Athletics were always a major part of Julie Cromer’s family life.
She grew up having a deep appreciation for college sports due to her father’s background as a college athlete and coach.
Cromer understood that her father, who was a first-generation college student, would not have been able to pursue a postsecondary education without his athletic scholarship.
“I completely believe in the transformative power of higher education for those students who prepare and embrace the opportunity,” said Cromer, who recently was named director of athletics at Ohio University. “I think it can change their lives and the lives of generations after.”
As she got older, Cromer also saw how sports were a “connected tissue of our communities.”
“In American culture, we rally around sports events, we pick our teams, we identify ourselves by the fanbases to which we belong and I recognized that socially there was power in sports as well,” she said. “I was drawn into the opportunity to be a part of that.”
Cromer attended Missouri State University and later earned a master’s degree from Indiana University (IU).
