Amy Champion appointed as new permanent director at University of New Orleans (UNO) – Athletics news
The athletics department of the University of New Orleans (UNO) got a new permanent director in the shape of former interim athletic director and coach of UNO’s basketball team, Amy Champion. The news was confirmed when Champion agreed to take charge of
the position on permanent basis.
Prior to the decision of the LSU Board of Supervisors meeting, she had been holding the office on an interim basis since April. Since 2009, when Jim Miller retired, the UNO’s post of director athletics was vacant. Though there had been temporary arrangements
in the shape of Mike Bujol and Joel Chatelain, Champion is the first one to fill in the place for a longer period of time.
While talking about her new appointment, the veteran coach said, “I am just excited. I can’t even put it into words. I’ve been working for this day with my staff and my team for so long. It doesn’t mean I’m not going to stop working.”
Champion, who had been striving hard to restore UNO’s athletics reputation, has been facing some fierce glitches in her way to achieve her invaluable goals. There had been issues with earning a stabilised NCAA membership and in keeping the interest of the
students as well as the community towards athletics alive.
After years of firsthand experience, the hardworking woman is of the view that for materialising goals, one ought to be a hard worker along with being lucky. Revealing the secret to her success in context of this belief, she said, “I was told at a young
age, ‘If you work hard, you get lucky’ ever since I was young, I worked hard for everything I’ve ever gotten, as a player, as a student, as a professional.”
To be in an administrative position had always been a dream for Champion and that too, without compromising her love and dedication for coaching. Stretched upon a period of over 20 years during her career, she has been coaching teams like Southern Mississippi
and Faulkner State Community College Alabama.
Sharing her ambitions about how she has always cherished to acquire the present post, she said, “I always wanted to coach, but knew I did not want to coach forever. I didn’t want that to be my ultimate career goal; I really wanted to be in collegiate administration.”
They way she managed to get the post at UNO, was also an interesting matter as she herself did not offer any services for the post. The university administration had been interviewing the suitable professional coaches for the vacancy, but as they could not
find the right person, they eventually turned to Champion.
Now, no matter whose decision it was to give her the opportunity to serve the university, it is a well established fact that she has the required potential which is the prerequisite to do justice with her present responsibilities.
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