Chun just getting started: AD celebrates five-year mark at Yale

When Victoria M. “Vicky” Chun arrived as Yale’s athletic director in 2018, following the long service of predecessor Tom Beckett, people familiar with her knew Yale had hired a proven winner.

Chun’s five years at the helm have borne that out.

During a period of extraordinary success, Yale’s first woman and first Asian-American athletics director has shown herself to be a dynamic leader and trailblazer, university leaders and colleagues say. She has helped Yale athletics sustain its tradition of excellence, racking up several championships and university records even amid the disruptions of COVID-19. At the same time, she instituted programs and policies that have improved all facets of the college experience for Yale’s student-athletes.

Along the way, Chun has steadily championed the university’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. She has also transformed Yale’s athletics’ facilities and support systems, earning praise from coaches and student-athletes alike. And Chun’s commitment to student athletes and her relentless focus on winning — both on the field and in the classroom — bodes well for the continued success of Yale Athletics, said Yale President Peter Salovey.

“Under Vicky’s leadership, our athletics department has achieved unprecedented success,” Salovey said. “We have enjoyed multiple national and conference titles, our student-athletes and coaches have won dozens of recognition awards, and our programs are thriving because of coaching hires made by Vicky.”

“What may not come across through things like statistics and trophies, however, is Vicky’s tireless commitment to our student-athletes. They are always her highest priority.”

Donald Dell ’60, the three-time All-American tennis player and winner of the George H. W. Bush ’48 Lifetime of Leadership Award, has worked with Chun on a variety of projects for both the Yale tennis programs and the athletic department.

“Vicky’s enthusiasm for Yale athletics is contagious,” Dell said. “She goes the extra mile to make sure our student-athletes have the best possible experience Yale can offer. In my experience working with Vicky, I am impressed with her ability to evaluate the many diverse issues she faces and come up with reasonable, workable solutions.”

Unrivaled success

By any measure, the results of the past five years have been impressive.

Make no mistake, Chun is a fiercely competitive spirit, who prioritizes winning.  Since 2018, she has hired 14 head coaches. And the report card of athletic successes is eyepopping. Among other achievements, it includes:

• 9 national championships; 1 national runner-up
• 18 Ivy League championships
• 15 Ivy League Player of the Year awards
• 14 Ivy League Coach of the Year honors
• 37 national championship/tournament appearances
• 183 First Team All-Ivy League First Team selections
• 91 All-Americans
• 61 NCAA individual qualifiers

But to Chun, winning “the right way” transcends athletic achievements and encompasses both academics and community leadership. Since her arrival on campus, Yale has produced 128 Academic All-Ivy student-athletes. And a Yale student-athlete was selected vice-chair for the 2022 NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), a committee composed of students who provide insight on the student-athlete experience. Chun has reinvigorated Yale’s SAAC chapter under her leadership.

“Vicky has helped our student-athletes achieve success, but more importantly, she has truly supported them in moments of struggle and adversity,” said Tony Reno, Yale’s head football coach.

This was particularly true during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Vicky’s advocacy for the student-athletes’ physical and mental health needs during COVID has been transparent and consistent,” Lorraine Pratte Lewis ’78, former Yale field hockey and women’s lacrosse player and current president of the Yale Field Hockey Association.

Reno pointed to Chun as the leader who kept the department moving forward in the face of uncertainty, pointing to Chun’s calm leadership, consistent communication, and candor in sharing the hard truths.

“Her unrelenting drive to compete again [after COVID-19] was the glue that kept our student-athletes and coaches together and focused on the task at hand,” he said.

Chun’s leadership and support also extended to those students who were not part of one of the university’s 35 varsity teams. Nathan Chen ’24, who won the Olympic figure skating gold medal in 2022 as a Yale student, recalls her support during his Olympic training efforts.

“Vicky said to me, ‘Anything you need, ask us. We will help you,’” Chen said. “Without Vicky, honestly, it would have been challenging for me to get anywhere.”

Chun also has launched mental health initiatives and improved staffing in areas that directly support student-athlete health and well-being. In addition, she has embraced technology in training and rehabilitation, ushering Yale athletics into a new era of innovation, said Dr. Elizabeth Gardner ‘01, Yale’s head team physician.

“During Vicky’s tenure, our student-athletes have benefited greatly from an incredible advance in both technology and support,” Gardner said. “The addition of innovative tools, such as the DEXA machine to assess muscle mass response to training, the inclusion of an underwater treadmill for rehabilitation, and the increase in staffing of athletic trainers, are just some examples that have been game-changing for our student-athletes.”

‘They know how invested she is’

During Chun’s first five years, Yale also has revitalized the athletic department’s facilities, including more than $100 million in new construction and renovation projects.

Completed projects include the 34,800-square-foot Tsai Lacrosse Field House, home to the Yale men’s and women’s lacrosse programs and the men’s and women’s soccer programs. The field house features offices, locker rooms, and state-of-the-art sports performance spaces that include athletic medicine, strength and conditioning, hydrotherapy, an aquatic treadmill, and diagnostic space.

Other facilities improvements have included:

• New videoboards for lacrosse/soccer, basketball/volleyball/gymnastics, field hockey, football, and swimming and diving.
• Improvements to the historic Yale Bowl, including a new turf field, videoboard, concessions, and rest rooms.
• A state-of-the-art turf, watering system and videoboard for the field hockey complex that help make it one of the best field hockey facilities in the nation.
• Field lighting for the softball complex.

In addition, renovations were made to the fencing salon and gymnastics studio, the Lapham Field House, and the George H. W. Bush ’42 Field. And capital improvement projects are planned for the Yale University Golf Course.

“Vicky not only has helped us succeed on the field, but also she has transformed our football facilities and support systems that directly improve the experience of our players,” said Reno. “Our players care about Vicky because they know how invested she is in them as individuals both on and off the field.

She has also shown a commitment to the health and safety of student-athletes and fans. A new glass board system was installed at Ingalls Rink to improve player safety. And significant renovations to Yale facilities to improve accessibility for fans have been completed in multiple athletics’ buildings.

Trailblazer’s impact

As the first Asian-American woman athletics director in NCAA Division I history, Chun has demonstrated a tireless commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

In 2020, she created Yale Bulldogs for Change, a program that enhances the varsity student-athlete experience for students of color. She has mentored scores of women as they move into leadership positions in college sports and has served as President of Women Leaders in College Sports, the premier leadership organization for women working in college sports. Chun also co-founded the Asian American & Pacific Islander Athletics Alliance (AAPI), a nonprofit association for AAPI leaders working in sports.

In 2021, the publication New Haven Biz honored Chun with its annual “Women in Business” award, which spotlights successful women in the New Haven community who contribute to the economic vitality and community health in the greater New Haven region.

Last fall, Chun partnered with Yale alumni to coordinate a university celebration of the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the U.S. civil rights law passed in 1972 that prohibits sex discrimination in federally funded education programs, one of the largest such celebrations in the country.

“As we, both old and new alumnae, paused on campus to celebrate 50 years of Title IX and 50 years of varsity women’s sports at Yale, all of us swiftly folded trailblazing Vicky Chun into Yale’s historic narrative,” said Pratte Lewis ’78, who holds the Yale record for field hockey goalie wins in a career. “We also took the opportunity to thank Vicky for fulfilling her promise to advocate for the resources necessary to modernize the field hockey and softball complex to make it, without doubt, one of the best in the nation.”

“Her support for the women-only sports — field hockey, softball, gymnastics, and volleyball — has made a huge impact already in her time at Yale,” said Lewis.

Two-Time Athletics Director of the Year

Earlier  this spring Chun was named a Cushman & Wakefield Athletics Director of the Year for 2022-23 by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA). The honor recognizes the efforts of athletics directors for their commitment and positive contributions to student-athletes, campuses, and their surrounding communities.

It was the second time she’d received the honor, and she became the first to win at two different institutions within the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) since the award’s inception in 1998. Chun also won the award in 2018, while serving as the Vice President and Director of Athletics at Colgate University.

“As I reflect on my first five years at Yale, I am proud of what we have accomplished together,” said Chun.   “I am grateful for the loyalty and support shown to our department by President Salovey. And I am so appreciative to our coaches who are the driving force behind our success. I truly love this Yale community and believe the best is yet to come for our Yale Bulldogs.”