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Dr. Kevin T. McGinniss |
A New Beginning for Mercy College Athletics -
Year Two; a Look Back and a Glance Ahead
Kevin McGinniss Nominated for NCAA Division II Athletics
Director of the Year
When Dr. Kevin T. McGinniss was named Mercy College's athletics director in the fall of 2005, it signaled a "New Beginning" for the department. He looked at it as an opportunity to build something special and elevate the program to another level. He hit the ground running and has not stopped since.
Well into his second year on the job, McGinniss has already accomplished things that many thought not possible from this NCAA Division II member of the East Coast Conference (ECC) and this has been reflected in the form of being nominated for a NACDA (National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics) NCAA Division II Athletics Director of the Year Award by his colleagues.
"It is truly an honor to have been nominated for the NACDA Athletics Director of the Year Award," said McGinniss. "It is a true testimony to the support that we have received from everyone around us - President Feroe, Dean for Student Affairs Iris Cordero, and Faculty Athletics Representative Dr. Ann Grow have been magnificent and the senior athletics management staff that we have assembled is second to none. The real recognition belongs with our entire staff."
It has been a busy first two years of new initiatives for McGinniss. A thoughtful restructuring of the athletics department began shortly after he started. During his first six months, without the funding for additional full-time employees, he engineered the creation of three assistant athletics director positions, now filled by Bill Sullivan (Assistant A.D. for Internal Operations), Drew Brown (Assistant A.D. for External Affairs), and Ashlee Kelly (Assistant A.D. for Student Services/SWA), while also elevating Dr. Darryl Bullock to Assistant to the Athletics Director. Since then, McGinniss has also added graduate assistant positions for recruiting and communications.
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A New Beginning |
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"Billy, Drew, Ashlee and Darryl are not only the glue that holds everything together, they are vital in pushing the mission forward," said McGinniss. "We have become a real synergistic management team. Everyone knows their roles. We lean on and feed off each other to produce a product that is much greater than any one of us could produce independently. In a universal sense, we have taken a program that consisted of fourteen teams and have melded into one extremely functional department, guided by a shared set of core values."
With these pieces in place, McGinniss and his staff have embarked on a campaign together to elevate Mercy College athletics to that new level and the results are everywhere, some obvious and some subtle.
One of his first charges was to increase the roster sizes for each sport. In the first year under McGinniss, Mercy's number of recruited student athletes went from 95 to 154, an increase of over 60 percent. To field more competitive teams there is strength in numbers as the saying goes, but it also "helps validate our existence" as McGinniss points out. He adds, "As a private institution we are tuition driven. Recruitment and retention are crucial across the board, and we are and should be positioned to be a positive force and impact in this area." To further legitimize and enhance recruiting efforts, McGinniss petitioned and gained Mercy College's acceptance to participate in the National Letter of Intent (NLI) program for the first time in school history beginning with recruited student-athletes for 2007-08.
With nearly double the number of student-athletes, McGinniss made sure that they would receive the support and services they need and deserve. Included in those services have been the emergence of mandatory "Power Hours" (study halls), academic monitoring, and development of Mercy's CHAMPS/Life Skills program. By the end of the 2006 fall semester, Mercy's student-athletes combined for a 3.0 cumulative grade point average.
McGinniss also instituted other enhancement programs such as the department's first ever student-athlete orientation held in August 2006, which included a presentation on substance abuse. He also assembled a network of top healthcare and strength and conditioning professionals in the area, such as Kirschaenbaum Orthopedics and Forme Rehabilitation. Beginning with renaming the department the "Department of Intercollegiate Athletics & Recreation, he has also created an intramurals and recreation program for the entire Mercy College community. This has included a flag football round robin tournament, basketball skills competition, self-defense classes, and the anticipated addition of a fitness center within Mercy College's Main Hall, due to open in the summer of 2007.
"Kevin has transformed the athletics department from one of obscurity to one that has garnered new respect both on and off campus." said Patricia Chute, Professor and Chair of Health Professions, adding, "His tireless efforts to ensure quality experiences for the student-athletes have allowed him to seek out qualified students who want Mercy's academic and athletic advantage. He is instrumental in fulfilling the mission of Mercy College and the athletics department."
A key component to his plan has been generating an awareness of Mercy College athletics. One of the first steps was to launch a new website in June of 2006 - www.MercyAthletics.com. In the 10 months it has been live, the website has received almost 800,000 page views. The site has been an invaluable medium to reach fans, parents, and recruits, promote Mercy's student-athletes, and serves as a source for media. The department has also ramped up its marketing through media guides, game programs, schedule cards and regular e-newsletters.
That awareness has reached far beyond the local area, with Mercy College athletics making headlines that reach across the nation. Along with coverage from The Journal News and News12, over the last year features have appeared in the Connecticut Post, the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette, and student-athlete hometown newspapers. Mercy athletics is also consistently featured on NCAASports.com, NACDA Daily Review, and in December of 2006, the NCAA News featured junior volleyball player Rose Harper in its EndZone - Pathfinder section.
But the promotion of Mercy College athletics could not be possible without great stories to tell. While the department continues to build its programs up, the women's basketball team's resurgence has arguably been one of the top stories. After going winless for two years, Ashlee Kelly came on board to also direct the program, and quickly turned the team around to win seven games in her rookie campaign. Not to be outdone, the men's tennis program, guided by Barbaros Ozdogan, has made a name for itself on the national scene, earning a No. 36 ranking in the country, and made its fourth straight trip to the NCAA Tournament this year, advancing for the first time to the round of 16.
The excitement around all of Mercy's programs is evident in the increased attendance at events and successful promotions that have reconnected Mercy Athletics with alumni, youth groups, the student body and staff. A big part of this has been the return of Mercy's basketball games to the historic Westchester County Center where the squads played six conference doubleheaders last year, and hope to play all 10 in 2007-08.
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Arguably the biggest event of all however, was not a sporting event. This particular home run was Mercy's first ever Athletics Hall of Fame and Awards Dinner in November of 2006. Not only did the department honor several of its alumni and former staff members, but it drew over 300 attendees.
"Kevin's enthusiasm for students and for the athletics program is contagious," said Dr. Louise H. Feroe, president of Mercy College. "He has helped create a spirit of participation and elevated school spirit beyond expectations."
With all that McGinniss and the department have achieved in the last two years, there will be no let down, even with the school year coming to an end. Instead, he believes it is time to take that spirit up another notch.
"We coined our mission ‘A New Beginning' when I arrived here," said McGinniss. "We have certainly built a lot of momentum. Now we must build on that momentum and continue moving forward."
That process began with the unveiling of a new mascot and nickname at Mercy's Graduate Salute on May 15, where the department also honored its senior student-athletes. As part of the "New Beginning," and to further develop the identity of Mercy College and its athletics program, the department embarked on the process beginning in the Fall of 2006. Over 400 people participated in making nominations and providing feedback, with the "Mavericks" emerging as the final choice to represent Mercy College.
"A maverick is someone who exhibits great independence in thought and action - a maverick is a leader," McGinniss said at the unveiling. "The nickname Mavericks truly embodies the spirit of Mercy College and Mercy College athletics. It's a nickname that the entire Mercy community can be proud of and rally around."
McGinniss will now turn his attention to more major happenings to cap off the year. The first being the Mercy College Blue White Fund Golf Classic scheduled for June 21, at the Canyon Club in Armonk, NY. He established the Blue White Fund to support and further enhance Mercy College Athletics and to provide the student-athletes with opportunities to compete at the highest-level in NCAA Division II, both regionally and nationally. Next, the department will feature the emergence of Mercy College Sports Camps; six weeks of sport specific skill instruction for boys and girls ages 5-14 during the summer months.
"If Kevin was playing on a professional sports team, he'd be known as a playmaker, the guy that the opponent always has to key on, or he'll run right by them," said Drew Brown, Mercy's assistant athletics director for external affairs. "Teammates can look to him with confidence for guidance during the tough times, and at all other times look for him to lead them to the next level."
Just like the new nickname Mavericks, through new initiatives McGinniss and his staff continue to lead Mercy College athletics to a higher level.
