CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte 49ers Athletic Director Judy Rose has announced her retirement.
The Charlotte 49ers released this statement:
Charlotte 49ers Director of Athletics Judy Rose has announced her retirement, effective on June 30, at the end of the 2017-18 academic year.
Rose, one of the nation’s most respected Directors of Athletics, is in her 43rd year with the university and her 28th as Charlotte’s Director of Athletics.
“This was entirely Judy’s decision and I respect her desire to enjoy retirement with her husband, Ken,” said UNC Charlotte Chancellor Dr. Philip Dubois. “I will miss working with her, both personally and professionally. Her work ethic, values, integrity, commitment to student success, and understanding of college athletics will make finding her successor a most difficult challenge. She has left a legacy that will be nearly impossible to match.”
Her extraordinary career as director of athletics includes the greatest era of success and growth enjoyed by the 49ers. She was just the third woman to lead an NCAA Division I athletics program, became the first woman named to the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Committee and oversaw the construction of over $100 million worth of athletic facilities.
Forty-four of the 49ers 46 NCAA Tournament team appearances and 70 of the 49ers 75 conference titles have come during Rose’s tenure. Over the last 10 years, the 49ers have enjoyed 20 NCAA Tournament team appearances and 40 league titles. Striving for success “across the board”, fourteen of the 49ers programs advanced to NCAA Tournament play or won a league title or both under Rose’s guidance.
“I’m privileged to have worked for three great chancellors,” Rose said. “One (Dr. E.K. Fretwell) while I was coaching and two (Dr. Jim Woodward; Dr. Philip Dubois) as I’ve been athletic director. Jim Woodward took a pretty big risk when he named me as athletic director. We’ve run an honest program. We’ve run an ethical program. That starts at the top with the leadership of the university and filters all the way through. I’ve always been a firm believer in doing things the right way, treating people right and treating them as you’d like to be treated. I want to thank the coaches and staff that have helped propel this athletic program. I want to thank the Athletic Foundation and people that have served on the foundation’s board. I definitely appreciate the loyal fan base that we’ve had, the students and the student-athletes.
“This is a difficult announcement to make, with the love I have for the university and the athletic program. (My husband) Ken and I have talked about this for awhile and made the decision that this would be the last year. Of course, I want to honor my commitments on the committees I serve and to hosting the NCAA tournament in March. At the same time, this announcement will allow both myself and the university the opportunity to start to take the next steps.”
Dubois indicated that he will chair the search for the next Athletic Director and will begin immediately to establish a Search Committee and to hire a search consultant.
In each of her three decades as AD, a 49ers program has reached the NCAA Division I “final four”: 1996 Men’s Soccer National Semifinals, 2007 Men’s Golf third-place finish, and 2011 Men’s Soccer NCAA National Championship game.
Nine of the 49ers 11 NCAA men’s basketball tournament trips, including four second-round appearances, each of the 49ers NCAA women’s basketball tournament appearances and 12 of the program’s 13 WNIT appearances have come under Rose’s leadership.
“I take pride that we hired people that we would want our own children playing for – people of character who are going to help build character in our young players and provide opportunities for improved lifestyle, future growth, and individual growth.”
Among other sources of pride: the 49ers never had a major NCAA violation under Rose, enjoyed a string of 38 consecutive semesters (19 years) in which the athletic department produced a higher GPA than the university’s overall student body, have a current string of 20 straight semesters with a cumulative GPA over 3.0, and currently boast a 93% graduation rate for student-athletes who have exhausted their athletic eligibility.
“The best part for me that I’ve enjoyed over the years is seeing (student-athletes) come in as freshmen, seeing them mature and following them after graduation and the successes they’ve made of themselves. The coaches have played a part in that success – not just athletic success but their overall success. We have so many stories we can tell in every sport that are such positive examples of young people not only maturing and now being contributing citizens, but for some it was a way to a different way of life and a future for them. Those are the ones that warm your heart. You look back and say that’s what it’s all about – the opportunity they had to play the sport they love and at the same time get an education that would better prepare them for life. Lots of feel good stories.”
Rose has been an active member of NCAA leadership, serving on numerous committees which include the men’s basketball committee (2000-04) and the current NCAA Division I Council. She served as NACDA President in 2003-04 and was named the NACDA Southeast Region Athletics Director of the Year in 2001. In 2013, she was one of the finalists for the Sports Business Journal AD of the Year.
Her legacy will include the immense growth within the 49ers athletic department. At the time of her appointment as AD, the 49ers entire athletic department was housed within Belk Gymnasium. Since 1994, she has been the key fundraiser of over $100 million worth of facility construction, including Wells Fargo Fieldhouse, Belk Track and Field Center/Transamerica Field, Barnhardt Student Activity Center/Halton Arena, Miltimore-Wallis Athletic Training and Academic Center, Hayes Baseball Stadium, Halton-Wagner Tennis Facility, Stubblefield Golf Center, Jerry Richardson Stadium/McColl-Richardson Field and the 49ers Softball Stadium. Those facilities have benefitted each program and each student-athlete in at least three areas: competition venue/training site, academic services, strength and conditioning centers.
“The focal point has certainly been on facility development from when I first got the job,” Rose said. “We didn’t have the necessary facilities to compete at the levels that we wanted to compete. To be able to join a conference like Conference USA that we were in initially — to get to that conference without having football was pretty phenomenal for us. Without the facility development we would not have been able to do that. I really want to thank those that stepped up to help us build those facilities, without the benefit of state funding, including our students.”
The 49ers have added seven sports under Rose’s guidance: women’s soccer, men’s and women’s indoor and outdoor track and field, football and women’s golf.
The 49ers football program took the second-fastest trek to the FBS level after spending just two seasons at the FCS level. In fact, the 49ers were invited to join an FBS Conference (Conference USA), before holding their first-ever practice.
In addition to the high levels of growth and success enjoyed under Rose, the 49ers have helped attract several NCAA Championship events to Charlotte. The 49ers hosted the 1994 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four and the 1996 NCAA Women’s Basketball Final Four and co-hosted the 1999 and 2000 NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer College Cups. In addition, Charlotte has hosted several NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball preliminary rounds (first & second rounds; regionals), NCAA Men’s and Women’s Soccer preliminary rounds (1st, 2nd and 3rd rounds), NIT and WNIT contests as well as numerous league championships. The 49ers also hosted the 1997 AAU Junior Olympics and served as the site venue for the track and field competition.
“I’m proud of the addition of football. Chancellor Dubois and I worked hard on making sure that we had both the facilities and the budget in place to establish the foundation for future success in football. The unexpected opportunity to secure an FBS affiliation in Conference USA obviously made the competition more formidable than it would have been if we remained at the FCS level, but we have set the table for a solid future. Football gives our fans the avenue to spend more than a couple of hours on our campus — they can spend a day or weekend centered around football. Another thing that I am proud of is the branding of our athletic program to the Charlotte 49ers. That really improved our identity nationally. Hosting both basketball Final Fours – those two were defining moments for our city and for our university. Most recently I’m proud of the Nike contract and forming a tie with that elite brand.”
Under Rose’s leadership, the athletic department was able to fully fund scholarships for the first time in program history. In addition, 66 of the Athletic Foundation’s 69 endowed scholarships in the 49ers endowed scholarship program have been established during Rose’s tenure.
“Look at the gamut of careers for our 49ers. Some are teaching and coaching. Some are doctors, some are physical therapists, some are mothers or fathers, engineers, architects, nurses. We’ve run the gamut of what individuals have aspired to do and are doing now. You get attached – especially when you see there’s a real need-based case. We’ve gone through the pitfalls and stood with families along the way. We’ve had athletes and coaches that have died. Charles Hayward’s family needed help in a number of ways. We contacted the NCAA and said ‘this is about saving a life and making sure he gets what he needs’. We have to do those things – it goes back to treating people the right way and doing the right thing.”
