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2021 Special Awards Announcements
March-April-early May
Written feature stories on each Special Awards recipient posted on CoSIDA.com, social channels.
May is CoSIDA Awards Month
A video series highlighting 2020 and 2021 Special Awards honorees will be showcased on CoSIDA.com.
Plans are underway to honor the 2020 and 2021 CoSIDA Hall of Fame classes and the CoSIDA Academic All-America® Hall of Fame classes of 2020 and 2021, with pre-recorded video presentations during the June virtual convention.
The College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) continues its weeklong announcement of the 2021 Special Awards on Wednesday by recognizing three more outstanding members for distinguished contributions to the profession.
Jessica Poole, Senior Associate AD External Operations/Revenue Generation at Chicago State, will receive the
Mary Jo Haverbeck Trailblazer Award which honors a pioneer in the field of sports information who has mentored and helped improve the level of ethnic and gender diversity and inclusion within CoSIDA.
The
Bob Kenworthy Community Service Award, presented annually to a member for civic involvement, community service and accomplishments outside of the sports information office, will go to
Chris Mitchell, the Manager of District Communication at Granite City (Ill.) School District. This is a new role for CoSIDA member Mitchell after he served as the Assistant AD for Communications at the Washington University at St. Louis for nearly 20 years.
Doug Hauschild, the University of Dayton Director of Athletic Communications, is the recipient of the 2021
Lester Jordan Award. This is presented to an individual for exemplary service to the CoSIDA Academic All-America® Program and to the promotion of the ideals of being a student-athlete.
CoSIDA's 64th annual convention this June will be virtual, due to pandemic concerns. In March and April, feature stories on all Special Awards recipients will be posted on CoSIDA.com and on CoSIDA social channels. May is designated as CoSIDA (Video) Awards Month when pre-recorded videos with the 2020 and 2021 Special Award winners will be showcased month-long (due to two years of virtual convention programming).
A closer look at the individuals honored today:
MARY JO HAVERBECK TRAILBLAZER AWARD
Jessica Poole – Chicago State (Senior Associate AD for External Operations/Revenue Generation/Senior Woman Administrator)
Leading diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in CoSIDA.
An advocate of diversity and leadership opportunities for ethnic minorities,
Jessica Poole has emerged as one of the national leaders in intercollegiate athletics for those efforts and initiatives in the core areas of race/ethnicity, diversity, equity and inclusion, women, disability and LGBTQ+. She is in her second year at Chicago State where she serves on the athletics executive team as Senior Associate AD of External Operations/Revenue Generation.
In 2022-23, Poole will serve as the first female Black president of CoSIDA. She currently is the second vice president of the organization in the officer rotation, after service as an at-large Board member.
Poole also is the chair of CoSIDA’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee and also serves as a member of the executive board of the Black College Sports Information Directors of America (BCSIDA).
Among her roles as a CoSIDA officer is to serve as the Board liaison to CoSIDA’s Professional Development and Education Committee. She is also a member of the organization’s Special Awards Committee.
In addition to attending numerous NCAA leadership academies and workshops in the areas of inclusion, she is a member of Women Leaders in College Sports and the Minority Opportunities Athletic Association (MOAA). Poole is a volunteer on the NCAA’s Women’s Basketball Final Four Media Coordination Committee.
Prior to her Chicago State position, Poole served in a similar administrative position at Florida Atlantic (Senior Associate AD of External Relations). She has also served as an assistant communications director at Vanderbilt, Ole Miss, Dartmouth, Michigan and UNC-Greensboro.
Mary Jo Haverbeck Trailblazer Award
Presented annually to an individual who is a
pioneer in the field of sports information who has mentored and helped improve the level of ethnic and gender diversity within CoSIDA.
Voted on by the Special Awards Committee.
BOB KENWORTHY COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD
Chris Mitchell – Granite City CUSD School District (Manager of District Communications)
Former Washington University in St. Louis Assistant AD for Communications
Long-time award-winning CoSIDA member who developed the CoSIDA Goodwill & Wellness Committee into a national model for college athletics.
Mitchell is a long-time CoSIDA member is now directing communications efforts for his hometown Granite City (Ill.) CUSD School District, serving in that role since August 2020 after a sterling two decades of work in collegiate sports information.
For nearly 20 years,
Chris Mitchell served in the athletic communications office at Washington University, including the last five years as an assistant athletic director. He was responsible strategic communications and video coverage for WashU’s 19 sports. During his time at WashU, Mitchell helped promote 12 NCAA Division III national championships, 149 conference titles, 142 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans and two NCAA Woman of the Year recipients.
Mitchell also served in the sports information office at Duke University and McKendree University.
As the chair of CoSIDA’s Goodwill and Wellness Committee, Mitchell expanded the committee’s reach, helping to raise thousands of dollars for charity and increasing the number of volunteer hours by member. He has been a member of this innovative CoSIDA committee since 2009.
Under Mitchell’s leadership, the Goodwill and Wellness Committee is one of the busiest and most active groups of CoSIDA members, involved year-round in charity and service events, holding health and wellness initiatives, including the popular CoSIDA Fitness Challenge, continuing education and convention sessions, and promoting the volunteer and wellness efforts of CoSIDA members.
The CoSIDA Volunteer 15 program is an initiative to recognize CoSIDA members for their involvement in their local communities and members are recognized during the annual CoSIDA convention for their charitable and civic involvement. At each CoSIDA Convention, the Goodwill and Wellness Committee organizes a 5K fun run/walk (in-person usually; virtually the last two years) and a community service project that that benefits a charity or non-profit organization in the host city. For the last several years, under Mitchell’s development, the Goodwill and Wellness Committee has hosted a monthly “Communicators Outside the Lines: Better Yourself, Better Your Community” feature series, spotlighting CoSIDA members on CoSIDA’s communications platforms.
Mitchell has been honored previously by CoSIDA with the organization’s 2018 Warren Berg Award for outstanding service and commitment to the profession and with the 2020 President's Award for and exemplary volunteer service and leadership. Mitchell also served as the chair of the (former) CoSIDA Membership Services Committee from 2007-09.
Bob Kenworthy Community Service Award
Presented annually to a CoSIDA member for
civic involvement, community service and accomplishments within and/or outside of the sports information profession.
Voted on by the Special Awards Committee.
LESTER JORDAN AWARD
Doug Hauschild – Dayton (Director of Athletic Communications)
Member of the Academic All-America® Committee since 1993.
This is the second major CoSIDA honor that
Doug Hauschild has received in the last two years, following his CoSIDA Hall of Fame induction in 2020.
Hauschild has been a member of the CoSIDA Academic All-America
® Core Program Committee since 1993. He has served in numerous roles within the committee, all as a district coordinator. He has coordinated Academic All-District and All-America nominations and voting for nearly all sports, and is currently a district coordinator for at-large volleyball teams.
Since Hauschild has joined the Academic All-America Core Program committee, a total of 81 Dayton student-athletes have received Academic All-America honors, as the Dayton athletic communications staffers are huge advocates of promoting and nominating Flyer student-athletes for academic honors.
In addition to his Hall of Fame honor, Hauschild was was recognized by CoSIDA in 2009 with the Bob Kenworthy Community Service Award for his civic involvement and volunteerism in the community. Hauschild was presented with the Atlantic 10 Conference’s 2012 Bob Vetrone Award, given to a member of the media whose service, professionalism and commitment have made a lasting contribution to the student-athletes and institutions of the A-10.
Hauschild has served his alma mater since his graduation in 1981. In his role as Director of Athletic Communications, he is the primary athletics communications contact for football and men's basketball and also serves as the chair of the Dayton Athletics Hall of Fame committee. More than 50 student workers from the Dayton athletics communication office have gone on to work in media relations during Hauschild's tenure.
Hauschild also has served the media coordinator for 103 NCAA Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament games since 1982.
Lester Jordan Award
Presented to an individual for
exemplary service to the Academic All-America® Program and the promotion of the ideals of being a student-athlete. Nominations solicited by, and voted on, by the Academic All-America® Core Committee
.