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CoSIDA Goodwill & Wellness Committee
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Communicators Outside the Lines Feature Series
This is the next profile Q and A in a series entitled
Communicators Outside the Lines: Better Yourself, Better Your Community produced by the CoSIDA Goodwill & Wellness Committee. Read past profiles at
CoSIDA.com/CommunicatorsOTL.
HAVE IDEAS OR MEMBERS TO NOMINATE FOR THIS SERIES?
If you have any ideas for this series, which will revolve around CoSIDA member volunteerism and health and wellness, please contact Goodwill and Wellness Committee chair
Chris Mitchell, Washington University in St. Louis Assistant AD for Communications, at (618) 560-9280 or
mitchell@wustl.edu.
Dewar (left) and her college roommate Val at a race in Minnesota.
Q&A with Jenny Dewar
Associate Director of Athletics Communication
University of Illinois
by Ryan Klinkner, Athletic Media Relations Director at Saint John’s University (Minn.)
CoSIDA Goodwill and Wellness Committee member
The 2017-18 academic year is
Jenny Dewar’s third year with Illinois Athletics Communications after spending five years at the University of Missouri. A native of Prospect Heights, Illinois, Dewar is currently the primary contact for Illinois women's basketball, men's golf and soccer and handles scheduling of the department’s photographers. While at Mizzou, Dewar most recently worked with women's basketball and women's golf, in addition to being immersed in the credentialing operations for football. Dewar saw three postseason appearances with Mizzou women's basketball, and assisted with men's basketball game day operations. She also served as the contact for the soccer team as well as the gymnastics team. Dewar hosted the 2011 Big 12 Gymnastics Championship in the Hearnes Center and accompanied the team to the 2011 and 2012 NCAA Regional Championships. Dewar graduated from Illinois in 2010 with a degree in broadcast journalism and a minor in Spanish. As a student, Dewar assisted with the softball program and accompanied the team to the 2010 NCAA Softball Regional Tournament in Columbia, Mo.
Q: You and your college roommate are attempting to run a half marathon in all 50 states. You have completed 16 states so far and 19 half marathons total. What prompted you to begin such a task?
DEWAR: I actually don’t remember exactly, but I’m pretty sure it was my college roommate, Val’s, idea. She is a travel bug and she was the one who convinced me to run our first half marathon in 2011. The first race we did was actually awful and I told her I’d never run another one, but I guess I’m always up for a good challenge. Not only that, but we try to make our race weekends into adventures. I’ve been able to see so many things around this country that I never thought I’d get to see. For example, when we ran in South Dakota, we also did a 10k that went up to the top of Crazy Horse, and we stopped at Mt. Rushmore, the Badlands and a bunch of other places while driving up to the race.
Q: Have you always been a distance runner?
DEWAR: Somewhat. I started running cross country in middle school and ran the mile during track season. That was distance for me at that point in time. It wasn’t until college that I started running longer distances as more of a mental escape.
Q: Outside of scheduling around work and the Illini’s schedule, how do you make plans for such a lofty goal?
DEWAR: A lot of our racing plans are somewhat spur of the moment just because of the way our schedules work out. We try to make big weekends out of each race so that we can make memories and experience new things as well.
Q: What does your training regimen look like? How often do you check off another half marathon/state on the list?
DEWAR: I don’t really adhere to a strict training regimen when it comes to running. I’m usually a high-energy person, so I try to do some sort of physical activity as often as I can, but it’s usually just whatever I can fit into that specific day or whatever I’m feeling like doing. As far as the half-marathon schedule, I try to check them off as often as possible, but Val and I aren’t strict about it. I’ve done three states this calendar year (Indiana, North Carolina and Ohio), but there was one year where we were able to knock out seven states. Some years, we have only hit one. This goal doesn’t have a time limit, which allows for us to relax and enjoy the journey. It’s really become another reason for us to travel around, see the country and get away for a short time.
Q: What have been the hindrances/hurdles to achieving your goal so far?
DEWAR: I’ve been able to drive around most of the Midwest to this point, but I think the main hurdle to this goal is the travel. With our spur of the moment planning, it is sometimes difficult to plan travel to the states that are further away from where we live. The time demands of this career can also make scheduling races challenging, but it also allows for us to find plenty of exciting races that may not be as mainstream.
Q: How has the CoSIDA Fitness Challenge helped in your training?
DEWAR: I think the challenge has held me more accountable on a daily basis. I don’t follow a strict training regimen, it’s based mostly off of available time and how I’m feeling that day, but I definitely get a little push knowing that there’s a bit of a competition going on and others are also putting in their own work.
Q: Where will you be next?
DEWAR: Great question! I don’t have anything on the calendar just yet, but who knows when something will pop up.
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