ADMINISTRATION Dr. Mark Huddleston
President
Mark W. Huddleston is the 19th president of the University of New Hampshire. He brings three decades of experience in public and private higher education as a faculty member, dean, and senior administrator, most recently as president of Ohio Wesleyan University. His term at UNH commenced in July 2007. Huddleston began his academic career at the State University of New York-Buffalo in 1977 as an assistant professor of political science. He then joined the faculty of the University of Delaware in 1980, where he remained for the next 24 years. Dr. Huddleston chaired the Department of Political Science and International Relations and served as associate provost for international programs. He was named dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 2001, where he managed 45 academic departments and centers with nearly 900 fulltime faculty and staff, and served in that capacity until he was named president of Ohio Wesleyan University in 2004. Having received his bachelor’s degree in political science from SUNY-Buffalo, Huddleston went on to receive both a master’s degree and Ph.D. in political science from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. An author of numerous books and articles, he has been active as a consultant for both the U.S. government and international organizations. He also served as an advisor in Bosnia on rebuilding financial and administrative infrastructures after the Dayton accords. Huddleston was raised in Syracuse and spent 24 years at the University of Delaware in various capacities. For UNH he says, the best years are yet to come—and he is happy that he will be a part of that. Huddleston and his wife, Emma Bricker, have three children, Andy, Kate, and Giles. Marty Scarano Director of Athletics Marty Scarano is in the midst of his 11th year as Director of Athletics at the University of New Hampshire. During his tenure, Scarano has heightened national exposure for UNH athletics with academics, facility renovations and programmatic advancement being top priorities. According to numbers released in 2010, UNH athletics ranks highest in the America East Conference, the Colonial Athletic Association and second nationally among all public institutions, trailing only the U.S. Naval Academy, for the Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of its student athletes with a mark of 97 percent. Of its 20 current sport teams, 14 of them submitted perfect GSRs of 100 percent. UNH finished second in the America East Academic Cup this past season, achieving a 3.16 cumulative grade-point average, which surpassed the league record for highest GPA. There have been over $8.5 million in capitol improvements since his hiring in the summer of 2000. In the fall of 2008, the Paul Sweet Oval renovation was completed to include new surfaces, lighting, painting, infrastructure upgrades and the replacement of windows that existed in the original architecture. The total cost of the project exceeded $500,000. In the summer of 2007, the Cowell Stadium grass field was replaced with a $1 million Field Turf synthetic surface. Additionally in 2007, a complete renovation of Lundholm Gymnasium was undertaken. The $600,000 renovation included a new state-of-the-art bleacher system, new scoreboards, competition baskets and other aesthetic enhancements. Scarano brought about the completion of the $2.15 million Reggie Atkins Track and Field Facility in the summer of 2000. The addition of a center-ice scoreboard and message board at the Whittemore Center was completed in 2001. In 2002, UNH athletics renovated Memorial Field along with the Bigglestone Plaza and Bremner Field on the former Upper Field. The two fields, which feature state-of-the-art synthetic turf and lighting, were built at a cost of $1.5 million apiece. In addition, construction was completed to enlarge and improve the women’s locker rooms in the UNH Field House. Two other major improvements to benefit UNH’s student-athletes have been the renovation of the Jerry Azumah Performance Center for Strength and Conditioning, which features state-of-the-art strength and conditioning equipment, new offices and design, and a complete overhaul of the Student-Athlete Academic Center. Scarano and the University are also in the midst of the planning and fundraising for a multi-purpose outdoor facility. Scarano has focused on moving UNH athletics into the collegiate national arena. To accomplish that goal, UNH has taken on the task of hosting major NCAA championships. The Wildcat athletic department was host of highly-successful NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Northeast Regionals at the Verizon Wireless Arena (Manchester, N.H.) in 2004, 2007, 2009, and Manchester will once again be the site of the Northeast Regionals in 2011. UNH has had the opportunity to host two NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Frozen Fours in the Whittemore Center in 2002 and 2005. In addition, UNH successfully hosted the 2007 NCAA Skiing Championships in Washington Valley, as well as the 2005 NCAA Women’s Gymnastics Northeast Regional, which took place at the Whittemore Center. This past season, men’s and women’s ice hockey, football, the men’s and women’s ski teams and gymnastics, as well as members of men’s and women’s outdoor track and field, all competed in the NCAA postseason. Because of these initiatives and accomplishments, UNH athletics has consistently been ranked in the top 90 programs among all Division I institutions in the battle for the NACDA Directors Cup, which is well ahead of nearly all of UNH’s conference opponents. This past season, the Wildcats ranked 72nd out of more than 370 Division I schools with 260.50 points, which were the most in program history, the best in America East and placed the ‘Cats in the top five among FCS teams. UNH ranked behind only Villanova, Princeton, Cornell and Harvard in the FCS subdivision. In New England, the Wildcats finished fourth behind Boston College, Connecticut and Harvard. Scarano’s many accomplishments during his tenure have played a key role in UNH being named one of the Top 20 Athletic Departments in the Country in U.S. News and World Report college athletics rankings in March 2002. UNH’s graduation rate for athletes has maintained levels at or exceeding 90 percent, which puts it among the nation’s best in Division I. The men’s ice hockey team won the regular season Hockey East title in 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008 and 2010, and then advanced to the NCAA Frozen Four in 2002 and 2003. The Wildcat women’s hockey team won the Hockey East Tournament Championship four straight seasons from 2006-09, which also included Frozen Four appearances in 2006 and 2008. The women’s gymnastics team won its first-ever EAGL title in 2003, when the event was hosted at the Whitt. The volleyball team won an America East crown in 2002 and 2003 and went on to the NCAA tournament in those same seasons. The field hockey team made the NCAA’s in 2000, while women’s lacrosse made “The Big Dance” in 2004 and again in 2008. UNH football returned to national prominence and was ranked No. 1 in the nation for parts of three seasons from 2005-07, made it to the NCAA FCS playoffs the last six years, including the quarterfinals five times in that span, and also won its fifth consecutive game against an FBS opponent in 2009. Additionally, 21 coaches have won 58 Coach of the Year awards during Scarano’s tenure. In 2007, Scarano was named the All-American Football Foundation Athletic Director of the Year for FCS football in the Northeast region. Scarano was also awarded the National Association of College Directors of Athletics (NACDA) AD of the Year for the FCS. Scarano also been an active member in the leadership of UNH’s three major conferences and was the chair of the executive committees for Atlantic 10 football, Hockey East and America East from 2003 to 2007. He also served as chair of the NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Committee in 2005-06 and 2006-07. Scarano held the position of Athletics Director at Colorado College from July 1996 through June 2000. The college’s athletic program excelled both in and out of the classroom under his supervision and six different athletic facilities received renovations, including the Schlessman Pool, Washburn Field, the Carle Weight Room and a new press box at Stewart Field. During his tenure, Colorado College was ranked among the top 20 Division III programs in the Sears Cup national standings and produced several All-Americans, all-academic award winners and NCAA post-graduate scholarship recipients. During Scarano’s tenure at Colorado College, the men’s ice hockey team became a regular at the NCAA men’s ice hockey championships. Prior to his stay in Colorado Springs, Scarano worked for 13 years at Colgate University, where he served as assistant director of athletics, director of physical education, associate director, and senior associate director. Scarano, a native of Pittsburgh, Pa., is a 1978 graduate of Penn State University, where he started his athletic career as assistant ticket manager and the athletics events manager from 1980-83. Scarano holds a Master’s Degree in Environmental History from Colgate. He and his wife, Cydney, have two daughters, Lynden, a junior at UNH, and Corey, and a son, Kyle.
WOMEN’S SOCCER