College Sports Information Directors of America

Brian Henry has spent the last four years in Pensacola, serving as NCAA Division II University of West Florida’s Director of Athletic Communications. He is the primary contact for women’s basketball, men’s and women’s golf, and the “newly” created Argonauts football program which is in its fourth season.

Henry served as the primary contact for the 2017 NCAA national champion men's tennis program's and football's historic run to the 2017 national title game as a second-year program. During his time at UWF, he has promoted more than a dozen All-Americans and five CoSIDA Academic All-America® honorees.

Outside of his UWF responsibilities, Henry also serves on the D2SIDA Board as the South Region representative and is on the NCAA South Regional Advisory Committee for women's tennis. Media relations volunteerism is important to Henry as he has served on the media coordination staffs of more than 20 bowl games, including 10 Cotton Bowl Classics.
 
Brian has worked around the country in his athletic communications career with stops ranging from Massachusetts (UMass), Texas (Lamar and UTEP), Missouri (University of Missouri) and Tennessee (Vanderbilt).

 

 
We are asking each Recognition Week featured member to provide a professional development tip to share as part of their profile. What is yours?
Don't be afraid to try something new or even move away from home (if it’s possible). Getting out of your comfort zone is one of the best ways to learn and grow. If it doesn't work out, you can always go back where you came from. I won't get upset if a co-worker/student fails at something as long as they made a legitimate effort at the task. We can fix it, learn and move on to the next job. Nobody is perfect 100 percent of the time so be willing to work with students, interns, graduate assistants, etc. to make them better workers.
 
What’s the biggest career lesson that you’ve learned?
"Perfect preparation equals peace of mind." That was a quote the late UMass softball coach and athletic administrator Elaine Sortino used with her teams, and it has always stayed with me. Like so many successful coaches, she had a way of getting the best out of people whether it was a student-athlete or an administrator.
 
I've also tried to always keep things in perspective. Our jobs are usually much easier when teams are winning but there will be times when you aren't as successful as you'd like to be, and that's when you can really shine as a communicator. There are much bigger things than what we do in the world and everyone is battling their own difficulties at home and at work, so I try to be cognizant of that when I approach a task.

 

 
Is there an achievement or contribution that you are most proud of, work-wise or personal?
Anytime you are recognized for a good job by a student-athlete, coach, media member or parent, it is a good feeling. In the 2017-18 academic year, we had three teams play for a national title - our second-year football team, men's golf and women's tennis - and we hosted the NCAA D2 Women's Volleyball National Championship. With all of the moving parts associated with those items, I really leaned on my staff and folks around campus to assist with various tasks and couldn't have pulled it off without their help.
 
But I'm most proud of being able to be at events for my children Abigail and Andrew, and wife Tracy. Those are the times I can truly relax and appreciate where we live and the opportunities we have.

 

 
How do you have fun at work?
Our office is set up a large bullpen-type room with anywhere from 5-8 people at any time, so there is always a story to be shared. We try to have games internally to keep the mood light but still professional. We have organized department intramural teams on campus in flag football, volleyball, soccer and basketball over the years which has proven very enjoyable and successful. We've also got the #1 beach in America in Pensacola Beach - which is nice.
 
Did you have any key mentors or people who deeply influenced who?
I would start with my father, Butch Henry. He worked in college athletics for 40 years and I spent many days and nights with him at his office (mostly playing in the arenas and fields), at games and on road trips, so I think I was destined to be in this profession.
 
Other mentors are a number of my supervisors: Jon Jackson (Duke) and Jeff Darby (UTEP) when I was a student at SMU - and then Jeff gave me my first full-time job at UTEP. They showed me how to work with coaches and the media, and how to get the job done on a daily basis. When I was at UMass, John Sinnett (now Florida Gulf Coast Associate AD for Communication) gave me the opportunity to manage more people/projects. He showed me how to think at a 30,000-foot level as well as what goes into the day-to-day management of an office and staff, both things that have helped me daily at UWF.
 
Who is the most important person at work you talk to during your day?
Each of my four co-workers in our office. With the different directions I'm pulled in on any given day, I try to communicate with them to make sure nothing is slipping through the cracks. We start each week with a typical meeting but also focus on their to-do lists to make sure everyone is aware of anything major that could impact our office's productivity.