Cal State Dominguez Hills Selects Woman as Athletic Director

Because her 49th birthday is today, Kay Don was already in a mood to celebrate.

But on Saturday, Cal State Dominguez Hills gave her another reason when it named her the school’s athletic director effective July 15. She replaces Dan Guerrero, who resigned in December to become athletic director at UC Irvine.

It is the fulfillment of a dream for Don, who has been associate director of athletics and senior women’s administrator for the athletic department at Cal State Long Beach since 1984. She was chosen from a pool of more than 125 applicants.

“It’s very rewarding to finally have it happen,” she said.

Don is also looking forward to becoming the third woman athletic director in the seven school California Collegiate Athletic Assn.

“I feel real good about going into that conference, being a part of what is one of the most successful conferences in the nation at this level and adding my expertise to what’s already there,” she said.

Don will arrive at Dominguez Hills with an extensive background in athletic administration, including areas such as development, compliance and counseling. She has served on numerous NCAA and conference committees.

She was an assistant athletic director at Texas A&M; in College Station for 12 years before moving to Long Beach. Don said her experience at Long Beach helped prepare her for the Dominguez Hills position.

“Having worked for the last nine years in a state system school, it will be a plus that I know the interworkings of the system, how things operate and the problems that exist,” she said.

Louis Murdock, the school’s vice president for student affairs and interim athletic director, thinks Don will have a positive impact on the program.

“I expect Kay to do more than just come in and stay the course,” Murdock said. “I believe she has the right blend of experience and interpersonal skills to work with both the campus and external communities to take Toro athletics to the next level.”

Considering cutbacks that have taken place throughout the state system, Don said one of her first tasks will be to insure adequate funding for athletic programs.

“Dominguez Hills has been very competitive and the coaches have been excellent, but they haven’t had as much funding as they need to remain competitive at this level,” she said. “I want to improve fund-raising to provide more funding for scholarships.”

Don wants to develop a five-year plan for the athletic program that might lead to the addition of intercollegiate sports such as tennis and swimming.

“I think that’s definitely something that can be looked at, but the first thing we have to do is have full funding for our existing programs,” Don said.

She is optimistic about the future of the athletic program.

“I think there’s a lot of potential for us to be more successful,” Don said. “The people here are very supportive, the coaches are very good and there’s a very good support system that’s already in place.”