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Dr. Chris Hill Dr. Chris Hill, Utah's director of athletics and special assistant to the president of the University of Utah, has carried Utah athletics into national prominence. Hill was just 37 years old when he was named director of athletics back in October of 1987. Since 1998, he has also been a special assistant to the U. president and a member of the University's senior administrative cabinet. On a national level, Hill currently serves on the prestigious NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee. It is the latest of several NCAA committee positions for the highly-respected director of athletics. He was the NCAA-appointed chairman of the Championships/Competition Cabinet from 1997-98 and a member of the NCAA Management Council-serving on its administrative committee. He served on the executive committee of the National Association of Collegiate Athletics Directors (NACDA) from 2002-06. But Hill's biggest strides have come on campus, where his tenure has been charged with capital improvements, an emphasis on student-athlete support, academics, and winning programs. In 2002, Utah was named one the top 20 athletics programs in the nation by U.S.News & World Report, based on winning percentage, graduation rate, number of sports and gender equity. Hill is the driving force behind Utah's athletics success and its numerous national-caliber facilities. His fund-raising efforts reached an international stage when the $50 million Rice-Eccles Stadium hosted the Opening and Closing Ceremonies for the 2002 Salt Lake Olympic Winter Games. (See right column for a complete list of facilities built during his term.) On the playing field, Utah is a conference and national power under Hill's leadership. Two of the many highlights were the men's basketball team playing in the 1998 NCAA Championship game and the Utah football team breaking into the BCS and winning the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 1, 2005. Utah has also captured multiple national championships in gymnastics and skiing since he became director of athletics.
Hill positioned himself for the top athletics job after two years as the director of development for the Crimson Club. The New Jersey native first came to the U. as a graduate assistant basketball coach (1973-74) under Bill Foster. He was an assistant under Jerry Pimm from 1979-81. Between his coaching and administrative stints with Utah athletics, Hill was executive director of United Cerebral Palsy of Utah (1981-85), where he raised $750,000 in federal, state and private funding for a housing project for people with severe physical disabilities. Among his many accolades was becoming the first-ever recipient of the Mountain West Conference's Commissioner's Award in 2004. Other honors include a 1981 Milton Bennion Fellowship, 1984 Utah Recreation Therapy Association Outstanding Service award and 1996 Utah MS Sportsperson of the Year award. He was a 1998 Inductee into the Jersey Shore Hall of Fame. Hill currently serves on the Regence BlueCross BlueShield Board of Directors. In 2001, the National Consortium for Academics and Sports gave him its Degree Completion and Outreach and Community Service Honor Award. As an undergraduate, Hill lettered three years and was co-captain of the 1971-72 Rutgers basketball team. His bachelor's degree from Rutgers is in math education (1972). He also has a master's in education (Utah, 1974), and a Ph.D. in educational administration (Utah, 1982). Hill taught in the University's special education department from 1983-85. He coached boys basketball at Granger High (Utah) from 1975-79, winning 4A coach of the year his first year. Hill, 56, is married to the former Kathy Cronin, a faculty member in the U. department of special education. They have two children, Aly and Christopher. They also have a granddaughter, Addie Rose Forsyth, who was born on April 14, 2006. Aly played soccer for the University of Oregon and received her master's of social work degree from Utah in 2002. She is married to former Ute skier Ryan Forsyth, B.S. '00, JD '05. Aly teaches children with severe disabilities in the Salt Lake City School District. Christopher graduated with a bachelor's degree in organizational communication from Utah in 2004. He is currently a first year law student at the University of Utah.
UTAH SYNOPSIS HIGHLIGHTS UNDER HILL
Men's Basketball
Football
Women's Gymnastics
Women's Basketball
Skiing
Soccer
Softball
Volleyball
Hill's Facility Legacy
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