Dear Campus Community,
Director of Athletics and Recreation Susan Harriman will be stepping down effective May 5th, 2023.
Harriman came to UC Santa Cruz in 2018. She led an organizational restructuring and rebranding that strengthened and enhanced the diverse programs in the unit.
Under her leadership, the university became a founding member of the Coast-To-Coast (C2C) Athletic Conference in 2020. Since then, the Banana Slugs have won four conference championships, five Banana Slugs earning C2C Player of the Year honors and six coaches receiving Conference Coach of the Year honors. In 2020, men’s swimming and diving won the program’s first-ever Pacific Collegiate Swim and Dive Conference title.
Harriman has brought new energy, subject-matter knowledge, and support for student success. Athletic milestones achieved over the last five and half years include eight teams participating in the NCAA championships, women’s cross country making its NCAA nationals debut as a team in 2022 and the men’s volleyball team being national runners-up in 2019.
In advancing our recreational activities, Harriman focused on ensuring A&R programs and facilities were available to all students. Through a partnership with UCSC’s Educational Opportunity Program (EOP), more opportunities have opened for students to participate in recreational programs at no additional cost. The Slug Membership program was restructured so students and other Slug Recreation members could participate in group exercise programming as part of their existing membership. And during the pandemic, staff innovation for virtual programming ensured students and other members of the recreation community had access to fitness and wellness programs.
Senior Associate Director of Athletics and Recreation and Senior Woman Administrator Courtnie Prather will serve as interim director.
I would like to thank Director Harriman for her vision and leadership.
Sincerely,
Lori
Lori Kletzer
Campus Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor
