Valparaiso Director of Athletics Dr. Charles Small and Lindenwood Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Jason Coomer join ADU’s Tai M. Brown at the 2023 NACDA Convention to reflect on Year One in the Big Chair. Small and Coomer, both first-time ADs, share insight into navigating expected and unexpected challenges, establishing key relationships on campus – including with the president’s senior leadership team – and adapting to new expectations as the department-wide leader. Small shares his leadership mantras of “build, measure, learn” and “stewardship, strategy and success” while Coomer quotes retired U.S. Army General Martin Dempsey regarding change, saying: “If you don’t like change, you’re going to hate being irrelevant even more.”
The conversation is indexed below for efficient viewing (click the time stamp to jump to a specific question/topic).
