From the Desk of Athletic Director Glenn Hofmann
Last Sunday’s commencement ceremonies brought an end to
the 2008-09 academic year and provided me with a brief pause in
which to reflect on my first few weeks on the job. This web entry
is the first of what I expect will become a monthly update to
alumni, parents, fans and students, offering my thoughts and
perspectives on Merrimack Athletics.
Let me start by congratulating the roughly 75 student-athletes who
graduated on Sunday. Though I did not know many of you as students,
I intend to know all of you as alumni. This is a time of transition
for you and we hope that you will continue to look to your
Merrimack family – teammates, coaches and staff – for
guidance and support. Thank you for your hard work and dedication
to Merrimack College and best of luck in your future endeavors.
What a first seven weeks it has been! For me, change is never
easy, but the transition to Merrimack has been energizing and
emotional. I’ve spent most of my time listening to, and
asking questions of, staff members, alumni, community members and,
most importantly, student-athletes.
As a result of these meetings and casual interactions, I have
learned several things. We have a department of individuals who
really care about this place, alumni who are passionate about the
Blue and Gold and many successful teams and student-athletes. I
believe our challenge in the future is to create a vision and
develop strategic initiatives that reflect our vision and allow us
to reach our goals and objectives together.
Our top priority will always be to improve the student-athlete
experience. EVERYTHING we do will be done with that in mind. The
necessary evil is money. We need to raise significant new funds in
a very challenging economy to improve facilities (Lawler Arena,
seating/concessions/rest rooms at the turf field, additional locker
rooms, new tennis courts, additional turf field, and more), improve
recruiting budgets and move part-time coaches to full-time
positions.
In order to do this we must start with the basics of
communication. This is the first of many steps you will notice in
the coming year. We have great stories to tell about Merrimack
Athletics and it is critical that we tell these stories to
re-energize alumni, the local and regional community, the Merrimack
campus and potential recruits and their parents.
I traveled in a van two weeks ago with our men’s tennis team
to the NCAA Tournament in New York City. Playing without its best
player, the team won Merrimack’s first-ever NCAA Tournament
match. And while winning was certainly enjoyable, what was most
rewarding was seeing the happiness, pride and genuine emotion on
each player’s face after we won. That’s the Merrimack
I’ve quickly come to know – authentic, proud, scrappy
and successful.
We’re equally as proud of the five other teams that
qualified for NCAA tournaments this year – volleyball,
men’s basketball, women’s soccer, women’s tennis
and men’s lacrosse. Each team has a great story to tell and
we look forward to doing so in the future.
I hope our paths cross in the near future. Please feel free to
drop me a line or stop by Volpe for a visit. My door is always
open.
Go Warriors,
Glenn
