Babson transition going smoothly

WELLESLEY -- Babson College is recognized for its top-notch business program, but students won't need a class this coming semester to learn how to cope with changes in management. They can just watch the athletic department.

Athletic director Frank Millerick resigned in late June after pioneering some significant changes during his eight-year tenure.

Yet while Millerick's contributions were praised by two university officials this week, things are still running smoothly on the lush 370-acre campus. Judy Blinstrub, an associate athletic director under Millerick, is serving as interim director until a successor is named. The first round of interviews was held this past week -- and hardly anyone noticed.

''I think we're off to a great start," said Carol Hacker, associate vice president for student and community services. ''When we welcomed our fall athletes back [last Sunday], both Judy and I addressed them, and we didn't have one question about the vacancy. I think that's because we've positioned ourselves so well."

Blinstrub, a Newton native who lives in Framingham, is a key piece of that positioning. A longtime coach of women's soccer and basketball teams at Babson, she hasn't applied for the director's job because, she said, ''My first love is coaching."

But when she resigned as women's soccer coach this spring, Blinstrub was viewed as the perfect fit to keep Babson moving forward during the search for a new director.

''I felt she had the best handle on what was happening in the department and the institution," Hacker said. ''She has a great deal of respect [on campus]."

Babson's athletic department includes 28 full- and part-time employees, and there are 22 varsity teams, split evenly between men and women. Of the school's enrollment of approximately 1,700, there are 400 varsity athletes. Babson also has 20 intramural teams and 10 club teams, with approximately 800 students participating.

''When Frank left, it's important to point out that he still left us in great shape," said Blinstrub, now in her 22d year associated with Babson. ''Everyone on staff has pitched in. You tend to rise to the occasion. It's just like you'd tell your team [that was competing without a key player] -- everyone has to step up. We've done that as a staff. Everybody has taken on new roles, and we haven't skipped a beat."

One helpful aspect is that Babson had only two coaching vacancies to fill -- women's soccer (Framingham High graduate Sarah Dacey was hired) and field hockey (Kully Hagerman was promoted from assistant to head coach).

Hacker said Babson hopes to have a new director in place by Dec. 1 but added that she ''would wait for the right candidate for as long as that took." Initial interviews are expected to continue through this week, and the plan is to bring finalists back to campus by the end of September. While the July 31 deadline to apply for the job has passed, Hacker said she would still consider a ''wow" resume if it landed on her desk.

The position has three main components:

Intercollegiate administration -- Babson competes in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference against colleges such as Wellesley, MIT, Clark, and Springfield.

Recreation and intramurals -- Participation has increased by 20 percent over the last two years between club and intramural sports.

External relations -- That includes working with high schools that often use Babson's facilities, as well as alumni development, organizing coaching clinics on campus, and working with parents.

''Attention needs to be given to all three of those, and when you add in staff supervision, it's a full-time job, plus," Hacker said. ''It's a major commitment, not a 9-to-5 job. It's weekends. Evenings. There is very little down time in collegiate administration these days."

That's why Babson has made it a requirement that the director won't have any coaching responsibilities. Millerick was Babson's baseball coach for more than a decade.

''We feel strongly that we want an AD with coaching experience, but one that won't take on that [coaching] role," Hacker said. ''With the demands of coaching and the way we want coaching to occur, that would require the AD to be out of the day-to-day [operations] for six months or so -- between in-season, preseason, and postseason play. It would be very difficult. The [AD] position alone is too big."

As for some of the other changes in Babson's athletic department, a new press box at the softball field is under construction. Renovations also took place on the college's other playing fields.

Meanwhile, the school's Beaver logo was revamped, and the new logo was placed on the refinished basketball court and resurfaced ice hockey rink.

The college is also in the preparation stages for the third annual Babson Invitational Tournament, which brings colleges together from around the country to compete in men's basketball, women's basketball, and ice hockey.