Athletic Director Holly Gera, right, enjoys the celebration of the opening of the new softball stadium on April 3 with alumni, standing, from left, Denise Warnock '97, Karen Bouloucon '96, Tara Wisz '01 and, seated, Tonya Galiszewski '03.

"One of the biggest changes I've seen, particularly in Division III, is that more emphasis has been placed on athletic programs as sources of revenue."

Holly Gera is racking up accolades as a pioneer for women in sports at both the local and national levels--unlikely recognition for a woman who admits that during her undergraduate days she was cut from Montclair State's softball team. However, the 1979 alumna's ability to think outside the diamond has allowed her to flourish in her role as Montclair State's third full-time director of Athletics. She manages her department but she's also a player on the team and rarely talks about her accomplishments without using the collective, "we."

Gera has been instrumental in several developments in the department, including the upgrade of athletic facilities, the construction of the soccer park and the new softball stadium, which opened this month. But her contributions to athletics are not limited to Montclair State.

An ambassador for the University, Gera also is involved with several National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) committees, including her nationally recognized work with softball and women's lacrosse, and she serves as president of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC). Gera is a strong advocate of physical education and women's awareness groups, and was honored in February for her outstanding achievements in sports and contributions to women's athletics by the New Jersey Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (NJAIAW) at the organization's annual luncheon at Seton Hall University, an event that she helped implement 13 years ago; and on Friday the National Association for Girls and Women in Sports presented Gera with the 2004 Pathfinder Award in recognition of her service and contributions to girls and women in sport.

Gera recently talked about the Athletics Department and how its role on campus is evolving.

Q. How has the Department of Athletics' role on campus changed during your time as director?
A. One of the biggest changes I've seen, particularly in Division III, is that more emphasis has been placed on athletic programs as sources of revenue. A sluggish economy and state cuts to the budget have stepped up the challenge for us to bring in more money, so we're developing fund-raising initiatives and we're more involved in development and cultivation activities. That wasn't part of the job 10 years ago.

The other big change is in student athlete conduct, and fan and coaches' behavior. Fans and professional venues are under the impression that they can do whatever they want at a sporting event. On a college campus, however, we promote positive support for the teams. There's a magnifying glass through which people look at us, and rightfully so, because we're held to higher standards.

Q. What is Athletics' greatest contribution to Montclair State?
A. We provide our student athletes with a positive, competitive atmosphere while representing our institution in a positive way, bringing a lot of good recognition to the University despite the challenges we face. Most of those challenges stem from facilities we've outgrown; yet this staff is motivated and continues to work hard for the student athletes.

Q. Why do you feel obligated to contribute to intercollegiate athletics at the state and national levels?
A. There are several organizations within the state that are vital to continuing strong athletics, and from those organizations come opportunities to contribute. As a professional I have an obligation to take what I do beyond campus and try to make an impact statewide. As a representative of Montclair State, it's important to get the University's name out there.

Q. Tell us about your role in implementing the NJAIAW organization's annual luncheon.
A. In 1993, Nancy Giardina (formerly of HPPERLS), Joan Ficke (associate vice president for Academic Affairs for Personnel and Resource Planning) and I discussed how we could celebrate girls and women in sports on campus. We got a program together and invited 200 high school and college student athletes to the Ballrooms. Over the years it evolved into such a tremendous event that we moved it to a larger facility at Seton Hall. I don't know of any other state that brings together high school, junior college and college student athletes and professional women athletes. Every year the preparation gets crazier and I ask myself why 13 years later I'm still writing out seating cards. I do it because these women are worth celebrating. Some of the athletes we've honored, women who were in this business 20 years before I was, are why I'm in this job today. They fought through the obstacles; they had vision. We honor these people because they paved the way.

Q. What is the most rewarding aspect of your job?
A. There are two. The first is being able to interact with student athletes. There are 450 athletes so I don't get to meet everyone, but several of them work for us and I get to know a lot of the teams because of their proximity to my office. Students 18 to 23 years old are enthusiastic, motivated and energetic, and that spills over onto me. The other is that I have a tremendous staff--a hard-working group that's here nights and weekends. To have people so involved and interested in their work that they come in fired up every day is rewarding for a supervisor.

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