Athletics Director Karlgaard to Leave Rice this Summer
6/20/2023 12:00:00 PM | General
Dear Rice community,
I hope everyone had a good Juneteenth holiday.
Athletics is a cornerstone of the student and alumni experience at Rice and enriches our campus in wonderful and vital ways.
As director of athletics, recreation and lifetime fitness since the fall of 2013, Joe Karlgaard has led and benefited our athletics programs across several periods of exceptional growth and challenge, including, most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. Joe is also a thoughtful, inspiring, empathetic and incredibly decent person. Because of those qualities, he has served as a trusted adviser to our former president, David Leebron, and me.
With gratitude for his many contributions to Rice, I share with you today that Joe will be leaving Rice Aug. 1 to become CEO of GSV Summit LLC, whose mission is to ensure everyone across the globe has an equal opportunity to participate in the future through scaled innovation in learning and skills. This is a remarkable opportunity, and I ask you to join me in congratulating Joe on this new endeavor and celebrating his service to the Rice community and our extraordinary athletes, coaches and staff.
Since his arrival on South Main, Joe has overseen a dramatic reshaping of Rice Athletics, providing upgrades to all facets of the student-athlete experience focused on dynamic initiatives in business operations, branding, marketing and fundraising.
During his tenure, the Owls have captured 30 Conference USA titles, the most in the league over that span. Rice student-athletes continue to lead the way in the classroom as well, capturing their 14th C-USA Institutional Excellence Award with a combined 3.4 GPA.
Joe has also facilitated the addition of new facilities at Rice Stadium, Reckling Park and Tudor Fieldhouse, as well as a new human performance center and three head coaching endowments.
These initiatives helped position Rice to be one of six schools invited to join the American Athletic Conference beginning with the 2023-24 season, opening up opportunities to improve the visibility and competitiveness of Owl sports programs for years to come.
We will soon be launching a national search for our new athletics director and will provide an update on that and the interim leadership of the department in the next month.
Again, our sincere thanks to Joe from the entire Rice Owls community, and our best wishes to him for the many successes his new opportunities will bring him.
Best regards,
Reginald DesRoches
President
Joe Karlgaard
"I'm very fortunate to have worked with so many wonderful student-athletes, coaches, staff, faculty, and supporters over these past ten years. Rice is a special place, and I'm grateful for all those who pour their hearts and souls into making this university great.
Together we've accomplished so much. Rice Athletics is well positioned for the future of college athletics, and I am excited to see what's next for our programs and student-athletes. Thank you to President David Leebron, who hired me in 2013, and to President Reggie DesRoches, with whom I've worked over this past year, for your terrific leadership and support of Rice Athletics.
This is an amazing opportunity for me to work in a space that taps into a number of my passions. First and foremost, I believe in the power of education. I studied higher education in graduate school, served on the board of my sons' K-8 school, and have continued my own learning through certificate programs at Rice and elsewhere. I also am excited to work on the cutting edge of innovation in education with some amazing startups, investors, and thought leaders. Finally, I am eager to help grow the GSV mission and brand around the world, affording everyone an equal opportunity to participate in the future, the foundation of which is access to quality education and knowledge."
I hope everyone had a good Juneteenth holiday.
Athletics is a cornerstone of the student and alumni experience at Rice and enriches our campus in wonderful and vital ways.
As director of athletics, recreation and lifetime fitness since the fall of 2013, Joe Karlgaard has led and benefited our athletics programs across several periods of exceptional growth and challenge, including, most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. Joe is also a thoughtful, inspiring, empathetic and incredibly decent person. Because of those qualities, he has served as a trusted adviser to our former president, David Leebron, and me.
With gratitude for his many contributions to Rice, I share with you today that Joe will be leaving Rice Aug. 1 to become CEO of GSV Summit LLC, whose mission is to ensure everyone across the globe has an equal opportunity to participate in the future through scaled innovation in learning and skills. This is a remarkable opportunity, and I ask you to join me in congratulating Joe on this new endeavor and celebrating his service to the Rice community and our extraordinary athletes, coaches and staff.
Since his arrival on South Main, Joe has overseen a dramatic reshaping of Rice Athletics, providing upgrades to all facets of the student-athlete experience focused on dynamic initiatives in business operations, branding, marketing and fundraising.
During his tenure, the Owls have captured 30 Conference USA titles, the most in the league over that span. Rice student-athletes continue to lead the way in the classroom as well, capturing their 14th C-USA Institutional Excellence Award with a combined 3.4 GPA.
Joe has also facilitated the addition of new facilities at Rice Stadium, Reckling Park and Tudor Fieldhouse, as well as a new human performance center and three head coaching endowments.
These initiatives helped position Rice to be one of six schools invited to join the American Athletic Conference beginning with the 2023-24 season, opening up opportunities to improve the visibility and competitiveness of Owl sports programs for years to come.
We will soon be launching a national search for our new athletics director and will provide an update on that and the interim leadership of the department in the next month.
Again, our sincere thanks to Joe from the entire Rice Owls community, and our best wishes to him for the many successes his new opportunities will bring him.
Best regards,
Reginald DesRoches
President
Joe Karlgaard
"I'm very fortunate to have worked with so many wonderful student-athletes, coaches, staff, faculty, and supporters over these past ten years. Rice is a special place, and I'm grateful for all those who pour their hearts and souls into making this university great.
Together we've accomplished so much. Rice Athletics is well positioned for the future of college athletics, and I am excited to see what's next for our programs and student-athletes. Thank you to President David Leebron, who hired me in 2013, and to President Reggie DesRoches, with whom I've worked over this past year, for your terrific leadership and support of Rice Athletics.
This is an amazing opportunity for me to work in a space that taps into a number of my passions. First and foremost, I believe in the power of education. I studied higher education in graduate school, served on the board of my sons' K-8 school, and have continued my own learning through certificate programs at Rice and elsewhere. I also am excited to work on the cutting edge of innovation in education with some amazing startups, investors, and thought leaders. Finally, I am eager to help grow the GSV mission and brand around the world, affording everyone an equal opportunity to participate in the future, the foundation of which is access to quality education and knowledge."