Western Illinois Names Kaufman Ass't AD
Western Illinois University has named Jason Kaufman assistant athletics director for media services and broadcasting.
“Jason has done some outstanding things for our department in his time here,” said Director of Athletics Dr. Tim Van Alstine. “As we continue to expand our television and radio broadcasting capabilities, along with advancing our internet production, Jason is the perfect person to administer and lead these new endeavors.”
Kaufman, 30, oversees a four-person staff which handles the daily media and communications activities of Western’s 20 NCAA Division I sport programs, serving as the primary media contact for football and men’s basketball. His new responsibilities will involve the continued advancement of the department’s broadcasting efforts.
“Ideally this change will help us continue to expand the Western Sports Network,” Kaufman said. “The addition earlier this year of the campus broadcasting outlets has been a tremendous benefit for us. Now down the road we would like to see affiliates all across the western Illinois region.”
He is currently in his ninth year at Western Illinois and his fifth as the director of athletics media services. The Warrenville, Ill., native began his career as a graduate assistant in the fall of 1997 and became the assistant sports information director in 1999. After serving in that capacity for two years he was promoted to Director of Athletics Media Services in October 2001.
“We were involved in the department’s very first Web site,” said Kaufman. “We’ve come a long way in six or seven years, thanks to the help and expertise of a lot of people, but there are a lot of areas left to explore and take advantage of with our site. It’s a very under-utilized tool right now.”
The Warrenville, Ill., native earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education from Cedarville University in 1997 and a master’s degree in sport management from Western Illinois in 1999. He and his wife, Ginger, reside in Macomb.