Editor’s note: Each week, the San Antonio Report publishes a brief synopsis of the weekly bigcitysmalltown podcast hosted by Robert Rivard, co-founder of the Report.
UTSA Athletics has gone through a major evolution in recent years, and Lisa Campos has been at the center of it all.
The Colorado native joined UTSA in 2017, taking on the roles of vice president of intercollegiate athletics and athletics director. At the time, she knew little about UTSA or the state of its athletics department, but she was committed to UTSA President Taylor Eighmy’s vision for the university.
“I knew that every morning I was gonna have to put my running shoes on to keep up with [President Eighmy],” she says. “That was attractive to me.”
When Campos joined Robert Rivard on the most recent episode of the bigcitysmalltown podcast, Rivard introduced her as one of Eighmy’s “most impactful hires.”
Beyond expanding practice facilities, connecting with the community and growing winning teams, Campos said she was eager to improve the student-athlete experience.
Within a year of being hired, Campos introduced the Roadrunner Game Plan, which outlined a mission statement and strategic initiatives to elevated UTSA Athletics in the future.
One of the Game Plan’s focuses was the student-athlete experience, something Campos said she held “near and dear to my heart.” She was inspired by her own student-athlete experience at Colorado State University, where “faculty and staff wrapped their arms around” her in support.
Upon graduating, she asked herself, “What’s next? What do I do now?” It was a professor who inspired her to follow a career in higher education.
At UTSA, Campos aims to pay it forward and support students like her. And she has already seen success: UTSA is approaching a graduation rate of 90% for student athletes.
Campos enjoys sharing with all student-athletes that “when you take advantage of opportunities, great things happen.”
