Source: L.A. Sentinel
Cal State University – Dominguez Hills has named former Seattle Public Schools Athletic Director Eric McCurdy as the new Associate Vice President/Director of Athletics.
His appointment makes McCurdy the 11th athletic director in the university’s 53-year history.
McCurdy will oversee Toro athletics department, which currently fields 10 different teams (four men’s and six women’s) competing at the NCAA Division II level.
Dominguez Hills competes in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), the most prominent Division II conference in the nation with 154 NCAA National Championships.
“We are excited to welcome new Athletics Director Eric McCurdy to the Toro community. His knowledge of the athletic enterprise and its value to higher education is an asset that will serve our students and campus well,” said Dr. Thomas Parham, president of Cal State University-Dominguez Hills
“His depth and breadth of experience, entrepreneurial spirit, passion for students, and commitment to supporting and evaluating his coaching staff and team performance are welcome additions to our campus community,” he added.
McCurdy returns to intercollegiate athletics after serving the last four years running his own consulting firm that aids mission-oriented organizations and advises on improving learning and work environments. He also provided guidance for potential student-athletes and their families through the NCAA recruitment, transfer and NIL process.
Previously, McCurdy spent eight years serving as the executive director of Athletics and the Metro League Commissioner for the Seattle Public School system. Before leaving to operate his own sports consulting firm, which assisted student athletes and their families through the NCAA recruitment process, he had also recently assisted students in navigating the transfer portal and NIL (name, image and likeness) processes.
In his position with the Seattle Public School system, McCurdy was instrumental in both raising the quality of the school systems’ athletic programs and also proved to be an adept and skillful fundraiser. He initiated a Major Gifts Fund, which raised over $2.74 million, the largest individual gift for an interscholastic public school athletics department in the state of Washington.
McCurdy applied the funds to increasing student participation in athletics by 44 percent.
He also was able to develop a strategy to assist historically underserved school gifting by $4.3 million, which resulted in a 25 percent increase in graduation rates at the schools. As Commissioner of the Metro League, McCurdy guided the association to becoming known as the best high school basketball conference in the nation, placing seven players in the NBA.
A former soccer letterwinner at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, McCurdy graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and a minor in Physical Education. Later, he matriculated cum laude with his Master’s degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration from Concordia University Irvine.
“I am truly honored and blessed to accept this position at CSUDH,” said McCurdy. “My family and I are very excited about moving to Southern California and becoming part of the Toro family. I look forward to working with coaches, faculty and staff as we serve the amazing student-athletes, alumni and boosters that help make this institution so great.”
