Inside RecSports Fall/Winter 2022

FALL/winter 2022

A CHAMPION FOR STUDENT LIFE

Celebrating Tom Dison’s 48-year career

A Letter from the Executive Director

Friends, There is much to be excited about on the Forty Acres!

Students are back in full-force after the pandemic, Texas Football is playing in the Alamo Bowl, Texas Volleyball has once again reached the Final Four and work has begun on implementing UT’s first-ever strategic plan. At RecSports, the fall was filled with a record number of intramural pickleball teams, the opening of The Turf, a new functional space located at the Recreational Sports Center, and the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the renovation of Gregory Gym. Participation in open recreation and all programs is increasing, and we are encouraged by the engagement we have seen from our students.

Our partnership with students continues to be the heart of this organization, and our student employees are essential to the programs and services RecSports provides the campus community. We invite you to meet the outstanding student employees that were awarded scholarships earlier this year. These 17 individuals are just a few of the extraordinary students that contribute to the organization as employees on a daily basis.

On a personal note, I am thrilled to serve as the new executive director of the department. I’ve been a part of this team since I was hired as the assistant director of Fitness and Wellness in 1999, and I’ve been fortunate to work with and learn from so many outstanding colleagues. I’m excited to be chosen as the department’s sixth director since its inception in 1916 and know I have big shoes to fill, especially following Tom Dison, who retired on Aug. 31. Our tenets–quality in all we do, continuous improvement, and partnering with students – will not change. It is with great pride that I lead this organization and the exceptional full-time and student employees that comprise it.

I am looking forward to 2023 as the new year is sure to bring new opportunities for RecSports. Please stay in touch!

Hook ‘em,

Jennifer Speer Executive Director

Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the “New” Gregory Gym

Twenty-five years ago, on Nov. 12, 1997, Recreational Sports opened the doors to a newly-renovated Gregory Gym. The facility had been closed for 22 months while a major renovation was underway to transform the outdated building into a place worthy of its position in the center of campus.

At this time, it’s only fitting to look back and marvel at the amazing transformation that took place. New sources of natural lighting resulted in a modern, airy setting with a main concourse that united the heritage and tradition of old Gregory with a functional state-of-the art design. Strategicallyplaced open lounge areas encouraged social interaction and facilitated study breaks. The decisive addition of central air-conditioning vastly improved the participant experience.

For those who never knew the pre1997 Gregory Gym, it may be difficult to imagine the facility without the Cardio Theater, indoor running track, Climbing Wall, Outdoor Center, modernized weight and locker rooms, racquetball, handball and squash courts, and much more. Yet, today’s Gregory Gym is more than a place to work out. Since its reopening, the historic facility has emerged as one of the most popular campus venues for a wide range of events including convocation ceremonies, Texas Volleyball games, meetings, tournaments and hundreds of special events. Most importantly, Gregory Gym remains at the heart of campus life serving as a hub for student activity, and a home away from home for countless members of the campus community.

Long-Time Director Tom Dison Living the Motto:

Education through Recreation”

In his almost 50-year career, Tom played a significant role in leading the department from humble beginnings to one of the most highly regarded collegiate recreation programs in the country, with an emphasis on partnerships with students and an unwavering commitment to excellence.

Tom joined the staff of the newly-created Division of Recreational Sports, as it was known at the time, in 1974. His first assignment was straightforward and two-fold: to initiate a coed intramural league and to develop a publicity program. Little did Tom know he was stepping into a lengthy, illustrious career that would elevate him into a leadership role spanning decades and challenge him to continue the work started by his predecessor, Betty A. Thompson. Tom’s tenure, which officially came to a close with his retirement on Aug. 31, 2022, earned him a reputation as an innovator, trailblazer, visionary, and mentor in the words of students, RecSports staff, and campus colleagues.

Background

A native of Sacramento, California, and son of a high school basketball coach, Tom grew up around sports. At his alma mater, the University of California, Davis, where he earned a bachelor of arts degree in English in 1971, he played and officiated intramural sports, and wrote an intramural events column to comment on games and make daily predictions. Just before receiving his master’s degree from California State University, Sacramento, in 1974, Tom submitted his résumé for an open position with Recreational Sports at UT. Despite only a phone interview and an unclear understanding of the job duties, he accepted the job and relocated to Texas. Betty, who became his boss and mentor, later revealed one of the reasons she hired him was due to his California roots which, in her words, meant “he’d be a little crazy and would push the envelope.”

Early Years at Recreational Sports

Betty’s supposition proved prophetic. At least about pushing the envelope! Upon joining RecSports, Tom got to work introducing new coed intramural leagues, replacing the original student managerial model with a more inclusive system staffed by student employees and regularly asking students for their input to improve the program.

He also helped end the point system of determining intramural champions and replaced intramural trophies and belt buckles with championship T-shirts that remain highly prized today. The campus community read about the Division’s programs in the RecSports Review, a weekly full-page spread in

Growing the Division

In 1977, Betty and Tom initiated a thorough review of the Division’s programs and facilities, and created a master plan for future growth. The plan specified several goals, among them constructing a second indoor recreational facility, renovating outdoor spaces, installing lighting at the tennis courts, renovating Gregory Gym, acquiring additional outdoor space for future expansion, developing outdoor pools, and exploring other water-related activity facilities.

At the start of the 1980s, participation in RecSports programs was growing in popularity, as enrollment swelled to nearly 40,000 students. The UT community enjoyed traditional sports but also sought out a new fitness trend, aerobic exercise. The growth of the student body and new activity trends both signaled the need for additional facility space. Recognizing the importance of Recreational Sports to the UT experience, Tom worked tirelessly over the years, many times in partnership with students, to achieve the goals of this master plan.

Through his leadership, almost all of the projects listed in the plan came to fruition including the building of the Recreational Sports Center, the renovation of Gregory Gym and Natatorium, the building of the outdoor Gregory Gym Aquatic Complex, the reboot of Clark Field to the Caven Lacrosse and Sports Center at Clark Field, and two renovations of intramural fields now known as the Charles Alan Wright Fields at the Berry M. Whitaker Sports Complex.

The Daily Texan, that Tom conceived in the late 70s. The column was supported by the sponsorship of advertisers, including a somewhat controversial beer distributor, and ran for nearly two decades.

Leading the Organization and More

Tom became director of Recreational Sports in 1988, succeeding Betty, and eventually rising to the level of senior associate vice president. While at the helm of Recreational Sports, he assumed additional roles and responsibilities. He oversaw the Texas Parents organization, headed University Housing and Dining,

and briefly served as Interim Dean of Students. Through it all, Recreational Sports remained at the heart of Tom’s portfolio. Former Senior Director Eric Stoutner says Tom “was cast in the perfect role as one who thought globally, questioned the status quo, set seemingly unattainable expectations, and inspired all of us to reach for a vision that far outpaced anything we had thought possible.”

A colleague and former executive director of NIRSA,

the professional organization devoted to promoting campus recreation, Kent J. Blumenthal, notes, “Tom is a renaissance man, a visionary who helped elevate the field of recreational sports within student affairs and higher education.”

Enhancing the Department

Tom continuously sought ways to elevate the scope and reach of Recreational Sports while achieving the department’s mission of advancing the wellbeing of Longhorns by providing education through recreation. Keeping students’ needs a top priority was his guiding principle as he encouraged the creation and expansion of new programs and activities.

Over the years, students benefited from the creation and implementation of a variety of new and enhanced programs and activities such as Group

More Than RecSports

Over the years, Tom not only expanded the reach of Recreational Sports to impact the lives of the entire campus community, but evolved the department so that it became central to the total university experience, touching the lives of students from freshman year to graduation and beyond. He even coined a slogan — “We’re More Than RecSports” — ensuring that the department lived up to that ideal.

This motto manifested into the department sponsoring or hosting a variety of campus and community-wide events including UT Commencement ceremonies, Party on the Plaza, Poker Walk, Texas THON, Honors Colloquium, Austin Independent School District Volleyball Playday, a youth camp program, the University’s Orange and White Ball, Texas Roundtable’s Pancakes for Parkinson’s event, Texas Parents Family Orientation, and much more.

Securing the Financial Future

Cycling classes, F45 Training, functional training areas for individual workouts, as well as bringing additional services to Gregory Gym, including an Amazon Hub Locker, Shake Smart, and a University Federal Credit Union branch.

In the summer of 2008, faced with a changing financial landscape on campus and the rising cost of higher education, Tom led efforts to find revenue streams outside of student fees and generated income to secure the financial future of the department. He vowed to ensure that future generations of students would always have the same kind of opportunities that alumni had while participating in the program. As he was fond of saying, “RecSports is about creating memories that will last a lifetime.”

Toward this goal, he initiated a Development program to discover new sources of income. The new unit worked toward cultivating potential donors for charitable contributions; securing donations, gifts, and sponsorships from individuals, businesses, and foundations; and managing a Friends of RecSports program as a way of reaching former participants and employees.

One outcome was the formation of the RecSports Leadership Team, comprised of past participants, former employees, and supporters, to assist with the aforementioned efforts. The team identified three areas of opportunities to make a difference: student employee scholarships, a RecSports Excellence Fund to raise critical, unrestricted resources for the department, and capital facility projects.

These efforts resulted in many successes including an endowed student scholarship program; the renovation of Clark Field and Whitaker Fields; digitization of the Intramural Wall of Fame; a long-standing partnership with Nike; introduction of the Gregory Gym Pavers initiative; and the creation of a Hall of Honor to recognize individuals and groups who have made significant contributions to the department.

Lasting Legacy

In announcing Tom’s retirement to Student Affairs staff, Vice President Soncia Reagins-Lilly summed up his legacy by stating, “Devoted to our students, Tom leaves a rich legacy--he worked hand-in-hand with generations of students, faculty and staff to improve our campus. Tom has been unselfishly devoted to our university and Recreational Sports, executing many ideas that some people thought would be impossible to bring to fruition; he always kept our students’ needs a top priority.”

From a Student’s Point of View

Tom Dison had a tremendous impact on generations of students. Here’s what some of them had to say about his legacy on the Forty Acres:

“Tom is an incredible mentor, contact, and friend to me who I can always count on for enlightening, sage advice…. Even when I did not know it, Tom was making sure my eyes were locked in and focused on what was best for me, spanning professional and personal life choices.”

CHARLIE

ADKINS

(BBA ’16, MPA ’17)

“Tom has been a friend, a leader, a counselor, and a visionary to many student leaders within RecSports and throughout campus. He is gentle, kind, and smart, and really appreciates that remarkable balancing necessary to see students across their different roles (as) customers, athletes, pranksters, and policy leaders.”

RODNEY SCHLOSSER (BS ’85)

“When I was diagnosed with brain cancer Tom put the weight of the entire (RecSports) department behind me. He treated me like family as I was going through treatment and after my dad passed away during the end of my treatment…. He acted like a father figure to help guide me through this difficult period.”

RYAN BECERRA, RECSPORTS SENIOR SOFTWARE DEVELOPER/ANALYST (BA

“I met Tom when I was a member of the Orange Jackets and Tom was an advisor to the organization. Then, while serving as Student Government president I found him to be a trusted ear. To this day, I value him as a true champion of the student voice, one who always said of students, let them lead.”

NATALIE BUTLER

’12)

(BS, BA ’12)

“Tom’s fingerprints are spread across the Forty Acres. He quite literally has been involved in every student life facility built over the past 30 years. His thoughtful design and strategic planning will live on through the ages, benefiting countless generations of Longhorns.”

BRIAN HALEY (BA

’04)

“Beyond just being a mentor in the space of education and career happenings, Tom always kept up with what was going on in my life outside of work as well. I went through many hardships and losses during the last nine years, and he was always there for me.”

RITA (THORNTON)

MILLER (BS ’08, MED ’10)

“Tom was an amazing champion for students: supporting our every effort, challenging us to strive higher, and inspiring us to make a difference and leave campus better than the way we found it. As a longtime mentor for the Texas Cowboys, Tom lived our motto, ‘give the best you have to Texas and the best will come back to you.’”

GERARDO INTERIANO (BA

‘03, JD ’06)

“Tom is one of my all-time formative mentors. I’ve spent hours learning from him about university related issues like budgets and buildings, but most importantly I learned about integrity, courage, kindness, and patience. The way Tom leads and supports students represents the best of UT for me.”

MARCUS CENICEROS (BA ’08)

“I loved working at RecSports. However, I was not great at studying. After a couple years I was put on academic suspension. That didn’t stop Tom and many others from believing in me. He helped me work out a plan to get back into UT and find the resources to improve on my studies. With my degree I was able to take everything I’ve learned and find more opportunity for success.”

ANGEL MARTINEZ (BA ’17)

“Tom has been a mentor and friend for 30 years. There are countless individual students like myself who were lucky enough to be personally mentored by a truly talented, kind and compassionate campus administrator who helped us see our best selves at a young age and very important point in our lives.”

HOWARD NIRKEN (BA

’93, MPA ’97, JD ’97)

“While Tom wasn’t formally in a classroom, he taught in the classroom of life. His legacy at UT - beyond the running of a massive Division and the shepherding of countless building and other projects - is the direct impact he had on thousands of lives. He taught us as students how to be better people, how to be leaders, how to define our values, and live by them….”

KESHAV RAJAGOPALAN (BA ’10)

“Tom Dison, like so many other great UT professionals, will always be the heartbeat of the University to me and countless other student leaders from across campus. He helped me and so many students believe in ourselves. He coached us on how to take critical feedback, the importance of growing every day, and how to be selfless in service of a bigger ideal than you - the University community.”

DANIELLE RUGOFF (BA ’09)

You could say that Teddy Weisman, Ph.D. ‘22, had a pretty successful day. To anyone else, it might have seemed more like a nightmare. However, Teddy never felt like he was about to collapse under pressure. He’d had plenty of practice. He was surrounded by people who wanted him to succeed, people who mattered to him. He was going to achieve what he set out to do. But we’re not just talking about the intramural championship Teddy won with

his ultimate frisbee team of nearly six years; we’re also talking about his successful doctoral dissertation defense that he had the morning before the game. April 14, 2022, was, by all measures, a successful day.

Teddy entered the mathematics Ph.D. program at The University of Texas at Austin in the fall of 2016. He came to Austin from Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, where he studied

mathematics, engaged in research, and mentored high school students. While at Yale, Teddy also continued to play ultimate, a sport he started in his first year of high school. By the time he arrived on the Forty Acres though he was hungry for a higher level of competition. UT’s Men’s Ultimate Club, TUFF, gave him his first taste of competition. Teddy played for TUFF during the 2016-17 school year. Although they missed qualifying for nationals (something that Teddy says he feels only a little bitter about), he was grateful for that experience during his first year of graduate school. Teddy continued playing competitive ultimate for Moontower, an Austin-based club, every year until he finished his degree. Successfully balancing competitive sport with high-level academics was no easy feat, but Teddy’s love for ultimate ran as deep. It always brought him a sense of community and strong friendships, so when another graduate student asked him to help form an intramural team for the math department, he readily accepted. The RLM Radicals, as they were first named, began holding practices to teach the game to the majority of players on the team with no ultimate experience. They finished in the semifinals that first semester, and that taste of success kept the team coming back every season.

The RLM Radicals name gave way the following semester to SO(2) (“It’s a math pun; don’t ask,” Teddy says), the team name that stuck. In between intramural seasons, SO(2) held practices to introduce new teammates to the fundamentals. Teddy even wrote a few articles explaining various lingo and throwing techniques his team might come across. As the team captain, Teddy always gave first priority on roster spots to his fellow graduate students. Although SO(2) was competitive, it allowed the math graduate students to be together and strengthen their sense of community. For Teddy, though, SO(2) was particularly special because it combined two important areas of his life.

As Teddy’s SO(2) teammates hoisted him up on their shoulders that April evening, they weren’t just celebrating their 9-7 victory in the coed A championship ultimate match. Sure, it was an accomplishment years in the making. However, it was also the culmination of Teddy’s leadership and dedication to making the team great. For Teddy himself, the championship and thesis defense provided a satisfying conclusion to his six years as a Ph.D. student and intramural frisbee player. And although he doesn’t consider his time with the intramural team to carry the same weight as his doctoral journey, he says, “Every frisbee team that I’ve been on has been a community in some way, and that’s something I value very highly in general.”

Teddy’s story doesn’t end here, though. He is continuing his research, and, of course, he is still playing ultimate. With the goal of staying in academia to become a professor, Teddy started a postdoc position at the University of Michigan this fall. He is currently looking for teams to play with in Ann Arbor and Heidelberg, Germany, where he will spend a year as part of his research fellowship.

Every frisbee team that I’ve been on has been a community in some way, and that’s something I value very highly in general.”

Established in 2017 as part of the department’s Centennial Celebration, the RecSports Hall of Honor recognizes influential alumni, staff, supporters, and athletes who have had a significant impact on Recreational Sports throughout its long history. Each year a new class of inductees joins a distinguished group of individuals who have made a lasting contribution to the department.

This year’s inductees were celebrated at the annual RecSports Hall of Honor Awards Cocktail in October.

Learn more about the inductees and view event photos at utrecsports.org/hoh.

Thomas W. Dison

Robert Berdahl

Anita Picozzi Moran John Nolan

Peter Nolan Original RecSports Maintenance Crew: Louis Malett, Leslie Malett, Deoscar “Doc” Bell, and Ira Jones

John Scott Black

Lisa Forbes Satter

let us tell your recsports story!

WHAT’S YOUR CONNECTION TO RECSPORTS? WHAT ARE YOU UP TO THESE DAYS?

Let us know so we can share your story with other RecSports alumni. Contact us online by visiting utrecsports.org/mystory or by email to friends@utrecsports.org.

Eugene Watson (BA ’73)

Eugene is a retired educator who taught Physical Education in middle school and served as a high school swim coach. He reports that he took five different high school teams to 10 University Interscholastic League state championship meets, placing twice in the top 10. Swimming has been a part of Eugene’s life since the young age of 12 when he began working at the community pool in his hometown of Killeen, Texas, and rose to become a lifeguard and pool manager. In 2003 he

organized a USA swim team in Laredo, Texas, that attracted over 100 kids and is still going strong. While a student, he was an active Physical Education Major (PEM) club member. He also served as the men’s student assistant for the athletics swim coach and worked as a weight room supervisor at old Gregory Gym. He remembers with fondness how much he enjoyed spotting Longhorn athletes in the weight room and the honor he felt working in intramural sports and as a supervisor at old Whitaker Fields. He and his wife, Patricia, live near Dripping Springs, Texas, and have four adult daughters and five grandchildren.

Andy Garcia (BA ’92)

RecSports became a part of Andy’s life as soon as he set foot on the Forty Acres in the fall of 1988. Influenced by his brother who worked as a program assistant for the program, Andy played intramural sports, served as a referee/ official and eventually progressed to program assistant like his brother. RecSports became his “fraternity of sorts,” helping him form friendships and create lasting memories. One of Andy’s

Reza Abbasian (MS ’79, MA ’84, PhD ’94)

Volleyball was Reza’s sport of choice during his years as a student. He competed in intramural volleyball events, both men’s and coed for team PARS, and recalls winning championships for five consecutive years. He fondly remembers

fondest memories is having represented the university in a NIRSA flag football championships in New Orleans, Louisiana, and being selected as one of the top 12 referees at the tournament. Andy’s career journey has taken him from education (teaching, serving as principal), to healthcare (EMT, RN) and is currently an occupational nurse at a meat processing facility. He and his wife of 28 years live in Streetman, Texas, and have three adult children. The entire family follow the Horns and have had football season tickets for 20 years!

Hannah Jane (DeCiutiis) Collins (BA ’15)

When Hannah visited the basement of Anna Hiss Gym as a freshman, little did she know she’d not only fall in love with the sport of archery being played there but would also fall in love with a fellow player! Fate intervened when Hannah joined the Archery Club and fellow member, Will, caught her eye. In true fairy tale fashion, their archery coach and dear friend officiated their 2017 wedding! Romance aside, Hannah enjoyed her

playing most of the games at “old Gregory” and also on the fifth floor of Bellmont Hall. He also competed in U.S. Volleyball Association competitions and remains in contact with fellow members. Today he’s known as Professor Abbasian at Texas Lutheran University in Seguin, Texas, teaching applied mathematics, statistics and data analytic courses. He’s been on their faculty for over 35 years and makes his home in McQueeney, Texas.

time with the Archery Club participating in weekly practices, club dinners, parties and trips to competitions. It even led to her serving on the Sport Club Council“a terrific learning and leadership experience.” Hannah jokes that she is still haunting the UT campus. Utilizing her degree in journalism, she helps with communication messaging for the Cockrell School of Engineering and the Dell Medical School. Hannah and Will live in Austin and have a two-year-old daughter who she says will have a bow in her hands as soon as it’s safe!

Congratulations to the 2022 RecSports Student Employee Scholarship recipients!

These 17 student employees represent almost every area of RecSports.

We are proud to recognize these students for their contributions. They underwent a rigorous application process and were evaluated by a selection committee to earn their respective scholarships. We also extend our sincerest thanks to the individuals whose gifts make this scholarship program possible!

Abbey Govett

Mark L. Hart, Jr. Endowed Scholarship

Peace Idah-oze Mark L. Hart, Jr. Endowed Scholarship

Maria de los Angeles Villarreal Thomas W. Dison Endowed Scholarship

Monserrat Hernández Hernan Thomas W. Dison Endowed Scholarship

Teresa Garcia Sylvie and Gary Crum Endowed Scholarship

Cassandra Keating DeDe and Joe Bill Watkins Endowed Scholarship

Richard Reynolds Susan and Mark Baletka Endowed Scholarship

Nicholas Godfrey John M. Childs Endowed Scholarship

Christian Hinton Delta Tau Delta Fraternity Endowed Scholarship

Rachel Lee Kenneth Ford Family Endowed Scholarship

Madison Johnson Acacia Fraternity Endowed Scholarship

Ashley Omehe Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity Endowed Scholarship

Matthew Baca Recreational Sports Endowed Scholarship Ryland Kerby Bill Patman Endowed Scholarship

Cameron Keating Bill Frisbie Endowed Scholarship

Joel Redmond Robert G. Childress Endowed Scholarship Thomas Le Spence-Nance Endowed Scholarship Honoring Michael Monsoor

Learn more about the 2022 scholarship recipients at utrecsports.org/scholarships.

The University of Texas at Austin Recreational Sports 2101 Speedway Stop D7500 Austin, Texas 78712-1401