FAMU Athletics' VP and AD Tiffani-Dawn Sykes feels confident as she embarks on new beginning

The time has arrived for Tiffani-Dawn Sykes to be the head of Florida A&M's athletics program.

The vice president and director of athletics-to be will officially begin her tenure with the Rattlers on Wednesday, Jan. 4, following her Oct. 11 hire to become the second woman to hold the position at the institution after Sarah Hill-Yates.

Since earning the nod, Sykes has been present and welcomed in FAMU's environment, which included homecoming in late October and the football team's season finale at the Florida Classic.

"I feel good," Sykes said. "I was more anxious when I had found out I had the job than I am now because I had a long ramp in between the announcement and my first day. Having the opportunity to dip my toe in the water and attend different events along the way has made me even more excited.

"I've had alumni send me care packages with Florida A&M apparel and really nice cards in the mail. All those things have built more excitement towards Jan. 4."

Sykes' career in athletics administration goes back to 2002, when she began at St. Paul College in her home state of Virginia in the sports information department.

She was last at Dartmouth College, serving as the institution's executive senior associate athletics director for varsity sports and senior woman administrator.

Sykes' time spent with in the NCAA Pathway Program expedited her confidence in knowing that she could take the next step in being an athletic director. She began attending the one-year leadership development program in June 2022 and landed the opportunity with FAMU just four months later.

"The NCAA Pathway Programs is a one-year program that prepares senior level administrators for the athletics director role," she said. "We do mock interviews, write our press conference speech, and what would our first staff meeting look like or what we would say in our head coaches' meeting.

"I was really fortunate with the timing of being selected for that particular program because it has really made me feel confident in my ability to command the room and be prepared when I hit the ground."

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Already being around FAMU has given Sykes an advantage in tackling her role

Though she hasn't officially began, the work has already started for Sykes.

She replaces Kortne Gosha, who resigned last April after less than three years into his tenure. Veteran FAMU athletics administrator Michael Smith has served as the department's interim athletic director the past nine months.

Being able to attend events during FAMU's 2022 football season has provided Sykes an introspection of the state of the athletics program.

That head start could be instrumental to her success as she steps into the Rattlers' VP and AD role.

"I think it's important to be visible and engage when you have the opportunity to do so," Sykes said. "In my interviews, I told the student-athletes that they would be my priority. So, when I came for homecoming, I was able to cover a lot of ground with the teams and did my best to make sure no one was left out.

"Even when I went to the softball game, I had parents sit down and talk to me about things they'd like to see within the program. Every touchpoint has been important and meaningful and I've learned from every appearance that I've had."

Most recently, Sykes was able to attend the FAMU men's basketball game at Kentucky inside of Rupp Arena.

The Rattlers trailed by seven points with six minutes left in the game, but ultimately fell, 88-68 to the Wildcats.

Watching the game and being inside of the historic Rupp Arena enabled Sykes to observe how Kentucky operates their athletic programs and how teams perform against top talent.

"These all have been great opportunities as the athletic director — particularly for me to even just see what the experience is like for the student athletes," Sykes said. "A lot of people have opinions of what scheduling looks like and should we play schools that are in Power Five conferences in any sport. I truly believe the only to even know if you can beat them is to play them.

"At halftime, I walked around the lower concourse just to see what their hospitality look like. What does the media room look like? Where are the locker rooms in relationship to the court?

"I believe I can learn something every time I go out and see a different venue even if I just learn one thing. As much I want to support our student athletes, I'm also there to learn when I'm there supporting them."

What's first on the plate for Sykes?

Sykes has a plan.

The first order of business is to maintain FAMU's athletics' action plan that includes academically advising student-athletes and increasing staffing.

"As director of athletics, I need to make sure that every member of the athletic department is aware and educated on that plan and knows what their particular responsibility is to execute that plan," Sykes said. "We have a handful of vacancies that need to be filled to make sure we can support our student-athletes in the manner that they need to be.

"If we execute the plan that's already been developed, we're going to be in phenomenal shape."

Sykes also wants to connect with FAMU alumni to best accommodate their wishes and concerns while working with other university departments to create a free-flowing working environment across all entities.

"I want to engage with alumni because they say that they have capacity to do things that haven't been asked," she said. "Working with alumni affairs, our marketing department, and a number of people will make sure that we have as many touch points as we can to communicate what some of the needs are of our coaches and student-athletes to be supported with additional resources from boosters, alumni, and different interest groups, corporate partners, and industry cluster.

"I want to spend time with university archivist, and admissions ― people who can really tell the story of FAMU so that we can be the best ambassadors possible while we're acting in the best interests of the institution."

Gerald Thomas III covers FAMU athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at gdthomas@gannett.com or on Twitter @3peatgee.

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