| Gary Barta |
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| Born |
(1963-09-04) September 4, 1963 |
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Gary Barta (born September 4, 1963) is the current athletic director at the University of Iowa. He succeeded Bob Bowlsby on August 1, 2006, when Bowlsby stepped down after 15 years as Iowa's athletic director to take the same position at Stanford University. Before coming to Iowa, Barta was the athletic director at the University of Wyoming.
University of Iowa Director of Athletics
Barta became Director of Athletics on August 1, 2006. Since his arrival at Iowa, Barta has spearheaded numerous upgrades to current athletic facilities and the construction of many new facilities. Including the expansion of the administrative office complex at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The expansion of the wrestling training facility and building of new practice gyms and weight training facilities also at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The upgrade of the sound system, scoreboard and video boards at Kinnick Stadium. The Construction of the Hoak Family Golf Complex. The building of the P. Sue Beckwith Boat House and the Campus Recreation and Aquatic Center in partnership with the University's Department of Recreational Services. In the fall of 2014 the new Stew & LeNore Hansen Football Performance Center was completed which includes the new Richard O. Jacobson Football Operations Center and a new 120 yard indoor practice field.
Barta has hired numerous new head coaches during his tenure as Athletic Director. Including Mark Hankins and Tyler Stith, Men's Golf. Todd Lickliter and Fran McCaffery, Men's Basketball. Rick Heller, Baseball. Joey Woody, Track & Field. Sharon Dingman and Bond Shymansky, Women's Volleyball. Steve Pitzker and Andrew Carter, Women's Crew. Dave DiIanni, Women's Soccer. Katie Dougherty, Women's Tennis. Megan Menzel, Women's Golf. Lisa Cellucci, Field Hockey. Marla Looper, Softball.
Controversy While At Iowa
On August 4, 2014, Barta fired field hockey coach, Tracey Griesbaum as a result of allegations from a group of former players who complained that Griesbaum had been verbally abusive to them, and had created an atmosphere of intimidation within the program. This led to a vocal outcry from many current and former players and other supporters who called for the immediate reinstatement of Griesbaum as the head coach. The Iowa Board of Regents and then University of Iowa President Sally Mason refused to hear or consider any appeal to the dismissal. This led to four current and former field hockey players filing, on January 28, 2015, a formal Title IX Civil Rights complaint to the U.S Department of Education. After an initial inquiry, The US Department of Education informed the University of Iowa on May 22, 2015, that it will conduct a formal investigation to determine if gender bias was a factor in the firing of Griesbaum and other female coaches at Iowa.
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Pound sign (#) denotes interim athletic director.
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