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Athletic director Jill Bodensteiner returns to St. Joseph’s after personal and bereavement leave

The athletic director at Hawk Hill is back at her post after taking time away to care for her mother.

St. Joseph’s University athletic director Jill Bodensteiner with her predecessor, Don DiJulia.
St. Joseph’s University athletic director Jill Bodensteiner with her predecessor, Don DiJulia.Read moreTim Tai/Staff Photographer

St. Joseph’s athletic director Jill Bodensteiner on Monday informed Hawks athletes that she has returned from a two-month leave of absence.

In the athletic department email, Bodensteiner thanked student athletes for their support during the leave, and credited the department for handling the extra work in her absence.

According to Bodensteiner, the time away was often emotional and exhausting, but she called her choice to step away “the best decision I’ve ever made.”

Bodensteiner’s mother died unexpectedly on Nov. 12. She was battling Alzheimer’s but otherwise was in good health. Bodensteiner said of her mother in the email, “She was an amazing person, and you would have loved her spirit.”

» READ MORE: St. Joseph’s athletic director Jill Bodensteiner takes a leave of absence

The St. Joe’s Student Athlete Advisory Committee created a purple ribbon initiative while Bodensteiner was away. The ribbon commonly is used to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease. Bodensteiner said it moved her and her family to tears of appreciation.

Bodensteiner has been the athletic director since 2018, and has seen several teams grow and prosper while at the helm. St. Joe’s sports teams have won several Atlantic 10 championships during her time on Hawk Hill, and the field hockey team won its first NCAA Tournament game this season. She was responsible for the creation of the athletic department’s first Diversity, Equity and Inclusion group and action plan, as well as promoting the athletes’ well-being and mental health, by bringing in a sports psychologist and starting a partnership with the Calm app for student athletes.

Before her arrival at St. Joe’s, Bodensteiner served as senior associate athletic director at Notre Dame and was a member of the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics, the chair of the ACC Women’s Basketball Strategic Planning Committee, and a member of the Division I Women’s Basketball Committee.