UIS Director of Athletics Kim Pate named a Woman of Influence

University of Illinois Springfield Director of Athletics Kim Pate has been named one of the five Security Bank and Springfield Business Journal Women of Influence as announced by the SBJ. She will be honored during a reception on Tuesday, May 12, 2015.

The 12th annual program honors local women for their contributions to the Springfield area community. Winners are selected by their peers through submitted nominations.

“These women are significant for their valuable contributions in making Springfield an outstanding community,” said the Springfield Business Journal. “All have made important contributions to the community at large.”

Pate became Director of Athletics at UIS in 2011. Now in her fourth year, she oversees eleven varsity sports at UIS, a member of NCAA Division II and the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

Prior to her current position, she served three and a half years as Director of Athletics overseeing eighteen varsity sports at Brevard College, a member of NCAA Division II and the South Atlantic Conference.

Under her leadership, UIS athletics and has seen the program grow both athletically and academically. She helped boost the STARS Club to record numbers in the second and third year of its existence. UIS student-athletes have posted their highest grade-point average under her watch and recorded the most community service hours since joining the Stars.

Pate began her life in intercollegiate athletics at Brevard as a four-year starter on the softball team. She was a two-time NAIA Academic All-American. Pate graduated Summa Cum Laude from Brevard, earning a bachelor’s degree in Business & Organizational Leadership. She earned her master’s Degree in Business Administration from Western Carolina University.