Photo by Chris Meyer Rick Greenspan (left), the new university director of intercollegiate athletics at IU, was interviewed by news reporters shortly after his appointment was made public during a press conference in the Hoosier Room of Memorial Stadium in Bloomington Sept. 2.

Greenspan’s primary duties will be overseeing the 24 Division I-A programs on the Bloomington campus, which include more than 600 students in men’s and women’s intercollegiate sports. His duties also include some university-wide responsibilities, such as serving as an adviser to all campus athletic directors. IUPUI, IU Northwest, IU South Bend and IU Southeast have intercollegiate athletics programs; IPFW does as well but is administered by Purdue. IU East and IU Kokomo do not have intercollegiate programs.

Greenspan has 25 years of experience in the administration and management of intercollegiate athletics, physical education and recreation programs at public and private universities. He also has served in athletic conference and NCAA leadership capacities.

“In Rick Greenspan, Indiana University has found a consummate professional—a successful, experienced athletics administrator of unquestioned integrity who embraces the values of this great institution,” Herbert said. “The success of our student-athletes, as measured by their performance on the field and in the classroom, is of paramount importance,” he said. “Rick not only understands that principle—he has perfected it.”

“I am honored to have the opportunity to lead the athletics department at IU,” Greenspan said. “The history and proud traditions associated with IU’s athletics programs are legendary. I am committed to ensuring that IU’s student-athletes and athletic programs perform at the level of excellence which we are right to expect,” he added.

“We conferred with scores of individuals who have had previous experiences with Rick, including fellow athletics directors, coaches, conference leaders, administrators and others. To a person, each offered a resounding endorsement regarding his character, talents and abilities,” the president said.

“The search process went exactly according to a plan to which the committee agreed at its first meeting in early June,” said Ken Beckley, chairperson of the 16-member search committee and president of the IU Alumni Association. There were approximately 100 applicants for the position, Beckley said. “Throughout July, the committee looked at applicant materials and compared each candidate to the list of qualifications that we sought in the person we and the president wanted for athletics director,” continued Beckley. “The pool was eventually narrowed to a small group of persons who were interviewed in Chicago in early August, and we submitted a select list of high-quality candidates to the president.”

At West Point, Greenspan was director of intercollegiate athletics, where he led a program with a $23 million budget that served nearly 800 student-athletes. He oversaw the design and construction of several major athletics facilities and the updating of older ones. He overhauled the annual giving program, which resulted in a 300 percent increase in gifts, and he created a system of coaches’ accountability and support programs in which 34 percent of all student-athletes were recognized on the dean’s list.

“Rick Greenspan saved the Army athletics program,” said Brigadier Gen. Dan Kaufman, dean of the Academic Board and chairman of the Athletic Committee at the United States Military Academy. “We were in severe financial difficulties, and this affected our program of competition. He fixed all of that.”

Before going to Army, Greenspan was director of intercollegiate athletics at Illinois State University, a 19-sport NCAA Division I program. At the beginning of his career, he held positions at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee and the University of New Hampshire.

Greenspan, who will begin his job at IU later this month, has been given a five-year contract. His salary will be $275,000 per year. After completing the terms of his contract, he is entitled to deferred compensation of $30,000 per year.