What is your job title? And what do you do?

My job here is the Director of Athletics. I manage all athletics at West, make sure we have our budget and transportation together, and schedule contracts.  I also need to be present at the games, some practices, and manage our coaches.  I have to make sure our coaches are following all the guidelines they need to and being the point of contact for parents and guardians as well.

What makes you a good fit as an athletic director? 

I think one: being an athletic director doesn’t require a specific background, but it requires a background in some sort of athletics. For me, I think what makes me a good fit as an athletic director is the background I have experienced at playing basketball at the high school, college, and pro levels. I’m able to really give insight to our student-athletes who want to pursue a career in sports, and what that looks like. Also, I think after I got done playing, my main focus was being a teacher and a mentor, right, making sure I encouraged the next generation of students to stay motivated, stay positive, and stay focused on whatever they need to do for their future. So I think these combined with the experience I have and the endeavors I have as a mentor and a teacher now are what make me a good fit as an athletic director.  Furthermore, I feel like I can talk to anybody. You know, I don’t take things personally throughout my experience. So I think that my personality and being able to talk to people makes me a good fit as an athletic director.

What do you look for in an athlete at Wauwatosa West?

Most importantly, I look at the student first. I look for someone focused on school first and foremost because you won’t get far in athletics without focusing on school. Also, even before how great of an athlete they are, I look at who they are as a person, how they treat people, how they conduct themselves, with their teachers, with their peers.  Next, I look at their leadership.  I want to see if they’re a leader or a follower. Today, it can be hard for many students to follow the leadership role because of the social media aspect, and how kids try to follow what someone else is doing versus forge your own path. So I try to look for great students, first and foremost, great character and leaders. And then outside of that, seeing how great they are in their sport, that’s the last on the list.

If a student doesn’t plan to go to the pro or college level playing a sport, why should they still play? What are the benefits? 

There are so many benefits to playing high school sports. The majority of students don’t go on to play at the next level, but what it does is it teaches you so many values for life, it teaches you to have a hard work ethic, teaches you teamwork, and teaches you resiliency. It teaches you so many traits that translate into whatever profession you want to go into, whether it’s sports or not. Playing highschool sports helps build those values of integrity and being able to get through adversity.

What sport in the program are you most excited about this year? 

Basketball is what I’m most excited about. I was named the Greater Metro Conference Athletic Director for basketball. So I’ll have my hands full during basketball season. But obviously since I played college and professional basketball, I’m very passionate about the game,

What is your main goal right now?

My main goal is to establish a culture here, a culture that I thought about even before getting this job.  I  wanted to build that Trojan Strong culture out by branding it, by getting posters made so students and coaches can see it, and getting apparel made so students and coaches can wear it. Somebody that embodies Trojan Strong is an acronym called Grit, which is growth, resilience, integrity, and teamwork. I want to make sure all our sports programs have that message embedded into them and have it become a part of their daily habits and routine. So Trojan, strong and grit. That’s my ultimate goal here.

You went to Providence, what was it like there? 

My experience at Providence was great. I spent 5 years there. I redshirted my first year. I was there on a basketball athletic scholarship. I graduated high school at 17, so I needed my body to develop, so that’s why I redshirted my first year. And throughout my time there, I ended up getting a new coach, which was a great experience for the program and the culture in general. I was able to be team captain for three years while I was there. I also was able to win the Big East Most Improved Player in my junior year, and furthermore, we ended up winning a Big East Championship my senior year and made it to the NCAA tournament for the first time in 10 years. Then I ended up graduating with a business management degree. And my experience there overall was just great. I built a lot of great relationships.

How did you choose your major in a business degree? 

When I went to college, I always wanted to play professional basketball, but I also wanted to own a gym. That was one of my goals. So I figured the best way to do that is to learn how business is run. So that’s why I chose business management.

What do you do in your free time? 

Well, I have a child, a son, and I have a daughter on the way, due in November. So I spend a lot of time with my family time. I like to do things like bowling, mini golf, and going on hikes. I like to make sure I have a good work-life balance.

We did a little research, and we found out you worked for a nonprofit based in Milwaukee. What was your time like at the organization?

It was great. That’s actually what taught me a lot of what I know now about being a mentor. STYRV365, was basically working with inner-city youth that had a lot of trauma, and what I did was ultimately be a life coach and help them build resiliency through the adversity that they go through. That taught me a lot of how to ask questions, instead of telling people what to do all the time, being able to meet the kids where they’re at, instead of putting my own thought process on how they should go about things. I was asking them what they like to do, what their thought processes and encouraging them and empowering them to follow their own decisions, dreams, goals, and just trying to help enhance their ability to deal with tough situations that are coming their way. So that was a great experience working with STYRV365.

What’s the biggest decision you’ve made over the past year? Why was it such a big deal?

I would say moving, making the decision to put my name in the hat for this position, and deciding to leave the previous role I was in. I built a lot of great relationships there. It was tough because of the relationships I built, but I feel like this was a much better opportunity and a position I could see myself in for long-term longevity in this position. Moving and leaving my former position was tough, but on the other side of tough is, you know, a great feeling of being here now and being established in this role.

Where do you see yourself in one year? 

I see myself going into my second year as an athletic director here. I want to continue building relationships, most importantly, with the student-athletes and the coaches and staff here in the community. I’m hoping to have more familiarity with everything that’s going on in the community, and continue to be one year better in this role as an athletic director here.

If there’s one thing you could change about anything, what would it be?

I would love to eliminate the hate and spread more love and positivity throughout the world. There are a lot of different things going on right now, in all facets. If there was one thing I could change, I would take away the hate from people’s hearts, and allow that to spread into more love and positivity.

Is there anything you would like to leave us with?

Just that I am super excited to be here and keep building on these relationships here.