Eastern names Westfall interim A.D.

Eastern Washington University president Dr. Rodolfo Arevalo promises a quick and national search for an athletic director to replace Dr. Darren Hamilton, who was fired last week.

“One thing I’m thinking about is the possibility of using an external search firm,” Arevalo said Tuesday. “That will make the process faster, and a search firm is able to do more background checking faster.”

In the meantime, Michael Westfall, vice president for university advancement, will head the athletic department, something he said he has no desire to do on a permanent basis.

“My main goal is to make sure at the end of my short tenure that the athletic department is in better shape than I’ve found it and there is a good foundation for the next athletic director,” Westfall said an introductory press conference in the afternoon. “The one common goal is we all want what’s best for Eastern and we want what’s best for our student-athletes.

“My leadership style is going to be very collaborative. I know that there are issues, there are in any athletic program, but I know together we’re going to work to solve the issues.”

Westfall has an extensive background in fundraising, although when he first graduated from Indiana University in the early 1990s he was a basketball coach.

He was head coach at Myers College, an NAIA school in Cleveland, and an assistant coach at Central Michigan. Then he got involved in alumni relations and raising money at Georgetown, Michigan State, Johns Hopkins, Virginia Tech, the University of Toronto and, most recently, Radford.

He came to EWU last November.

“I chose Michael for this job because I have confidence in his ability to bring the athletics department back together, and his fresh perspective will help move us forward in our fundraising efforts for athletics,” Arevalo said. “His background in both collegiate athletics and in fundraising makes him well prepared to lead the department during this interim period.”

Hamilton, a Pennsylvania native who came from Chicago State, was with Eastern less than seven months and his tenure was marked by turmoil within the department.

“It’s difficult to say (why),” Arevalo said. “I think the understanding, maybe, of the organizational culture of Eastern may have been difficult to grab a hold of. I think the style of management probably was an issue. I think bringing the two together, his personality and the overall personality of the department, didn’t create as good enough of a fit as we could have had and I think he realized that, too.”

Hamilton arrived with a lot of enthusiasm and high expectations that had the athletic department optimistic.

“Everybody was surprised,” Arevalo said. “There was that high level of enthusiasm that connected with the goals of the department. The coaches that were part of the search committee were very enthusiastic about Darren’s ability to integrate himself into the office.”

Arevalo reiterated that charges of sexual harassment against Hamilton had “no bearing whatsoever” on the decision to make a change.

Westfall will maintain his duties in fundraising, saying, “It’s nothing a few more hours and an understanding wife can’t handle.”

He also said he would be the chairman of the search committee.

“This is my first and last press conference as an athletic director,” he said. “I’m happy to take on the task Dr. Arevalo has asked me to do. Transitions are really tough. I think it’s important that with the transition we keep moving forward. I really look forward over the next four or five months of working with the staff, leaning hard on the existing leadership of (associate athletic directors) Pam Parks and Michael Allen to keep the train moving forward.”

Prior to the announcement of his additional duties, Westfall talked about fundraising while Hamilton was on the job.

After his dismissal, Hamilton said, “I do believe I’ve done my very best, carved out my own niche, in terms of fund-raising endeavors. I think I’ve treaded on waters no other A.D. has. … I had 29 one-on-one visits with donors or prospective donors. I’ve certainly carved out some things that have never been done before at Eastern as an athletic director. I’ve certainly exceeded the $400,000 goal that I was expected to procure.”

“One thing I would like to do is have a conversation with him, as well,” Westfall said. “I saw that $400,000 figure and I was a little taken back by it. I don’t know where he got that figure from. We’re going to definitely look into that.

“In terms of what his impact was on fundraising, that’s still relatively unclear. As of late, he was very active in getting out and meeting with more people. Whether we see any fruit from that remains to be seen.”

As for the number of fund-raising contacts, Westfall added, “When you look at the whole length of his tenure, that is a small number. That really became a focus later on. In speaking with him in my role, one of the things I imparted on him was he needed to get out and see more people.

“The A.D.’s role is very external to the institution. The last month, that’s when he was out beating the bushes, seeing more people. … A lot of it was more introductory-type visits. He wasn’t actually asking people for money. You don’t kiss on the first date.”