College Sports Information Directors of America

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• Past 25-Year Award Recipients

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Scott Guise – York College of Pennsylvania, Director of Athletic Communications

CoSIDA 25-Year Award

by Jill Guise – Johns Hopkins University Assistant Director of Athletic Communications

In July 1995, if you had asked Scott Guise where he’d be in 10 years, he would have answered “working at a Division I school.” Just two months after graduating from Bowling Green State University, Guise was starting his job as the Sports Information Director at York College of Pennsylvania. Six months later, he became the longest-tenured SID in school history.
 
And, twenty-five years after that, he is the second-longest tenured member of the athletic department, behind former Spartan baseball coach and current Assistant Dean for Athletics and Recreation Paul Saikia.
 
“York College athletics has grown and evolved with many changes over the years, but Scott has been one of the staples,” noted Matt Day, Associate AD at York and former Spartan All-American baseball player. “He's provided steadfast coverage for the Spartans as he has worked tirelessly to help contribute to a quality experience for our student-athletes. He's not only been faithful and committed to covering the Spartans, but has also been a mentor to many students who have entered the field of athletic communications.
 
As I reflect on my time as a student-athlete and now an administrator at York College, Scott is a part of many memories - from covering our baseball games, to being my supervisor as a student-worker, to now being a colleague and friend. Thank you, Scott for your time and dedication to York College!”
 
Guise was no stranger to York College. He was born in York and lived there until the age of nine when his family moved to Amherst, Ohio – God’s country as he calls it. His younger brother, Mark, was a rising junior on the Spartans’ men’s basketball team. Both his mother, Judy, and his father, Larry, had attended York when it was a junior college before moving on to Millersville University and Penn State University, respectively.
 
So, what’s kept Guise at York College all these years? In a word - family. The Spartan Athletic Family, of which he is an invaluable member, as well as his own.
 
 
“The thing that makes Scott special is his heart,” said York men’s lacrosse coach Brandon Childs. “He really has the student-athlete experience at the forefront of his day. You can see it every time he interacts with any student-athlete at York, he just lights up. He is far less interested in winning and losing, as he is in telling the story of our outstanding athletes. Scott cherishes his relationships with his co-workers and sacrifices so much of his personal life for the good of others.”
 
Just a few months after the birth of his daughter, Carly, in February 2000, Scott’s brother moved back to York. About a year after the birth of his son, Shane, in May 2003, his parents returned to York. Family is everything to him, but it is his other family, his Spartan one, that has so often kept him away over the last 25 years.
 
That’s what happens when you work in college athletics, especially in the communications field. Birthday parties, weddings, anniversaries, graduations, holidays – sometimes you miss them, sometimes you’re there, but with your laptop open or your phone in hand - checking scores, writing recaps, updating Twitter.
 
It’s the life we’ve chosen, the life Guise chose 25 years ago. And it’s a choice he’d make all over again. The relationships he’s built at York with his colleagues and his students, are what keep him coming back day after day, year after year. It’s what he’s missed the most the last two-plus months.
 
“I have had the pleasure of working with Scott for the past 23 years at York College,” said York women’s basketball coach Betsy Whitman. “He is an extremely hard worker and cares about each and every athletic program. Scott is a gifted writer and has done a fantastic job at promoting our athletes and teams over the years. I am proud to call him my co-worker and friend!”
 
The dean of SIDs in the Capital Athletic Conference, Guise will be in new conference territory next year. In July, York departs the CAC after 29 years to join the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth. Though in a new home come July 1, he will still be the longest-tenured SID in his league.
 
“Scott is not only a phenomenal athletic communications professional, he’s also an incredible mentor,” noted Tim Brennan, former SID and current Assistant Director of PR at Salisbury University. “When I was new to the business he was always available to answer any of my questions. Through the years I saw him take young SIDs under his wing to help them and the profession thrive. That’s what makes Scott a special person – it’s not simply about the job, it’s always been about people and relationships, both among the professionals and the student-athletes, for whom he has such an appreciation.”