WT’s New VP for Athletics to Meet the Public July 24

Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, cchandler@wtamu.edu

CANYON, Texas — The new leader of West Texas A&M University Athletics officially will be welcomed to the Buffalo herd July 24.

Doug Lipinski, who was named WT’s new vice president for athletics on July 10, will be introduced to the campus and community at 10:30 a.m. July 24 in the Fairly Group Club at Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium on WT’s campus in Canyon.

“We want fans, friends, alumni, students, staff, faculty and anyone who is interested and able to join us to give Doug, Carrie, Adam, and Lukas a proud Panhandle welcome,” WT President Walter V. Wendler said. “I want Doug to be engaged and motivated by the energy and hospitality shown them. We want the Lipinskis to know immediately they made the right decision to become Texans—west Texans in particular.”

The event also will be livestreamed here: youtube.com/live/qv0AXvlwuVE?feature=share.

“My family and I are looking forward to meeting the passionate fans of WT Athletics, as well as our new family at WT, from student-athletes to coaches to staff members to administrators,” Lipinski said.

Lipinski earned a bachelor’s in advertising and public relations and a Master of Public Administration at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan. He was a four-year member of the varsity baseball team and spent the subsequent four years as an assistant to coach Steve Lyon before moving into administrative roles.

Currently, he serves as GVSU’s deputy athletic director for external relations, overseeing all marketing and promotions, communications, ticketing, digital marketing, multimedia, corporate sponsorships, annual giving, merchandise and licensing. He and his team have won more than 100 National Association of College Marketing Administrators awards, and he has led the university in finalizing the largest sponsorship deals in its history.

In the last 20 years, WT Athletics has achieved previously unseen levels of success.

Key accomplishments include:

• Nine national championships and more than 100 Lone Star Conference and NCAA regional championships;
• Nearly $100 million in new athletics facilities construction and renovations, including construction of the Bain Athletic Complex and Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium, an on-campus facility picked as the top Division II football stadium in the country;
• More than $40 million in gifts and external support for scholarships, facilities and team operating funds;
• Top 10 finishes in the NCAA Division II Directors Cup every year since 2013; 
• New attendance and ticket records in every sport; 
• The first institution in the LSC to provide full scholarship funding to all women’s teams; 
• A 37 percent improvement in the academic success rate and GPAs of student-athletes.

Athletics are a key way in which WT engages with the Panhandle community, one of the major goals of the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign’s new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised nearly $160 million.

About West Texas A&M University

WT is located in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of about 10,000 and offers 59 undergraduate degree programs and more than 40 graduate degrees, including two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men’s and women’s athletics programs.

—WT—