Behind the Scenes // Notes
 
Southeast Missouri's Department of Athletics is surrounded by great people and strives to be the premier Athletic Department in the Ohio Valley Conference. A lot goes on behind the scenes and everyone has a valuable part in helping the Redhawks succeed. In a year full of adversity and overwhelming challenges brought on by a global COVID-19 pandemic, the Athletics staff became stronger than ever this past 2020-21 season. Here's a look at some of the great accomplishments the support areas celebrated during SEMO's unprecedented run to its first-ever OVC Commissioner's Cup. 
 
Academic Services (Betsy Wilcox, Brooke Hengst, Jeremiah Streeter)
Athletics achieved a 3.23 departmental GPA for the 2020-21 academic year. A total of 67 student-athletes graduated and 14 of SEMO's 15 sports finished with a GPA of 3.0 or higher. A total of 122 student-athletes made the Dean's List in the fall and 105 student-athletes earned that distinction in the spring. Additionally, there were 146 student-athletes on the President's List, including 78 in the fall and 68 in the spring.
 
Business Operations (Carly Bronenkant)
In the midst of several budgetary constraints, SEMO's business operations staff did a great job of monitoring spending during the 2020-21 academic year. The business operations staff worked diligently and carefully to manage the Department of Athletics and its individual sports budgets, and was strategic in helping identify cost saving measures.
 
Compliance (Angela Black, Leslie Brooks)
SEMO's compliance staff worked through constant eligibility and recruiting obstacles brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. They operated in accordance with all NCAA and Ohio Valley Conference protocols, and did an excellent job of helping student-athletes and coaches meet their compliance requirements. Angela Black joined the staff as Assistant Director of Athletics for Compliance in early May. 
 
Development (Nate Saverino, Barb Kinsey)
In addition to navigating through 11 sports competing at the same time, the development staff planned and executed all three of the Department of Athletics' signature fundraising events (Cindy Gannon Walk for Women, Trivia Night, Charlie Brune Golf Classic) within a six-week window. Two of the three events generated record fundraising revenues thanks to the generous support of attendees and sponsors.
 
Facilities & Event Management (Kent Phillips, Kyle Kasten)
Eleven different sports overlapped at times during an unbelievably challenging spring. The daunting task of managing facilities and event operations for so many home events was handled with professionalism and flair. SEMO's facilities and event management staff worked to enforce all COVID-19 protocols in order to keep fans safe at athletic events.
 
Great Fit for Redhawk Athletics
Kim Schuette hit the ground running when she was hired as SEMO's Associate Director of Athletics for Administration & Senior Woman Administrator in February 2021. Schuette joined the Redhawks staff right when all the mayhem with overlapping sports was beginning. Her vibrant personality and go-getter attitude are natural fits for her role. Five months into her new position, Schuette has already made a big difference in helping SEMO Athletics maintain and build on its success. 
  
Marketing & Fan Engagement (Phil Lady, Sawyer Becherer, Charlie Balcom)
With the football, volleyball, cross country and women's soccer teams not competing during their normal fall semester, SEMO's marketing team found creative ways to keep Redhawk Nation engaged. Social media interaction reached an all-time high when SEMO ranked third among non-FBS athletic departments generating the most interactions on official main athletics accounts, including Instagram, Twitter and Facebook in May 2021 (according to SkullSparks). The Redhawks have ranked among the Top 10 in the nation in that category for four-straight months and nine of the last 10.
 
Spirit Groups (Billy Hoskins, Tatianna Parham)
SEMO's Sundancers placed second in the Team Performance category of the 2021 Dance Team Union (DTU) College Nationals in April 2021. The event was held at the World Center Marriott in Orlando, Florida. The Redhawks pre-recorded and entered their routine through the virtual portal of the DTU College Nationals which was streamed live in addition to the in-person performances. A total of nine teams competed in SEMO's division.
 
Sports Medicine (Ben Fox, Amanda Martin, Kristin Jones, Mike Patke, Nathan Harrison, Patience Ivy, Michael Hair, Ricky Biediger, David Hudson)
SEMO's sports medicine staff worked around the clock to keep student-athletes, coaches and staff healthy during the COVID-19 riddled 2020-21 season. They administered 4,700 COVID tests for student-athletes, coaches and staff. The sports medicine staff also provided 2,300 rehabs/treatments for student-athletes. Co-Head Athletic Trainers Ben Fox and Amanda Martin received the Department of Athletics Staff of the Year Award.
 
Sports Performance (Ryan Napoli, Brian Robbett, Tony Brutofsky, Brie Johnson, Corey Fatony)
The sports performance staff trained and managed weight room schedules for all student-athletes in season at the same time. It was a unique situation keeping athletes healthy and reducing risk of injury after they were at home for extended periods of time due to COVID-19 protocols. Keeping the weight room clean and sanitized was a never-ending process. The sports performance staff also operated its nutrition center and pre-packaged over 1,300 different bags of food per week so student-athletes could maintain their nutritional needs. Additionally, the staff distributed over 500 Ziploc bags of assorted cereals and stocked the nutrition center with grab and go items such as fruit, fruit cups, yogurt, applesauce, granola bars, fruit snacks, chips, crackers and milk.
 
Strategic Communications (Jeff Honza, Eric Mueller, Charlie Balcom)
SEMO's strategic communications staff worked tirelessly to promote all the greatness during the most successful season in the Redhawks NCAA Division I era. Excellent highlight and hype videos were produced to share the excitement of SEMO Athletics. Four SEMO media guides were recognized in the 2020-21 College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Publications & Digital Design Contest. The Redhawks football guide was voted "Best in the Nation," while the men's basketball, baseball and softball guides each received Citations for Excellence in Publications after ranking third in the country among NCAA Division I schools. 
 
Ticket Sales & Service (TJ Bartels)
In order to safely welcome fans back to SEMO's athletic venues, the ticket office carefully and thoughtfully rearranged season ticket holders and seating maps for all sports to ensure proper social distancing was maintained. The ticket staff also worked diligently to upgrade to the latest ticket management platform from Paciolan.