In this episode, Shay Wyatt discusses his decision to enter athletic administration after coaching and leaving the Division I environment to take the AD job at Westminster, then a small NAIA institution.
In September 2006, Shay Wyatt was hired as Director of Athletics at Westminster College. Under his guidance the intercollegiate athletic program has experienced unprecedented growth and success. Wyatt’s leadership has led to provisional membership in NCAA II and the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC), increases in sports offering’s, enrollment, resources and revenues, facility enhancements, improved policies and procedures, community service efforts amongst student-athletes, student-athlete advisory committee and additional coaches and support staff.
Wyatt has served on various institutional committees and previously on the National Administrative Council of the NAIA. In 2013-14, Wyatt was named Frontier Conference Athletic Director of the Year by his peers and selected as an Under Armour Athletic Director of the Year by NACDA.
Prior to Westminster College, Wyatt served as Director of Sports Marketing and Bruin Club at Salt Lake Community College in 2006. While only at SLCC for a short period of time, he secured the athletic department’s largest ever corporate sponsorship.
From 2001-2006, Wyatt served as the Wildcat Club Executive Director at Weber State University. He was responsible for the development efforts for the athletics department including annual giving, major gifts, endowments, special events and donor relations. The Wildcat Club experienced an increase in annual giving totals each year Wyatt was at the helm, including a 17% increase in 2004. He was instrumental in securing more than $350,000 in football suites, club seating and basketball preferred seating.
Wyatt made his way to Weber State via Utah Valley State College where he served as the Director of Development for Athletics from 1999-2001. He was responsible for creating the fund raising arm of the athletic department, serving as the first-ever athletics development director at UVSC. In this role he defined all aspects of annual giving and major gift opportunities. Upon his arrival at UVSC he increased annual giving by 30% in his first year. He served as a member of the strategic planning committee, planning the college’s move from NJCAA to NCAA Division I.
From 1995-1998, Wyatt served as the Athletic Events Coordinator at the University of Utah. He was responsible for all aspects of event and facility management. He served as Assistant Tournament Manager for the 1997 NCAA West Region First/Second Rounds Men’s Basketball Tournament. He represented the athletics department as a liaison for athletic facility renovation and construction projects including the $50 million dollar, 50,000-seat football stadium renovation of Rice-Eccles Stadium and several other facility construction projects totaling more than $4 million.
A native of Murray, Utah, Wyatt attended Bethel College in Newton, Kansas where he was a letterman in football. He graduated in 1993 with a degree in health, physical education and recreation. He holds a Masters degree from Wichita State University in sports administration. He attended Cisco (Texas) JC and Snow (Utah) JC where he played football for both schools.
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