College Sports Information Directors of America

Don Vieth joined the Northeastern State RiverHawks athletics department in October 2016 to head athletic communications, and this past July, he was elevated to Assistant AD for Strategic Communications. He is committed to a vast amount of committee and volunteer work in NCAA Division II and CoSIDA. Read more about Don, his role in establishing the weekly #SIDAchat, and the insights he shares about the athletic communications profession.

 

 
Is there an achievement or contribution that you are most proud of? (this could be work-related OR personal)
Personal: Marrying the love of my life Rebecca. 
Work-related: That’s a though question to answer and like picking from a favorite kid.  
 
What have been the most memorable and/or rewarding moments of your career?
I’ll go back to 2008 at Winona State and winning the National Men’s Basketball title, as this really kicked in and got my interest in having this as a fulltime career. A second one would be as a student and having a one-on-one interview with Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. Going to the NCAA College World Series at Winona State in 2011, having first time NCAA Tournament berths at Cameron in men’s basketball and softball. At Northeastern State, making the Elite 8 in women’s tennis and men’s soccer. I’ve been lucky to be around many great teams over the years outside of that group, as well. 
 
 
A few years ago, you and Kelvin Queliz came up with the concept and idea of the weekly Twitter SIDAchat. The Monday night chat has become a CoSIDA member favorite with lots of special guest hosts and great discussions. How would you evaluate the chat and its impact for CoSIDA members and their colleagues? 
I don’t think I can say Kelvin and myself came up with the concept, a fair thing to say is that we were a quiet spinoff of #SCAchat, and what they are going on Sunday nights. I’d always say there is room to grow, and obviously, we’d love to get different perspectives from SIDs at different levels of play. What goes through my circles in NCAA Division II is different from others, and our sports sponsorship at Northeastern State has similarities but differences from others around us. I can’t speak on sports like volleyball or track, so it would be great to have folks involved who more involved and has more expertise in it than me.
 
One of the biggest changes we’d done in the last year is shortening it to 30 minutes with the same amount of questions since folks have busy schedules, and more folks are involved in the first 30 minutes as compared the final 30 minutes. 
  
You do an amazing amount of volunteer work outside of your NSU duties (D2CCA Softball Central Region Awards Coordinator, D2SIDA Women's Basketball National Poll regional chair, and Super Region 3 Chair for the Gene Upshaw Award.). How did these opportunities come about, and what advice would you give to the SIDs who want to get more involved in committee work?
Some of it was by chance when those came open, and I simply volunteered, in D2CCA Softball I was reached out to by the National Chair if I had an interest. I was a D2SIDA Regional Voter in men’s basketball at Cameron and there was an opening when I moved over to Northeastern State in women’s basketball, so I volunteered when it was open. The regional chair at the time asked if I wanted to be a national voter as well so I didn’t turn down the opportunity. I think the big takeaway is to step up when an opportunity comes up.
 
What is the draw for you to do all these outside volunteer activities and how do you make the time for them?
A main draw is that I’m involved in things that interest me versus being involved just in being involved. I tried to be selective and limited myself to one outside organization a season. Of course, there is some crossover, but it doesn’t spread myself too thin. 
 
What’s the biggest career lesson that you’ve learned?
There are a few, but one of them is to make sure you have time for ‘you’. Don’t let your work absolve you. SID’s need time to disconnect from the job, and we are not just talking about once a year as a vacation. Take an evening off and keep the laptop off when one comes along. 

 

 
How do you have fun at work?
Many of our trips in the MIAA are long days on the road so there are plenty of joking around with the folks making trips with us to games.
 
We are asking each featured member to provide a professional development tip to share as part of their profile. What is yours?
Network. Network. Network.
 
Did you have any key mentors or people who deeply influenced who you are, what you believe in and what you’re committed to in your work and life? Tell me about them.
It’s hard to rattle off a few without missing out on someone. We have many in the MIAA and in Oklahoma who have been in the industry for many years that I connect with on work and personal matters. Its always great having folks you can talk to about highs and lows with. 
 
Who is the most important person at work you talk to during your day?
Our Assistant Athletics Director for External Relations, Scott Pettus. He was the SID at Northeastern State for many years and he is someone across the hallway from me who understands the industry.
 
What advice would you give someone who wants to follow in your footsteps?
The same as I’d tell a younger version of myself just getting into this industry. Be somewhere that values you and the position you hold. 
 
What might (someone) be surprised to know about you?
I lived overseas for a year as a child and have visited 25 countries. 
 
We know you've been at the forefront of developing great social media strategies and content for the schools you've been at? What's one communications/social/PR tool that you could not live without today - and why? 
My phone. We post a ton of content off a mobile device anymore, and the quality has grown alongside the technology.  
 
Do you have any favorite quotes that you try to either live by or implement in your professional/personal life?
I’m not the owner of this one, I’d more credit Paul Smith at Arkansas Tech for this popular quote he uses: “Work smarter, not harder.”