Shawn Tucker addresses the crowd at his introductory press conference. Glassboro, NJ. Tuesday, May 19, 2025. - Photo via Rowan Athletics
Rowan’s newly appointed director of athletics, Shawn Tucker, spoke at his introductory press conference in the Chamberlain Student Center Expansion on May 20, where he discussed his future goals for Rowan Athletics.
Tucker was announced as the new athletic director on April 23. Prior to becoming a Prof, he served as the vice president of athletic development and deputy athletic director at Rutgers University. Tucker also worked for New Jersey City University (NJCU) from 2018-2022 as their associate vice president and director of athletics.
“It is with great honor and tremendous excitement that I stand here today as your next Director of Athletics,” Tucker said. “I’ve learned so much in my professional journey and now that I’m battle tested, I look forward to being able to pour out what I’ve learned over these last 15-20 years here at Rowan.”
Following the retirement former interim athletic director John Giannini in 2024, Penny Kempf and Gabby Lisella assumed the role of co-directors of Rowan Athletics, as the search for a new hiree took place.
Joe Cosgrove, a member of the Rowan University Board of Trustees, was the leader of the hiring committee that selected Tucker to fill the vacant role of athletic director. Nearly 200 applications rolled in from colleges and universities all across the country according to Cosgrove, and he says Tucker was selected because his resume stood out from the rest.
“From the beginning of the search, we [Board of Trustees] were committed to finding a visionary leader. Someone with experience, integrity, and a bold, strategic mindset to guide our athletics programs into the next great chapter,” Cosgrove said. “And I’m happy to say in Shawn Tucker, we found a leader who not only meets the criteria, but exceeds them in every way possible.”
President Ali Houshmand also shared his excitement over Tucker’s decision to leave Rutgers and come to Glassboro, saying its a sign the university is trending in a positive direction.
“People are only interested to go to places where they think their situation gets better,” Houshmand said. “And clearly when somebody leaves a huge school, that speaks volume of what you have created.”
Tucker also assumes the role amidst a time of immense growth for Rowan. The university welcomed its largest incoming class this past fall and has doubled its enrollment over the past decade. This growth can also be seen, according to Houshmand, in the athletics department. Rowan’s athletics programs have consistently been revered as one of the NCAA Division III programs in the nation and as a part of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC).
“I love the fact that we are the envy of the rest of NJAC these days, everyone talks about Rowan University,” said Houshmand.
With growth comes expansion, which Houshmand is looking to move forward with not just in academics, but in athletics. Rowan’s plan entails building new and upgraded facilities on the West Campus, including an arena. Through a private-public partnership, these new buildings will open the doors for Rowan to be able to host Division III Championships and creates potential for other outside events such as concerts.
“So that’s our goal, and I really look forward to the day when we accomplish this,” Houshmand said.
Tucker shares these same sentiments as Houshmand for the future of Rowan Athletics, saying teamwork can take the university’s programs to an elite level.
“It takes all of us who are poised in lockstep with supporting the vision of growing athletics and building sustainable infrastructure for winning national championships,” Tucker said. “I love the conference championships. Super Regionals a job well done, but the mindset that we’re going to have here is national championships.”
Rowan has even looked into a potential jump to the Division I level within the next several years if these new facilities were to be built. But in the short term, Tucker says his focus will be on building up what the university already has.
“DI is there right now and we can jump, but why would we jump when we don’t have the infrastructure in place? So I think right now it’s the most important,” Tucker said. “I believe if we focus on being a premier DIII program, build the elite facilities, and make sure that you have the right attention to detail, all that [growth] will come.”
Growth also comes with marketing. Rowan recently hired its first-ever Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), aimed at bettering the university’s national appeal. Tucker shares this same vision with athletics, as he looks to bring student-athletes from all across the country to Glassboro to compete.
“We challenge our coaches to think outside the box,” Tucker said. “We’ll build up a recruiting budget where you can go on the road. Because you can get some talent there. And if we ever get a couple diamonds in the rough, that’s how you go from good to great.”
But shiny new buildings and nationwide recruits aren’t the only important parts of what a successful athletics program creates according to Tucker.
During his time at Rutgers, he launched the Rutgers Leadership Academy (RLA), which helps to provide student-athletes with information and support to guide decision-making in life-changing areas like career choice, personal enrichment, leadership, as well as community and civic engagement. He also created R Care, a program that provided care and communication in academic support, sports medicine, and sports performance.
Tucker was a student-athlete himself. A wide receiver and team captain for Rutgers football, he says athletics isn’t just about the wins and losses, but what the student-athletes like to learn from their experiences.
“It’s about that’s the core principle of why we’re student-athletes. I was once a student-athlete and yes, I wanted to play in the NFL, but at the end of the day, I have 30, 40, 50 years of life that I have to do great work in the community,” Tucker said. “So it’s about being a student-athlete, learning those intangibles, learning those life skills, and developing that while you’re here in college.”
To close out his introductory speech, Tucker emphasized his eagerness to hit the ground rolling during his first year as director of athletics. In order to build a brighter future for Rowan Athletics, Tucker says the necessary change can never come too early or be too big of a burden.
“If there was a catchphrase or slogan through year number one, it’d be simply put, there must be more, there must be more,” Tucker said. “There must be more success over the horizon. There must be more room to grow as a department, more attention to detail, more opportunities to increase resources for our student-athletes, more champions in and out of competition.”
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