Andrew West, new coordinator of the Dixon Center facilities and operations, is ready to make some changes. Anxious to start building upon the athletic and recreational programs at the Dixon Center, West is ready to utilize his many different experiences.
West felt confident coming to Cabrini because of his prior experience at two very large recreational programs.
“For me, it was intimidating not knowing what to expect because things are run differently here. I felt like I was prepared,” West said.
After earning his undergraduate degree in business administration and sports studies at Central Michigan University, West went on to earn a master’s degree in education at Ohio University. While in his last year at Ohio, West became the supervisor of recreation.
Considering himself “an encyclopedia of useless knowledge when it comes to sports,” West is excited to combine all of his experience into one job. Job searching after graduation led West to two different interviews that did not work out.
West’s skills range from advising student athletes to teaching different courses like sports economics and hopefully a sports history course in the future.
“It kind of combines the hodgepodge of experience I have gained and helped me build on it,” West said.
“This job really popped out at me because it is rare to find a position that combines recreation and athletics,” West said.
Working with Orlin Jespersen, assistant director of recreation, has allowed him to experience more creative opportunities.
“Orlin is really open to pushing the recreational program forward,” West said.
West is also ready to change student employee responsibilities.
“I really want to make the students accountable. I want to make it like a real job for them so they really get real life experience,” West said.
“He is really turning the Dixon Center around,” Greg Zabel, junior secondary education major and Dixon Center employee, said.
“He seems to know what he’s doing and seems to love it. He takes great pride in this job and is trying to make the Dixon Center even better than it was before,” Mike Marchitto, also an employee at the Dixon Center, said.
Senior biology major Tara Milito said the organization is much better since West arrived.
“A lot more of the members are getting the hang of scanning in regularly,” she said.
“The new ID system that has recently been implemented is to make it easier for community members, staff and faculty to enter and renew memberships without trouble,” Dominic Farrello, senior exercise science major, said.
The differences in the two large universities West worked at before are not only in the recreational department. Cabrini has no football team, which actually interested him.
“When schools have a football team they dominate that culture. Teams are equally represented here. It is nice to see women’s teams get just as much recognition as men’s teams at Cabrini,” West said.
West’s ideas to make the Dixon Center better are endless. However he wants to get comfortable in the job and the cultural difference the East Coast offers before major changes are made.
