DAVIS, Calif. -- UC Davis' intercollegiate athletics department reorganized its senior leadership team under first-year Director of Athletics
Rocko DeLuca, with
Maggie Fenton earning a promotion to senior associate athletics director and
Liz Martin and
Danielle Shank each being elevated from assistant A.D. to associate A.D. positions.
Fenton's new full title is Senior Associate Athletics Director of Facilities, Operations & Capital Projects. Martin becomes the Associate Athletics Director for Development & Alumni Engagement, while Shank transitions to Associate Athletics Director, External Relations. The changes took effect at the beginning of July 2021.
DeLuca also announced the appointment of Chanel Glasper, who will begin her role as Special Assistant to the Athletics Director on August 9.
"I'm excited and proud about the elevated roles for Maggie, Liz and Danielle not only within our athletics department but also in the external and campus relationships they have forged. Their leadership and experience will be invaluable as we continue to move forward in the way we serve our overall Aggie community," said DeLuca. "Chanel is a rising star in this industry and I am very happy that she's joining our team."
Fenton has served the Aggie athletics department since her arrival from Stanford in 2017. During the past four-plus years, she has overseen expansions and upgrades to such facilities as La Rue Field (softball), the Woody Wilson Track at Toomey Field, the Marya Welch Tennis Center and Schaal Aquatics Center, while guiding the UC Davis student-athletes' safe return to competition during the on going COVID-19 pandemic during the spring of 2021. Fenton, who also serves a sports administrator for the two Aggie basketball teams, now directs the construction of the Edwards Family Athletics Center, the department's multi-use facility on the southwest corner of the campus.
Martin previously served three years as an assistant athletics director for the department's leadership giving and alumni engagement, which in turn was a promotion from her post as ICA's director of development from 2014-18. In addition to her role in helping UC Davis attain record-breaking philanthropic support, Martin spearheaded the Marya Welch Initiative for Women's Athletics and the EVO Pro Network, the latter of which consists of alumni, parents and supporters who help current Aggie student-athletes prepare for their careers. She previously worked at Tennessee, Cal, Clemson and Florida before joining the UC Davis athletics staff in January of 2013.
Shank came to UC Davis to helm the ICA's marketing, ticket sales and strategy in June of 2019 after almost five years at Boston College as an assistant AD in development. In her relatively short time with the Aggies, she has led a top-down reorganization of the department's overall branding and social media presence, overseen the continued growth in department ticket revenue, and inaugurated Launch Day – an annual celebration of UC Davis' student-athlete graduates. Shank was also instrumental in fan engagement efforts throughout the pandemic creating the Gunrock's Gallop Virtual 5k in support of the ASUCD Pantry, fan cut-out program for men's & women's basketball and eventual safe return of spectators to Aggie home football games as COVID-19 restrictions were reduced in the spring of 2021.
Glasper takes on a newly created role as special assistant to the athletics director. A former tennis team captain and school record-holder at UMass, she went on to add a master of education (2018) and a Juris Doctor (2021) from the University of Oklahoma. Glasper worked as a graduate assistant in the Sooners' athletics department during her time in Norman, while also serving as an officer for the Southwest Region Black Law Student Association and an intern for the NFL Players Association.
ABOUT UC DAVIS:
Centrally located between San Francisco and Lake Tahoe, over 700 student-athletes across 25 teams enjoy an unrivaled undergraduate experience at the fifth-ranked public school in the country.
Ranked annually in the nation's top 10 in diversity and students' social mobility, UC Davis and its innovative Aggie EVO system helps student-athletes develop passions, connect with a comprehensive network of alums and industry leaders, gain real-world experience and thrive as a young professional following a successful launch to full-time employment or graduate school.
