Following the departure of former Athletic Director Jarrod Hinton, Kevin Mickelson returned to the position this summer, just ahead of the fall sports season.
Mickelson accepted the role in his 33rd year at Gunnison High School. He held the athletic director (AD) position from 1999-2004 while teaching full-time and coaching basketball, track and field and boy’s and girl’s golf. Ahead of his self-titled “AD part-two” era, Mickelson spoke with the Times about his vision for GHS athletics.
(Editor’s note: This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.)
Why did you decide to accept a second term as AD?
I love Gunnison High School. I love the students, the student athletes and all the pieces that make up our athletic community. I just have an affection for it. I've always been a firm believer that nobody bleeds red and black more than me. It’s also a great opportunity. We have a really solid administration with Jim Woytek as our principal and our new Vice Principal Susan Powers. Our superintendent, Leslie Nichols, recognizes the importance of athletics in student achievement, so I embraced the idea to come back.
What do you hope to bring to GHS athletics?
Accountability and expectations. The idea is, expectations are great, but without accountability they're all for naught. I've been charged with making some changes in GHS culture, and we're going to use athletics as a gateway for that. We've tightened the ship a lot in terms of our expectations. The first step is giving our student athletes a sense of identity. I am a firm believer that you behave like a champion long before you ever become one. Student athletes will be held more accountable for school attendance and practice attendance with school authorities. The bottom line is, as student athletes, we're going to show up, and we're going to show up on time. And we're going to do the right things. We also want to resuscitate the identity of our Athletic Council, which is composed of all our head coaches. Our goal is to give them a sense of family, and to get them more involved in the other sports. It's a cultural change, and with that there are a lot of dynamics and moving parts to the success of our athletic programs.
What can the community expect from their new AD?
Communication. We really want better avenues for communication with our athletes, our parents and members of the community. I want to have an open door and make myself available and accessible, because, in athletics, it's all about our kids. It truly does take a village. I embrace anybody and everybody, as long as we're wanting to make a difference for betterment for our kids.
What is your vision for the future?
When it’s time for me to ride off into the sunset, I just want to know that I've left Gunnison High School and the athletic programs in a much better place. My hope is GHS will continue the success that we’re going to build in the next five years. I also hope we can continue positively adapting to changing demographics, modes of parenting and other variables to consider while making athletic decisions.
(Alex McCrindle can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or alex@gunnisontimes.com.)
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