Compliance Office is one of the hardest working departments at UNI and I cannot thank them enough for what they do.
Ben got his start working in compliance at the University of Tennessee, where he volunteered with the compliance office when he was in graduate school. He also volunteered within other departments during his time at Tennessee. Once Ben completed grad school, he applied for 150 jobs in three different areas: Compliance, Event Management, and Athletic Academics. He was offered a post-graduate position as a Compliance Assistant at the University of North Dakota and then earned his first full-time job at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. He then came to UNI almost two years ago to serve as the Assistant Athletics Director for Compliance.
The Compliance Office at UNI provides guidance in regards to NCAA rules, regulations, and standards. The most important aspects are to educate, support, monitor, and enforce NCAA rules and regulations. The Compliance Office is in charge of monitoring and certification for initial eligibility in regards to practice, financial aid, and competition. The Compliance Office coordinates all facets of the National Letter of Intent program and departmental grant-in-aid offers to prospective student-athletes, as well as monitoring all aspects of student-athlete financial aid. The Office also approves prospective student-athlete official visits and monitors all official and unofficial prospective student-athlete visits.
One of Ben's favorite things about his job is working with all of the team/athletes and not just specific teams. Working at an FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) level school allows Ben to work with all the sports and get experience with all facets of the job. Most FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) compliance offices mix up how they are set up. They either work with specific sports or specific bylaws. Ben gets the opportunity to work with all sports and all bylaws at UNI.
There is a somewhat negative connotation that comes with working in "compliance." Ben noted that most people only hear of compliance when something negative happens with the NCAA. Other than this minor issue, Ben stated that he doesn't mind many areas of his job.
Ben always pictured himself working in the sports industry because he always enjoyed sports. He said that he never pictured himself doing anything else. He really enjoys watching UNI teams/athletes compete the most. No matter where he has been, it is always his favorite part to see athletes compete. He enjoys knowing what hard work has been done behind the scenes by all departments to make events at UNI have the best atmosphere possible.
Finally, Ben offered this advice for those looking to get involved within athletics. "My biggest advice is to be willing to get involved. If you don't know what exactly what you want to do, try different areas. Working in different areas of athletics helps you see how everyone works together. Volunteering is not bad, and infarct, normal. Get involved."
Ben and the Compliance Office play a key role in the behind the scenes operations at UNI and many people do not understand the hard work that they do for the university. The Compliance Office is one of the hardest working departments at UNI and I cannot thank them enough for what they do.
Friday, April 8, 2016
Behind the Scenes: Sarah Harms
Beyond the Field sat down with the Administrative Assistant to the Athletic Director, Sarah Harms, to get a behind the scenes look at UNI Athletics.
Sarah Harms came to work in athletics by accident. She started at UNI as a special events planner for academic events. This included guest speakers, conferences, seminars, etc. A position then opened within the athletic department for event management/game day operations. Sarah decided to take this position. She worked on the facilities side of athletics for six years before becoming the Assistant to the Athletic Director for the past four years.
Sarah has many things that she accomplishes on a day-to-day basis. To summarize her day-to-day duties, Sarah assists the Athletic Director, David Harris, with managing and prioritizing his calendar and coordinating staff meetings and track outcomes for Senior Staff. Sarah responds to all Open Records Requests that are sent to the department. Another duty is managing game contracts, game guarantees, the payment of game officials. Lastly, Sarah is the Event Manager for the annual Hall of Fame Ceremony.
Sarah noted that the favorite part of her job is that there is a great deal of variety. She gets the opportunity to do different things each day and gets to talk and work with several different people within the athletic department. Her job touches every smaller department within athletics so she isn't constricted to just one area, which she enjoys. She enjoys being behind the scenes helping the athletic director and others succeed in the department. Sarah said that the hardest part of her job is feeling that she is a "jack of all trades, master of none."
Her favorite memory of working in athletics is when she completed her first Hall of Fame Ceremony. The Hall of Fame Ceremony is a large-scale event and when she took it over there wasn't a lot of background on the event. It is an event where people are celebrated, and Sarah said it's fun to bring people together for a fun reason and that everyone is so thankful and it's a humbling experience, especially for Sarah.
Finally, Sarah offered some advice for those looking for a job, not just a job in athletics. "Remember that you have to start somewhere. Your first job-especially in athletics-will not be the job you expected. It's going to pay less and require more hours than you expected. Also, it is important to stay positive. People may not always remember how well you did a tasks, but they'll always remember your attitude."
Sarah is a key part of what makes UNI Athletics successful and without her dedication to the athletic department, we would be lost. Sarah has been a key part of what makes working at UNI such a great experience for everyone involved.
Sarah Harms came to work in athletics by accident. She started at UNI as a special events planner for academic events. This included guest speakers, conferences, seminars, etc. A position then opened within the athletic department for event management/game day operations. Sarah decided to take this position. She worked on the facilities side of athletics for six years before becoming the Assistant to the Athletic Director for the past four years.
Sarah has many things that she accomplishes on a day-to-day basis. To summarize her day-to-day duties, Sarah assists the Athletic Director, David Harris, with managing and prioritizing his calendar and coordinating staff meetings and track outcomes for Senior Staff. Sarah responds to all Open Records Requests that are sent to the department. Another duty is managing game contracts, game guarantees, the payment of game officials. Lastly, Sarah is the Event Manager for the annual Hall of Fame Ceremony.
Sarah noted that the favorite part of her job is that there is a great deal of variety. She gets the opportunity to do different things each day and gets to talk and work with several different people within the athletic department. Her job touches every smaller department within athletics so she isn't constricted to just one area, which she enjoys. She enjoys being behind the scenes helping the athletic director and others succeed in the department. Sarah said that the hardest part of her job is feeling that she is a "jack of all trades, master of none."
Her favorite memory of working in athletics is when she completed her first Hall of Fame Ceremony. The Hall of Fame Ceremony is a large-scale event and when she took it over there wasn't a lot of background on the event. It is an event where people are celebrated, and Sarah said it's fun to bring people together for a fun reason and that everyone is so thankful and it's a humbling experience, especially for Sarah.
Finally, Sarah offered some advice for those looking for a job, not just a job in athletics. "Remember that you have to start somewhere. Your first job-especially in athletics-will not be the job you expected. It's going to pay less and require more hours than you expected. Also, it is important to stay positive. People may not always remember how well you did a tasks, but they'll always remember your attitude."
Sarah is a key part of what makes UNI Athletics successful and without her dedication to the athletic department, we would be lost. Sarah has been a key part of what makes working at UNI such a great experience for everyone involved.
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