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General

The AD’s Quarterly Address & The Future of UCR Athletics

Dear UCR Athletics Community,
 
Today, Thursday, May 6, Chancellor Kim A. Wilcox informed our Campus Community that the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics at UC Riverside will continue forward as a Division I (D1) mid-major, 17-sport program competing in the Big West Conference. The Chancellor's full message can be found here.
 
Wes Mallette Graphic


The Decision to Move Forward at the Division I Level
Our Chancellor's decision follows an extensive, evaluative process that included his establishment of the Athletics Working Group (AWG) in November 2020. The AWG conducted a thorough assessment of Intercollegiate Athletics on the UC Riverside campus, reviewed challenges and opportunities, and made recommendations on the long-term sustainability of the program.
 
As the work of this group nears its completion and the decision to move forward at the D1 level has been made, I want to remind everyone that the road ahead will require much from all of us. The path forward will include a reduced organizational staffing model with additional reductions forthcoming. To face these continued challenges, we must remain focused. Everyone must be "all in" as we continue to build our program. The long-term viability for Athletics requires that level of commitment from all of us.
 
The First 100 Days as Your Interim Athletics Director
I have had the privilege of serving as your Interim Athletics Director for just under 100 days now (officially) and will continue to operate in a strategic, inclusive and student-athlete-first, solution-focused manner. Before we look ahead, I want to take a moment out to remind everyone that in spite of the many challenges we have faced over the past several months, we have accomplished a great deal this year. Our program continues its upward trajectory. With one month remaining in our spring calendar, we have achieved one of our best years academically and athletically in our 20-year history as a D1 program.
 
Some of our 2020-21 academic and athletic highlights include: Operationally, during the 2020-21 academic year we have:
  • Created a people-first Athletics culture that is focused on caring and listening (which in turn has yielded tremendous results).
  • Completed our strategic plan and operational efficiency/organizational restructure plan, and in the final phase of our financial sustainability plan.
  • Successfully returned spring and fall sports back to campus.
  • Created a more efficient and successful operation during the now 14-month global pandemic.
  • Managed our Athletics program, with 17-sports, just under 300 student-athletes and 70 coaches and staff, through COVID-19, ensuring communications were sound and consistent, and all testing protocols were followed accordingly, to enable us to compete successfully and safely with minimal interruption throughout the year.
  • Raised the profile of our program nationally with unprecedented and positive media coverage, including features and interviews on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN.com, The Washington Post, The Athletic, NBC Bay Area, The Jim Rome Show, Sports Illustrated and many more.
  • Launched our new UCR Athletics brand visual identity system back on July 1, 2020, to an incredibly positive response from the community and Athletics industry.
 
The Path Forward
Our future success as a program will hinge upon a three-year financial sustainability and operational efficiency plan to achieve substantial permanent budget reductions and organizational restructuring, revenue generation, donor support, athletic success, a student referendum to consider an increase in the Division I Athletics fee, and further integration and alignment with Campus.
 
This challenge is not unique to us, as many D1 programs across the NCAA landscape are facing similar issues. Essentially, we are creating a new model for mid-major athletics which will include all of the aforementioned areas. We will work in lockstep with Campus leadership to ensure these and other changes are evaluated annually, making sure we are making tangible progress toward our collectively agreed-upon goals. I am fully confident we will get there together and I am honored and excited to be in the position to help lead us forward.
 
I want to thank Chancellor Wilcox, Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Brian Haynes, the entire Athletics Working Group, Collegiate Sports Associates, our coaches, staff and student-athletes, ASUCR, our campus partners, our donors and our Athletics Association Board members. Your partnership, teamwork, tireless efforts and dedication in helping to identify the path forward for UCR Athletics has been incredible.
 
Finally, I want to remind Highlander Nation of who we are at our core.
 
We are mission-driven individuals who are focused on developing student-athletes for opportunities in life through sport. For us, failure is not an option. We are UCR Athletics, and together, we find a way.
 
Thank you for your support.
 
Go Highlanders!

- Wes
 
Wesley Mallette
Interim Director of Intercollegiate Athletics