After a nationwide search, UC Santa Cruz has announced Chris Spells as the next Director of Athletics & Recreation to lead the Banana Slugs.
Spells takes over for Courtnie Prather, who had been serving in the Interim role since last Spring after former Director of Athletics & Recreation Susan Harriman departed. Spells brings 10 years of experience in administration and management in intercollegiate athletics. Spells's first day on campus will be June 1.
"I am grateful to Courtnie Prather who has been serving as the interim director since May 2023," said UC Santa Cruz Campus Provost/Executive Vice Chancellor Lori Kletzer. "Courtnie brought great commitment to the director role, and she supported and encouraged coaches and student-athletes. Her leadership benefited the well-being of all members of our community through athletic and recreational activities."
Spells arrives at Santa Cruz after working at NCAA Division III member Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) Athletics for the past seven years. Most recently, Spells was Assistant Athletic Director for Facility Operations, Recreation, & Engagement at CMS.
Arriving at CMS in August 2016, Spells was hired as the Director of Recreation within the CMS Athletics Department. In that capacity, Spells was tasked with the opening of Roberts Pavilion, a competition arena and recreation center sized at 150,000 square feet. Spells also oversaw the implementation of Group Fitness classes and handled supervision of the CMS Intramural Sports and Sport Clubs program areas. In 2022, Spells was promoted to Assistant Athletic Director for Facility Operations, Recreation and Engagement. In that role, Spells was in charge of gameday and daily operations for all 21 varsity sports and recreational programming. Spells also served as tournament director when CMS hosted NCAA regional and national championship events. The school most recently hosted the final eight of the 2023 NCAA Division III Women's Volleyball championship. Spells was also on the department's Diversity, Equity Inclusion and Belonging committee.
Prior to CMS, Spells worked at Stanford University as Assistant Director for Facilities and Operations from 2014-2016.
UC Santa Cruz, the only Division III program in the University of California system, sponsors 17 varsity sports and has produced 257 All-American student-athletes and 7 team and 18 individual national championships since joining the NCAA in 1980. The Department of Athletics & Recreation also boasts an extensive array of recreational programming for its student population of 19,000 students including Physical Education, Adventure Rec, Boating Center, Intramural Sports, Group Exercise, and Sport Clubs.
