• 2016 CoSIDA Special Awards general announcement/release
• Special Awards feature story schedule
by Barb Kowal, CoSIDA Director of External Affairs
True team player. Respected. Tells the great story. Organized. A learner. Understands the media’s needs while balancing the needs and priorities of the athletic department.
These are the ‘wish-list’ descriptions you would use to build a prototype athletic communicator profile.
And those are the words used by people again and again to describe Julie Bennett, Baylor University’s Assistant Athletics Director/Communications who will be recognized with two 2016 CoSIDA awards.
This June, Bennett receives a CoSIDA Lifetime Achievement Award and enters into the CoSIDA Hall of Fame.
She retires this summer after an impressive career spanning three-plus decades. With husband Bruce in the Air Force (now a retired Lt. Colonel), they raised four daughters and criss-crossed western and central USA as Julie served at Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State San Bernardino, University of Nebraska-Omaha, the University of Central Missouri, the University of Hawai'i and then, for the last 23 years, at Baylor in the heart of Texas.
“When it came time for reassignment, Bruce always made sure he got a base that had a university nearby,” Bennett
Bennett with Baylor colleagues: hosting the 2015 NCAA national tennis championships; with head coach Kim Mulkey
after earning the 2016 Big 12 tournament title; hosting the 2016 NCAA women's basketball first and second rounds.
said. “Early on, I worked at two schools simultaneously. I established the SID position at Cal State San Bernardino. I worked at Cal Poly Pomona in the morning, then drove to CSUSB during my lunch hour to work there in the afternoon. I worked home events at both schools and travelled with Pomona women’s basketball.
"Once Bruce retired from the military, we chose to relocate to Texas and I started at Baylor.”
Along the way, Bennett mastered the art of media relations. She’ll be mostly remembered for helping orchestrate Baylor women’s basketball’s rise to national prominence.
Bennett has worked as a press officer at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games and the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, and hosted numerous NCAA national championship events. She earned the 2014 CoSIDA Arch Ward Award for outstanding contributions to the profession.
Bennett’s PR efforts led to 15 women’s basketball All-America honors, two Wade Trophy honors and Naismith and Honda award winners at Baylor. She accomplished all this while gaining the respect of everyone with her unassuming style and dedication to her craft.
For these reasons, she also takes her rightful spot in the CoSIDA Hall of Fame in June.
“I could not be more happy for Julie to receive this special Hall of Fame honor to cap her incredible journey in this profession,” said Baylor Executive Associate Athletics Director/External Affairs Nick Joos, a former CoSIDA president. “In my view, she is the nation’s finest women’s basketball publicist and her loyalty, dedication and hard work have played a key role in growing Lady Bear basketball into the nationally respected power program it is today. She enjoys tremendous respect from the student-athletes, coaches and media members that she has worked tirelessly to serve over the years.”
When Kim Mulkey accepted the Baylor women’s basketball head coaching position in April of 2000, it was Bennett who made an immediate impact on the coach driven to transform the Lady Bear fortunes.
“From the start, working alongside Julie has meant a lot to me, personally and professionally,” noted Mulkey, a Women’s Basketball Hall of Famer. “I appreciate her wisdom and hard work.
“She’s creative and stays relevant, using the newest social media and communication ideas. She knows how to tell the Baylor story by building great relationships with both the players and with the media, who all trust and respect her. That’s not easy to balance, especially in tough or emotional times. Julie takes her time to view the situation, and her perspective and quiet words make a difference to our athletes and staff. We rely on her a lot, and I am really going to miss that connection.”
“The demographic for day-to-day SIDs skews pretty young, and the consistency and wisdom that experienced pros like Julie bring make huge contributions to any communications team. That’s something that will be very difficult for us to replace,” noted Baylor Associate AD for Communications Heath Nielsen.
Bennett’s national championship team legacy began at Division II with two Cal Poly Pomona women’s basketball titles (1985, 1986) before she became a NCAA lucky charm at Baylor. Baylor has won four team national titles and Bennett has been the SID for all four of them: the two women’s basketball crowns (2005, 2012), men’s tennis (2004) and acrobatics and tumbling (2015).
“For me, the 2005 NCAA basketball championship stands out the most,” Bennett said. “What they had accomplished in five years under Kim was remarkable. The team was not a No. 1 seed, but beat three top seeds to win the championship.”
Lori Fogelman, Baylor’s Assistant Vice President of Media Communications who doubles as a Baylor basketball radio
During a February Baylor women's basketball game, Bennett was recognized at halftime for her outstanding
achievements, her upcoming Hall of Fame honor and retirement. Her family, BU players and Baylor AD Ian
McCaw (right) join her during that halftime celebration. Top right: NCAA Championship net cutting.
broadcaster, has walked in step with Bennett and appreciates the way she views her job and her role at the university.
“Julie knows how to find and share the good stories, and in turn, knows how to best promote the Baylor University brand,” Fogelman remarked. “She is prepared, responsive and has made our broadcasting jobs easy. Julie knows how to relate to people and is the ultimate professional. She will be dearly missed.”
Bennett’s impact was publicly acknowledged this winter during Baylor home women’s basketball games.
She was recognized with a halftime presentation in February, as Baylor acknowledged her Hall of Fame selection and upcoming retirement. The halftime presentation drew a standing ovation from the sold-out crowd and the Baylor players ran out to pose for photos with their SID.
During the Fox Sports televised Baylor-Texas regular season finale in Waco, Bennett moved on camera and was interviewed for an eight-minute segment as announcers Brenda Van Lengen and Rod Thulin chronicled her career for the viewers and saluted her contributions to college athletics.
Over the years, Bennett has relied on organization and her interpersonal skills to carve out her successful career, and offers guidance to young communications professionals.
“The ability to communicate with people - being firm but not offending people - is crucial,” Bennett said. “Put the student-athlete first. Be as adept as possible in a multitude of areas - social media, graphics, notes, writing, publicity. Anticipate the needs of the media and communicate with all your audiences on a regular basis.”
“I’d also advise everyone that it is very important that you pace yourself and take time for yourself and your family.”
Soon, Julie will have that free time to travel with husband Bruce and spend time with daughters Jennifer, Heather, Erin and Megan and their families, which include 10 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
She will be greatly missed.
“Team members like Julie are rare,” noted Nielsen. “She’s leaving some big shoes to fill, that’s for certain.”
“I am not sure how you ever replace a Julie Bennett,” Mulkey said.
This summer, as Bennett snaps shut her laptop one last time and says goodbye to her Baylor colleagues, we also say farewell to a decorated athletic communications pro who showed us the way it should be done.