LINCOLN, Neb (March 27, 2023) - Erin Dwyer will join Nebraska Wesleyan University as Assistant Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator. She succeeds Jo Bunstock who will retire in April after nearly 40 years of service. Alongside Nebraska Wesleyan's current director of athletics, Dwight Merilatt, Erin Dwyer will assist with the management of the department's 21 collegiate teams, cheer and dance squads, 56 coaches, and roughly 550 student-athletes.
Dwyer has over seven years of experience in athletics including nearly four years as Director of Championships and Sport Administration in the Middle Atlantic Conference. In this role, she oversaw conference postseason events with a specific focus on accounting, event operations, and game management. She also managed conference educational services which included the Women's Leadership Symposium and the MAC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Additionally, Dwyer helped manage the conference coach groups and assisted with sports information for the conference's website and social media platforms.
"On behalf of our coaches, staff, and student-athletes I want to welcome Erin Dwyer to Nebraska Wesleyan University Athletics," Athletic Director, Dwight Merilatt said. "Erin has a wealth of experience and I know those experiences will help our department grow and enhance our operations. I am also excited that Erin was a prior NCAA student-athlete and that experience will truly help us with our overall goal of making sure we recognize the foundation of the department."
Before working for the Middle Atlantic Conference, Dwyer served as a graduate teaching assistant at the University of Iowa while also holding an operations and marketing internship for RedZone Football Academy. As a teaching assistant, Dwyer taught a Contemporary Issues in Sport discussion course for 80 undergraduate students and assisted the lead professor with a lecture course of 160 students. Dwyer said that working as a teaching assistant helped her learn how to develop the student's interest in the sports industry while also giving her the opportunity to learn more about issues across various levels of sports. At RedZone, she managed the academy's social media accounts, ran game day setups, and helped plan numerous camps and clinics. During her time at RedZone, social media engagement grew by over 800%.
Prior to working in Iowa City, Dwyer worked for two separate organizations in Kansas City. She first worked for the Kansas City Sports Commission as an event and marketing intern. In this role, Dwyer handled eight social media accounts and assisted with the organization's marketing plan. She also assisted in managing NCAA and Big 12 Conference events including media days, press conferences, and championships. Following this internship, Dwyer worked as a Sporting Style sales associate for Sporting Kansas City. In this role, she handled sales and shipping procedures for online and in-store sales, produced marketing procedures for the Sporting Style retail team, and helped restock the team store on game days.
Her additional experiences include positions at the U.S. Figure Skating National Championships, the University of Nebraska at Kearney athletic department, and the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure Organization.
Dwyer received her bachelor's degree in Sports Management from the University of Nebraska Kearney and a Master of Arts degree from the University of Iowa.
"Erin will be great for NWU athletics and I look forward to her leadership of our overall operations," said Merilatt.
