[HTML1] Connee Zotos, has spent 34 years working at University athletic departments as a head coach and Director of Athletics. Her opinions and commentary give listeners a bird’s eye view of what it’s like to work in this field—difficult! The biggest obstacle is that “colleges allow athletics departments to exist in a vacuum.”
Connee’s advice if you want to be a college athletics director is this:
- Get a great education which might include an MBA, Law Degree, or PHD
- Get involved with the NCWAA
- Search out and build relationships with Female Mentors at the highest level of college administration (College Presidents, VP, Deans, etc.)
- Serve on as many professional committees as you can (especially NCAA committees where higher college administration officials are included)
More about Connee Zotos
Dr. Zotos is currently employed as a Clinical Associate Professor of Sports Management in the Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management at New York University. Before joining the NYU faculty, Dr. Zotos was the Director of Athletics at Drew University, a position she held for 14 years. Dr. Zotos’ career as a college coach and athletics administrator spanned 34 years. She had the unique opportunity of working in university athletics departments that were classified in all three NCAA Divisions including The University of Texas, The University of Colorado, Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, and Drew University. She served two terms on the NCAA Management Council and is a noted speaker and author on gender equity, coach evaluation, coaches’ employment and compensation systems, and creating tiered athletics program models.
Dr. Zotos’ employment experience goes beyond higher education. She was employed as a college basketball television commentator for Home Sports Entertainment and Austin Cablevision. For several years, she co-owned and operated ALI Sports Clinics, a business that provided softball and track coaching clinics in nine states. Currently, Dr. Zotos is a Senior Associate at Sports Management Resources, a consulting firm that works exclusively with university and high school athletics departments.
Throughout her career, Dr. Zotos has championed the rights of girls and women in sport. She has served on the Advisory Board of the Women’s Sports Foundation, the NACWAA Board of Directors, chaired numerous Title IX committees, and was the Executive Director of Project Fair Play.
Dr. Zotos has been recognized as a New Jersey Outstanding Leader in Sports, a National Division III Athletic Director of the Year and a three time Coach of the Year. She is a member of the Glassboro State College/Rowan University Sports Hall of Fame and is included in the Encyclopedia of Women in Sport in America. In February of 2011, she received a Teaching Excellence Award from New York University’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies.
Dr. Zotos received a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from Glassboro State College, a master’s degree in Physical Education with an emphasis in Sports Management from the University of Colorado and a Ph.D. in Educational Administration from the University of Texas at Austin.
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