Director of Spirit

About the Role

The Director of Spirit oversees all aspects of the University of Georgia's spirit program, including cheerleading, dance, and mascot operations. This position coordinates practices, tryouts, travel, recruiting, clinics, budget management, and compliance while working closely with athletic department leadership to enhance the game-day atmosphere and fan engagement.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate all spirit team practices and annual tryout at the end of spring semester.
• Attend all home football games, and selected volleyball matches, gymnastics meets, and men's and women's basketball games through the season.
• Coordinate all clinics (youth and college prep) including but not limited to (2) summer, (1) fall and (1) spring.
• Coordinate recruiting efforts for potential spirit members including attending recruitment fairs, coordinating all-boy clinics aimed at current UGA students to get involved in cheer and coordinate spring open gym opportunities.
• Coordinate all work weekends and 2-a-days for cheer, dance and mascot.
• Coordinate all travel including football away trips and football, mbb and wbb postseason.
• Role required to track academics of all team members to ensure compliance.
• Coordinate strength and conditioning and training schedule.
• Work with fan engagement to create atmosphere opportunities at all football, men's basketball and women's basketball games.
• Coordinate alumni opportunities, coordinate letterwinner awards and scholarship program.
• Create and maintain spirit budget.
• Plan, coordinate and execute all away and post-season travel.
• Mascot operations including casting, invoicing and overall supervision of appearances including communication with requesting groups and follow-up on transactions to secure payment, appearance details and overall details of mascot and spirit appearances.
• Position required to travel to all applicable appearances outside of Athens.
• Position required to travel to selected away football games and postseason travel (football, mbb, wbb).
• Position required to work all home football games and selected other home volleyball, men's basketball, women's basketball and gymnastics events.
• Maintain all mascot uniforms including mascot heads, arms, legs, shoes and Spike costume. This includes refurbishment, repairs and replacements as required.
• Coordinate all Nike gear ordering, inventory and uniform inventory and replenishment (including distribution and collection). Inventory includes ordering of all supplies including shoes, poms, uniforms and all other items needed for cheer, dance and mascot programs.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and 5 years of related coaching experience.
• 4 years of progressive instruction and/or coaching experience with collegiate or club level cheerleading or dance programs.
• Detail-oriented along with excellent communication and organizational skills.
• Ability to read, analyze and interpret NCAA, SEC and institutional rules and regulations.
• Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from individuals, customers and the general public.
• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only a limited standardization exists.
• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.

Pay & Schedule

• Advertised Salary: $55,000 - $70,000
• Full-time position with benefits eligibility (TRS or ORP retirement plan)
• Ability to work nontraditional hours to include some nights, weekends, and holidays
• Ability to travel

Physical Demands & Work Environment

• Standing, walking, using hands and arms to feel and reach
• Specific vision abilities include close and distance vision, and peripheral vision
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate, but escalates to high during practice and athletic competitions
• Driving is a responsibility of this position
• This position has operation, access, or control of financial resources
• This position has direct interaction or care of children under the age of 18