Collected Wisdom - Tim Curry

Collected wisdom is a series of interviews with small college athletic administrators. Our thanks to Tim Curry, Athletic Director at Union(KY) College for sharing his insights this week.

You are the Head Coach for Women’s Basketball and Athletic Director over a department with 26 sports…How do you do it? First I have an Administration that is very supportive of Athletics at Union beginning with our President, Dr. Marcia Hawkins. Secondly, I am very fortunate to have great people around me on our coaching staff in at Union that allows me to be successful in my dual role as both coach & administrator. In addition, we have a really strong support staff structure in place at Union in the areas of Athletic Training, Strength & Conditioning, Sports Information & Broadcasting, Athletic Admissions and our Administrative Assistant, Lana Faulkner, has been with us for 18 years.

Before being named the “permanent AD” you spent two years as interim AD. What was that period like? Why did this last two years? At around the same time that I became the interim AD, we underwent a change in the President’s Office at Union and I continued as an interim throughout the search process until our current President, Dr. Marcia Hawkins, was hired. Without question, it was a very interesting period for our Department with the uncertainty of both the Presidential search and the AD position at the time. Fortunately, we have come out of that process stronger as a staff and department over the past 4-5 years that has allowed us to continue to move our athletic programs forward.

Do you ever have times when other coaches suggest that Women’s Basketball might get special treatment because the Head Coach is also the A.D.? How do you handle this/avoid this? This is one of the things that, upon stepping into the AD role, that I have tried to make sure that we never have to deal with. Each program in our department has the same scholarship structure and same fundraising expectations to supplement our program budgets so, truthfully, no we have not had to deal with that issue.

What is your favorite part of your job? My favorite part of my job is seeing our student-athletes be successful during their time at Union College as student-athletes and then seeing their success in life once they graduate. It is always great to be able to see them when they return to campus for Homecoming or just to visit and know that our staff had a great impact upon their lives.

What is the biggest challenge in your job? The biggest challenge for me is not any different than I think it is for any other AD in these uncertain financial times. It is all about finding ways to provide the facilities, the funding and the resources that our programs need in order to be successful.

What are the 1-2 priorities that you are focusing on now at Union College?

As far as priorities, I am always looking at ways we can improve what we are doing in our Department of Athletics at Union. Being asked what are the 1-2 priorities at this time, I would say that first is the need to continue to find ways to improve the funding & facilities for each of our programs. Secondly, I would like to continue to build our brand of Union Athletics. We have continued to make strides in both of these areas but, as everyone in athletics knows, success demands that you continue to improve on a daily basis.

Who are some of your mentors/people that have encouraged you along the way ?

I have had several mentors in my life that have shaped who I am as both a coach and as administrator. My first mentors would be my parents, Steve & Phyllis Curry. They taught me the value of hard work at a young age that has allowed me to work in the profession that I love for 27 years. From there, it would be coaches that I have had in my life as a student-athlete myself. Coach Keith Young (Basketball) and Coach Ralph McQueary (Baseball & Asst. Basketball) at Adair County High School, Coach Mark coaching career, I would certainly list Coach John B. Wethington (Women’s Basketball Coach at Lindsey Wilson College) who gave me the opportunity to get into college coaching right out of college. Professionally, I would have to list Dr. Darin Wilson (AD at Georgia Gwinnett College/former AD at Union College) who has been a great friend and colleague over many years and is one of the best in the business.

You are active on the NAIA ADA Board of Directors. Why is it important to you to be engaged on national committees? I think it is important for us as AD’s to take an active role in working daily to grow, not only our athletic programs at our institutions, but to grow/improve both our conferences and our national association (NAIA). It has been tremendous to what the NAIA ADA has been able to accomplish over the past several years the leadership of AD’s such as Jim Abbott, Kevin Steele, Jeff Bain, Darin Wilson, Matt Sayre and now Quin Monahan. I am excited about the future of the NAIA ADA and look forward to continuing to be involved in shaping the future of the NAIA.

What advice do you have for young people that are looking to start a career in college athletics? The best advice I could give is be willing to reach out to those in the profession. One of the great things I have witnessed in my time in college athletics is how willing those in the profession are to help those interested in pursuing a career path in athletics.

What did you do early in your career that helped prepare you for your job now? I think a big part of what helped me prepare for my job now was learning early in my coaching career that you must be willing to fail in order to succeed. Coaches and Administrators are faced daily with important decisions that, sometimes, you will not get right. You must be willing to make those tough decisions & be able to handle both the praise and criticisms that will come with the territory.

You are active on Twitter. How do you use Twitter personally and professionally? Twitter for me was a struggle at first to accept but it has become a very effective communication and educational tool for me over the past several years professionally. It is a great way to network with others in the profession while being able to learn and grown at the same time. With Twitter chats such as #scachat and others out there, both us old guys in the business & young, aspiring administrators alike can learn and grow together.

Union College relies on athletics to enhance enrollment on campus. What are the university’s expectations in this regard? Roster sizes, retention, etc. Athletics is big part of our campus at Union College and something that we are very proud of as an institution. We have had many successes in our history both in the realm of athletic competition and in seeing our former student-athletes achieve great things in their life after Union College. Our department has certainly been a key component in enhancing both the enrollment & campus life at Union College during my 17 years here. Our expectations are built around our goals of maximizing our use of our resources in order to build strong athletic programs of character that are able to compete at a high level in athletics while helping to ensure Union College’s future in continuing our mission of educating young men and women in Southeastern Kentucky.

What are key areas to consider when adding a varsity sport? The 3 main areas I look at when adding a new sport are; 1) Financial impact upon existing sports. If there is a financial impact upon our current programs, then we do not need to add a new program until we can fund it without hurting our current programs. 2) Impact upon existing facilities. In other words, can we run the program effectively in our current facilities and, if not, can we provide adequate facilities comparable to our other programs for the new sport. 3) Impact upon our department/campus. This is a critical, yet sometimes left out area of the conversation as a new program can have both a negative or positive impact upon your department culture, coaching staff make-up and team dynamic and upon your campus as a whole.

How do you handle game operations for 26 different sports on campus? Although it can be very challenging with the number of events that we host in any given year, we are able to handle game operations very well due to our Director of Operations & Head Tennis Coach, Roscoe Moonieyan and his work with our coaching staff, work-study students and interns in our sports management/exercise science academic area. It is basically all hands on deck at times in our department to cover events and our staff does a great job of getting involved to support one another. I am very fortunate as an AD in this and many other regards!

How do you balance your personal and professional life? First of all, my beautiful wife of 24+ years, Susan Curry, is the one who makes what I do possible. Fortunately, Susan was a very successful high school and collegiate athlete so she understood what it was that I did for a career when we first starting dating. She manages, alot on her own, two teenage children involved in something year around and is always there for them to make sure they are taken care of and supported with my crazy travel schedule in both coaching/administration. I would have no chance at being successful in what I do if it were not for her in my life! Secondly, the great thing about our profession is that, no matter how tough it can be at times, it doesn’t seem like work when you are doing what you love to do!