Marty Dempsey
University of Florida

What is your NIRSA “Why”? (What does NIRSA mean to you?)

Rewind the clock back to yesteryear when I was an undergraduate student and I still remember the moment like it was yesterday. I was just another undergraduate student with virtually no idea what I really wanted to do with my life. I was in a major I never truly embraced. The pressure felt like it was mounting with each passing semester. I was about to finish up my 3rd year and I just felt, well, lost. The only things I was really sure about was that I was going to make my class schedule around the popular times to play basketball at our recreation center and I loved my job as an Intramural Sports supervisor. And wouldn’t you know it, NIRSA found me.

I can still point to the area of the IM Sports field where I started chatting with a couple of graduate assistants about their stories and how they came into their roles. They talked about NIRSA, an organization I had never heard of before, but somehow felt connected to instantly. Within weeks of that conversation, I was becoming the latest college statistic by changing my major to sport management, but for the first time in my undergrad career I felt like I was moving towards a career goal with purpose. NIRSA changed it all.

Humans of NIRSA have been making impacts, big and small, for generations now. What can seemingly be an insignificant conversation, event, or moment can have a resounding impact on the lives of the students we serve. The conversation I had standing on an IM Sports field that changed my life will never be lost on me, and it is the basis for my NIRSA “Why”. Sports and recreation are a universal language that unites people from all walks of life. We see more members of our university communities in our programs and spaces than just about anywhere else on our campuses. That creates opportunities to have impacts in ways we sometimes cannot even see coming. But when we approach our work with genuine care for the people we serve, the results speak for themselves.

I have had the honor and privilege of serving in a variety of roles within our association over the past 15 years. With each committee, initiative, or program, I have approached each role with the same mindset. How can we have a positive impact on the people we serve? How can we make moments that inspire? How can we do our part, big or small, to help move the association further through our strategic values? Somebody had that impact on me all those years ago. I’ll never take that for granted and will always do what I can for future generations to pay that forward. So what is my NIRSA “Why?” – it was, is, and always will be…the people.

What are the current trends in collegiate recreation and higher education that you see impacting our work and the Association? How would you collaborate with the members in your region and the Member Network team to solve these issues?

The landscape of collegiate recreation and higher education is evolving at a rapid pace. While change has always been the one constant we can count on, it feels like somebody pushed the lever on this life ride into overdrive over the past few years. It is critical in our roles as collegiate recreation administrators to identify and address the most impactful trends that shape the experiences of our communities. While this is not an exhaustive list, I have identified five trends that I foresee impacting our work in collegiate recreation over the next five years.

1. Holistic Wellbeing: Our work in higher education is all connected. For students to be the most successful academically, there is a strong correlation to prioritizing wellbeing through a multi-faceted approach (physical, mental, emotional, etc.). Collegiate recreation programs are strong drivers in advancing this work on campus, along with other partners with expertise in specialized areas. We will look to enhance our knowledge-sharing platforms to facilitate exchanges of best practices and innovative program designs to keep up with new information and trends in this area.
2. Staff Wellbeing: In order for us to bring our best selves to our work, we must first address our own wellbeing. Institutions have taken some unique approaches to increase staff wellbeing; how do we keep that at the forefront? There is more competition than ever for talented NIRSA professionals in tangential career opportunities. How do we help top talent continue to evolve and thrive in collegiate recreation?
3. Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: Sports and recreation are a universal language. We have the power to serve huge segments of our populations in fun, innovative, and inclusive ways. With that power comes a critical responsibility to cater to the diverse needs and backgrounds of the people we serve. There are already many established caucuses and communities that provide outstanding and ongoing feedback. We will take steps to identify how we can prioritize and actionize initiatives.
4. Technological Innovations: We were all quickly thrust into a world of creating completely virtual programs just three short years ago. NIRSA professionals proved their innovation and resiliency through the global pandemic to again prove what a valuable resource we were on-campus. The integration of technology will continue to revolutionize the way we engage with students. What can we learn from partners on campus and around NIRSA about the latest emerging technologies and their effectiveness in promoting student well-being?
5. Assessment and Research: What data matters and how do we leverage it as an association? How do we ensure that our member institutions have the information necessary to provide data-rich evidence regarding our impact on-campus? With the rising costs of conducting our business, it is imperative that we have the right strategies in place to ensure we are adequately resourced to achieve our goals.

How has your experience in your state, region, and/or NIRSA prepared you to serve on the Member Network? What unique skills or talents would you bring to the Member Network?

“The NIRSA Member Network serves as a vehicle for communication between NIRSA’s many leadership groups and our diverse body of professional and student members.” As I reflect on this line on the NIRSA website describing the Member Network, there are several experiences that I have been blessed to be a part of in my professional career that parallel this work.

I served on the executive board for the NIRSA Championship Series from 2018-2021. In that role, similar to serving as a regional representative in the Member Network, I helped lead a diverse group of NIRSA professional and student members through various initiatives to advance the work of the Series. One of the core foundations of my tenure was transparent communication through a variety of mediums to keep our stakeholders informed. Dave Peters and I started the “Series Talk” podcast, a quarterly video that discussed the latest trends, events, and happenings in the Series. The podcast highlighted the work of many NIRSA volunteers and work teams – check an episode out on YouTube. We also reconstructed how we communicated updates at regional and annual conferences through a live version of our studio show. Our goals were to keep it fun and engaging while providing valuable information and highlighting the great work of other leaders. If we could provide a little entertainment as well on your commute to work, that was a bonus!

I was also proud of how the leaders in the NIRSA Championship Series evolved our strategic priorities. When I first joined the executive team, the Series commenced a new strategic planning process called Series 2.0. We reestablished our purpose, principles, promise, and created four strategic priorities for the next five years. When the pandemic hit the world just two years later, we shifted our focus areas within those same priorities to elevate participant experiences. One example was the creation of a new event – the first-ever NIRSA National E-Sports Tournament that brought in 100 teams. The Social Justice Committee was also formed, opening up new opportunities for members to access and interact with the Series in different ways. We all shared a vision to leave a lasting legacy on the NIRSA Championship Series and despite not having any in-person events during my final year, we were anything but stagnant in our approach and our work.

For the past two years, I have been fortunate to serve the NIRSA members and institutions in the state of Florida as the State Leader. Working alongside some great student leaders, we have worked to build on the initiatives of our predecessors and enhance the communication to our members.

No matter what role I have served on, I recognize that progress only happens by surrounding yourself with great people who have a shared vision. If I am selected to join the Member Network, I look forward to collaborating with more great colleagues from around the country with the same rigor and passion that I have approached my previous opportunities to advance the work of our field.