Down a dark hall covered with red and blue paint and matching tiles is the door to the SMU Athletic Marketing Department. The lights are still on, but the offices are empty as black chairs and computers sit untouched.
On Tuesday, six employees scrambled to complete the finishing touches of Saturday’s Red and Blue Scrimmage, but within 24 hours, these same employees were informed they no longer had a job with SMU.
“Not only were the people great workers, but they were also my good friends,” said junior Kristin Kimball, a student intern with the marketing department. “I think that SMU already has a problem regarding spirit on campus, so I’m surprised they made the cuts.”
Kimball, a journalism and cinema-television double major, has been a student intern with the department since her freshman year, and was shocked and “emotionally affected” upon learning that the people who had become her friends, after nearly a three year working relationship, were leaving the Hilltop.
Director of athletics, Steve Orsini, wrote a letter to the employees explaining the university is “implementing cost-saving measures throughout our campus as a response to the tough economic times our nation is currently facing.” And as a result, “as part of the cost-saving measures, every university division was asked to reduce their expenditures.”
A total of 10 positions were eliminated from the marketing department, according to Orsini’s report, but only six were occupied at the time. Orsini said he will be working closely with those who lost their jobs during the transition of finding new employment.
Among the six released were Shawn McGee, the associate athletic director of sales and marketing; Steve Lansdale, an assistant director to public relations and Koni Daws, the senior women’s associate director and assistant athletic director.
“We were all shocked, but collegiate athletics is a business and you have to ultimately do what is best for the business,” said Jarred Hawkins, a former employee of the marketing department. “At the end of the day, it is all about revenue. Having said that, it’s about revenue, not about people.”
The letter from Orsini explains that last fall the athletic department submitted a five-year financial plan to the university to help reduce the amount of financial support required to run the different branches. One suggestion was to “reduce redundancy,” leading to cuts in costs.
“I believe these decisions will allow us to move forward from this point and continue our journey of building SMU athletics into a nationally-competitive program in all sports,” said Orsini in the release. “I will be meeting with our staff in the next several weeks to reallocate the duties and responsibilities held by these 10 positions to existing positions within our department.”
“I think that most people were shocked by the cuts,” said Kimball. “I mean as far as I know there were no warning signs.”
With plans already in place for the Red and Blue Scrimmage tomorrow, some students are questioning who will be in charge of the event and surrounding entertainment. Orsini did not mention anything about tomorrow’s game in his statement.
“I hope it doesn’t shoot the athletic department in the foot,” said Kimball. “I hope everything works out for everyone in the long run, but I’m not a fan of the changes. The people cut will be sorely missed.”
