Written by Travis Misner '16
Last year, I had the privilege and opportunity to complete my fellowship with the athletic development team at Northern Illinois University. Under the guidance of Assistant Athletic Director and Director of Development Tim Rice as well as Associate Athletic Director for Major Gifts Mark Muhlhauser '02, I assisted in soliciting donations to the Huskie Athletic Fund, which supports each of NIU’s 17 sports and helps compensate for costs such as team meals, travel, equipment, and facilities.
Over the past 12 months, NIU has seen some significant changes in their athletic department including the hiring of Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics Sean Frazier along with the opening of the new $9.5 million Kenneth and Ellen Chessick Practice Center.
Arguably our biggest task was putting together and launching a revamped annual fund. I was able to research over 25 other athletic departments and come up with best practices that would benefit our department and donor base. We also launched our new development website, www.huskieathleticfund.com, as well as a new season ticket policy. Our goal was to expand our donor base by 10% and to pull from the 200,000 NIU alums in the greater Chicago area.
Seeing as this was my first experience in Division I development, being a part of the transition was a priceless experience for me. I was able to see how the changes throughout the department affected the university and the surrounding DeKalb community. I was fortunate enough to learn an incredible amount about what it takes to be successful in athletics, which will help me reach my career goal of becoming an athletic director.
Overall I feel that the Fellowship program through Ohio University’s Sports Administration program has helped me grow from a former Division III student-athlete to an aspiring athletics professional. I will use the tools and lessons learned at NIU throughout my career and I’m thankful for the opportunity.
Contact Travis on Twitter and/or by email.
Class of 2016 Fellowship Summmaries
Andy Szabo, Property Consulting Group
Josh Schayer, Navigate Research
Matthew Meier, Old Dominion University
Mallory Glazier, Kappa Kappa Gamma National Headquarters
Eric Mayer, Ohio Center for Sports Administration
Learn more about our Fellowship program.
