Jim Sterk (born June 10, 1956) is an American university sports administrator who most recently served as the athletic director at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

. He has previously served as athletic director for

Portland State Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decades ...

Washington State Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first U.S. president—the state was formed from the western part of the Washington ...

, and

San Diego State San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

Early life and education

Jim Sterk was born on June 10, 1956, in Bellingham, Washington, and was raised in

Nooksack, Washington Nooksack ( ) is a city in Whatcom County, Washington, south of Canada–United States border, the border with Canada. The population was 1,338 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Despite the name, it is actually located right next to ...

. He received his bachelor's degree in 1980 from Western Washington University, and in 1986 received his master's degree in sports administration from

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

Athletic director

Portland State

After working in various positions at Maine, Seattle Pacific, and Tulane, Sterk became the athletic director for Portland State. While at Portland State, he oversaw the transition from Division II to Division I.

Washington State

In 2000, Sterk left Portland State and accepted a job as athletic director for Washington State. During his tenure, Washington State excelled academically in the

Pac-10 The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...

, and saw an increase in donations and annual gifts.

San Diego State

Sterk left Washington State to become the athletic director at San Diego State. During his time San Diego State, the athletic program improved on various levels, including their

basketball team Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

having a streak of 72 sold-out games and their

football team A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-st ...

going 11-3 and beating

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

in the

Hawaii Bowl The Hawaiʻi Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played in the Honolulu, Hawaii area since 2002. The game was originally held at Aloha Stadium in Halawa, Hawaii, a suburb of Honolulu, before moving to the Clarence T. C. Ching Athle ...

in his final year.

Missouri

On September 1, 2016, Sterk became the athletic director for Missouri. Former San Diego State player

Marshall Faulk Marshall William Faulk (born February 26, 1973) is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and St. Louis Rams. He is widely regarded as one of the grea ...

commended the hiring, Under Sterk's watch, Missouri has advanced academically with its athletic teams. On July 26, 2021, Sterk announced that he would step down as athletic director for Missouri and would leave once his replacement was found.

Personal life

Sterk is married to his wife, Debi, and they have three daughters together: Ashley, Amy and Abby.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sterk, Jim Living people 1956 births People from Bellingham, Washington Missouri Tigers athletic directors Western Washington University alumni San Diego State Aztecs athletic directors Washington State Cougars athletic directors Portland State Vikings athletic directors