August 7, 2024 — The CSA’s Board of Managers is thrilled to announce the launch of its search for the organization’s Director of Expansion.

An overview of the role is provided below, with the full job description and application details posted on LinkedIn.

About the Job:

The College Squash Association (CSA) seeks a Director of Expansion to help grow and strengthen its varsity and club programs in current and underrepresented geographic regions and college athletic conferences. Specifically, the CSA seeks a self-motivated person who is passionate about the sport, excited to travel across the country to visit and support existing, new, and emerging programs, and willing to set and execute a robust strategy with short- and long-term goals.

There are currently 65 varsity teams and 65 club teams in the CSA. Both varsity and club programs create their own schedules, report their results, and participate in national championships scheduled and hosted by the CSA. With over 90% of varsity teams located at schools in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, the CSA wants to accelerate the growth of programs across the United States. While the ultimate goal is to add substantially more varsity teams in pursuit of the CSA’s 40/40 by 2030 capacity-building campaign, the CSA is interested in supporting and facilitating new programs of any kind, including club and recreational squash.

The CSA is looking for an individual to design and execute a multi-faceted strategy – reviewed and approved by the Board of Managers – that will move the needle substantially. While the CSA has a growth campaign and is fundraising behind this capacity-building initiative and US Squash has its own growth initiatives that include college squash, this individual must be able to work with a relatively small annual budget and limited staffing resources. To this end, a successful candidate will be someone willing to independently and efficiently pursue the strategies they have developed while supporting the organization’s fundraising and other growth-related activities.

On any given day, the Director of Expansion will:

• Develop and act on (through relationship-building and stakeholder engagement) a list of target schools with strong club programs that are well-positioned to convert to varsity status.
• Meet with athletic directors to understand how to better support new varsity teams and existing teams at risk of being cut or relegated to club status.
• Develop regional leagues (West Coast, Midwest, Southeast, for example), including by executing new multi-team scrimmages (varsity and club).
• Design and implement a publicity engine for varsity and club programs.
• Create and distribute a toolkit and guide for creating a new club and varsity teams.
• Develop relationships with and learn from other collegiate NGBs (e.g., rugby, rowing, fencing).

The ideal candidate must be a self-starter and work independently and autonomously to pursue their approved strategy, including being comfortable traveling 60% or more of the time. It is essential that this person works to develop relationships with US Squash personnel and understand how to leverage their expertise and support while also understanding when the CSA must take action independently. This role will report directly to the CSA Commissioner and will present regularly to the CSA Board of Managers. The position will also work closely with our parent organization, US Squash, particularly its regional ambassadors.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Planning

• Create a data gathering strategy to better understand and report on the “State of College Squash.” This includes everything from demographics to participation and where our student-athletes end up after college.
• Analyze current participation data of all programs to identify underserved markets/communities as well as programs at risk of being demoted or cut.
• Analyze current high school data to determine the number of high school players, how many graduate, how many play varsity in college, how many play club, and how many stop playing squash.
• Leveraging existing data, develop targeted strategies to support/preserve existing programs and position the CSA for growth and development of varsity and club programs at new institutions.
• Create promotion plans for initiatives.

Program Outreach & Partner Development

• Build relationships with schools, conferences, student-athletes, coaches, and administrators.
• Identify high-school players who are at colleges without programs and target them for club team development.
• Provide resources and training to help new programs get established.
• Work with the CSA Commissioner and Board to secure sponsorships and funding sources for program expansion efforts.
• Collaborate with the CSA Assistant Commissioner on co-branding, cross-promotion, and special events.

Program Evaluation

• Analyze participation data and feedback to improve outreach approaches.
• Provide recommendations to enhance program offerings and structure.
• Forecast budgetary needs for strategic outreach and new program rollouts.

Fundraising Support

• Support fundraising initiatives for CSA programs that relate to growth and expansion.
• Generate ideas, targets, and strategies for fundraising that could help elevate or create new programs.

Qualifications

• Independent self-starter with ability to juggle multiple tasks simultaneously and with minimal oversight.
• Exceptional relationship-building and networking abilities, in particular in the world of squash.
• Proven strategic planning and execution capabilities, including in fundraising, sales, or related development activities.
• Strong data analysis, reporting, and presentation skills.
• Entrepreneurial mindset with a passion for growing squash.