EAST STROUDSBURG -- Dr. Gary R. Gray announced on Wednesday that he will be retiring from his position as East Stroudsburg University's Director of Athletics, effective January 28, 2022.
Dr. Gray came to ESU four years ago and brought with him more than 22 years of experience as a director of athletics and more than four decades of insight into athletics and education – as an administrator, coach, tenured faculty member and primary and secondary educator. Dr. Gray previously served as Director of Athletics at Alaska Fairbanks from 2012 through 2017, and he hit the ground running, leading ESU's athletic department to attain many accomplishments during his tenure.
"It is with very mixed emotions that I announce today my retirement from the world of NCAA Division II athletics, effective January 28, 2022," said Dr. Gray. "I have had the pleasure of leading three wonderful Division II programs since 1994 (minus about 18 months in the 1998-99 time frame). My past four years have been spent at one of the top Division II programs in the entire country. I will definitely miss all of the wonderful coaches, staff, and student-athletes that make up the Warriors Athletics program. They excel at the very highest level of Division II, and it has been a joy to be a small part of this program, the largest program in the largest conference in Division II."
I want to thank both former President Marcia G. Welsh, Ph.D., who hired me, and Interim President Kenneth Long, who kept me, as Director of Athletics of this historic and amazing program. They are both great leaders who have inspired me to want to work hard to help advance the program. We have attracted many fine coaches, staff, and student-athletes, and I am very confident the program will continue on its upward trajectory. It has been an honor to serve."
Dr. Gray was instrumental in: expanding the athletics scholarship budgets at the University and Foundation levels in each of the past four years; managing to balance the athletics budget each year; expanding ESU's camps and clinics model which now includes camps and clinics year-round and not just in the summer; adding two emerging sports for women at ESU (wrestling and acrobatics & tumbling); adding several new graduate assistant positions to the department; expanding the roster sizes in most sports; developing ESU's athletics speaker series, "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in College Athletics: A Call to Action;" and helping ESU athletics to achieve the highest total of community service hours in the PSAC during fiscal year 2019 with 8,704 hours.
Under his leadership, a full-time coaching position was developed for men's and women's cross country, and women's lacrosse gained a full-time assistant coach position. Several ESU teams advanced to the NCAA Division II final sites in their respective sports including field hockey (3 times), women's lacrosse (2 times) and men's basketball; as well as NCAA postseason appearances by several other sports, and national qualifying performances by student-athletes in men's wrestling and men's and women's track and field. Additionally, ESU placed in the top 15 percent in the Learfield Directors' Cup national standings in NCAA Division II and had a fourth-place ranking (of 18 member institutions) in the PSAC's Dixon Trophy competition.
Many facility enhancements have also occurred under Dr. Gray's watch, including: Creekview Park baseball and softball fields; new artificial turf at Eiler-Martin Stadium and Whitenight Field; new sound systems at Eiler-Martin Stadium, Whitenight Field, and Koehler Fieldhouse; three new locker rooms in Koehler Fieldhouse and one at Whitenight Field; refurbishing and rebranding of the floor in Koehler Fieldhouse; new four-sided digital scoreboard in Koehler Fieldhouse; new heating and air conditioning system in Koehler Fieldhouse arena; long-awaited painting of bleacher seating at Eiler-Martin Stadium; two new batting cages in Koehler Fieldhouse; new shot clocks at Koehler Fieldhouse and Whitenight Field; improved strength training areas and equipment in Koehler Fieldhouse; new furniture in Koehler Fieldhouse conference room and all coaches' offices; and new football offices.
Dr. Gray, along with the ESU athletic department, provided leadership throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, consistently focusing on the health and well-being ESU student-athletes during a most unprecedented time.
An Interim Athletic Director will be named shortly.
