Rutgers University Athletics

Julie Hermann served as the Director of Athletics at Rutgers from May 2013 to Nov. 2015. She helped Rutgers Athletics transition to the Big Ten Conference, a move officially made July 1, 2014.

Hermann came to Rutgers after serving more than 15 years as the Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director at the University of Louisville, helping that school build in excess of $250 million worth of facilities while elevating the Cardinals to national prominence in several sports.

Hermann's initiatives and improvements in two years "On the Banks" were far reaching and impactful. In addition to launching the corporate sponsor partnership with IMG College, she spearheaded the restructuring of development, which is experiencing a record-setting year with regard to fundraising revenue. Under Hermann, nearly 4,000 additional donors were added via seat gift initiatives, and the football season ticket holder total of 31,016 in 2014 was the highest in program history.

When the Scarlet Knights lined up versus Penn State in their Big Ten football opener last year, they did so before 53,774 fans, the largest crowd in High Point Solutions Stadium history.

Hermann introduced the R Care program at Rutgers. The program was put together to provide comprehensive care and education to Rutgers student-athletes on and off the field, underscoring Hermann's oft-stated intention of offering a best-in-class experience for all Scarlet Knights student-athletes.

During Rutgers' first season in the Big Ten in 2014-15, 196 student-athletes earned academic all-Big Ten honors, with the football, women's lacrosse and women's golf programs receiving recognition from the NCAA for their multi-year APR scores. Nine Rutgers teams either set or tied program records for their APR scores last year, with 10 sports achieving a perfect score of 1,000 for 2013-14.

Hermann's attention to the student-athlete experience extends beyond their playing days as well, with the Rutgers Leadership Academy continuing its success of career placement for a third straight year. During the most recent graduating year (2015), 82 percent of graduating student-athletes either secured full-time employment or were accepted into graduate school.

Facility upgrades were implemented under her watch, from expanded concourses, restrooms and ribbon boards at HPSS to making game days at the RAC a fun sensory experience with new video displays, lighting and sound systems. Men's basketball, women's basketball, field hockey, women's soccer, baseball, softball, men's and women's track & field and men's and women's golf have new or remodeled office suites to increase productivity and aid in recruitment.

At Louisville, Hermann served as the manager of 20 sports as the Louisville Cardinals built one of the nation's highest performing athletic departments, including the 2013 NCAA Men's Basketball National title, two NCAA Women's Basketball National Championship games (2009 & 2013), one NCAA Men's Soccer College Cup National Championship appearance (2010), two College World Series appearances (2007 & 2013) and two BCS bowl victories in the 2007 Orange Bowl and 2013 Sugar Bowl. The Cardinals won 64 Big East championships and titles since joining the league in 2005.

While supervising marketing, development, academics, sports performance, sports medicine, championships, student development (including the Derek Smith Leadership Academy) at Louisville, Hermann cultivated support for many of the state-of-the-art athletics venues that allowed the Cardinals to enjoy one of the nation's biggest and best building booms in college sports. The Cardinals built more than $250 million worth of facilities on campus as part of a strategic plan that allowed them to move into the Big East Conference in 2005 and eventually into the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The expansion of Papa John's Cardinal Football Stadium, the Jim Patterson Baseball Stadium, the Trager Center, the Lacrosse Stadium, the YUM! Practice Center, the Ralph Wright Natatorium, the Marshall Center, the G. Garvin Brown Rowing Center, the Mark and Cindy Lynn Soccer Stadium, the downtown KFC YUM! Arena and Cardinal Park -- which houses Ulmer Stadium (softball), Trager Stadium (field hockey) and the track and field complex -- allowed the Cardinals to lead the nation in hosting conference and NCAA championship events, including six National Championships, while Hermann was there.

Following a comprehensive national search, Hermann was selected from a pool of 63 candidates to be Director of Intercollegiate Athletics at Rutgers University. She was the first woman to serve in this capacity at Rutgers and became only the second woman to be an athletic director in the history of the Big Ten Conference.

A former all-conference performer for the renowned Nebraska volleyball program, Hermann is a tireless advocate for the student-athlete experience. At Louisville, she designed and created a best in class student-athlete support system called L CARE, the model for the R Care program at Rutgers.

Hermann has served on numerous community boards, including the Frazier Rehab Institute, the Louisville Sports Commission, the Center for Women and Families, Women 4 Women and numerous NCAA and conference committees, including chairing the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Committee. Hermann just completed seven years of service on the board of NACWAA, serving a four-year term before being on the executive board and becoming president.

Hermann has been the recipient of several community service awards including her 2013 selection as a Lenny Lyles Award winner, the 2004 Ladies of Leadership award, the 2006 Women 4 Women Heart of the Community award, the 2008 Mary Kay Tachau Gender Equity award, a 2008 Woman of Distinction by the Center for Women and Families, a Today's Woman Honoree and the 2013 National Girls and Women in Sports honoree.

Prior to her time as an administrator at Louisville, Hermann was a college head coach and USA Volleyball assistant coach. Hermann supported the National Team as they prepared for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games and helped coached a silver medal finish at the World University Games in Catania, Italy, in 1997.

Before joining USA Volleyball, Hermann was the head volleyball coach at the University of Tennessee from 1991-97. Under her watch the Lady Vols improved more than 150 spots in the NCAA RPI from No. 177 to No. 25, and in just her third season returned the program to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in more than a decade.

Following her All-Big Eight volleyball playing career at the University of Nebraska that included NCAA top-five finishes, Hermann served as an assistant coach at the University of Georgia and the University of Wyoming. Hermann's skills as a coach and a recruiter lifted those programs to unprecedented national rankings and advancement in the NCAA Tournament.

Hermann and her partner, Dr. Leslie Danehy, are the proud parents of son, Aidan.