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Jim Fitzgerald

Headshot of Jim FitzgeraldJim Fitzgerald joined the Eastern Washington University athletic department as the assistant athletic director for Student Success in 2012. The 2019-20 school year will be his eighth year in the position. As assistant athletic director, Fitzgerald helps athletes with academic advising, support and development. He helps coordinate the EWU Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC). Fitzgerald also teaches a Life Skills class for freshmen athletes, as well as overseeing athletic study table. During his time at EWU, the athletic department has won three Big Sky President Cups, awarded to the top school for athletic, academic and community service achievements. Under his leadership, EWU athletic teams have had 38 straight quarters above a 3.0 or higher cumulative GPA.



Fitzgerald has an extensive background in baseball scouting and operations. He was the director of Baseball Operations at the University of Washington. In that role, he was the team’s academic coordinator and oversaw other team activities including fundraising. He spent 13 years in the Seattle Mariners organization, where he held positions in accounting, marketing, baseball operations and scouting. He was also the director of operations for the Spokane Indians Baseball Club from 1993-95.



Fitzgerald, who grew up in San Jose, Calif., attended Bellarmine College Preparatory High School, where he was a baseball team captain. Later, he became a member of the Santa Clara Valley Youth Hall of Fame. He played baseball at Gonzaga University, where he was also a captain, earning his bachelor’s degree in Public Relations in 1991. He continued his education at Gonzaga, earning his master’s degree in Athletic Administration in 1995.



Fitzgerald and his wife, Wendy, a Spokane Public Schools teacher, are the parents of two daughters --- Jamie, 16, and Katherine, 14. He is the nephew of the late Dan Fitzgerald, a former Gonzaga men’s basketball head coach and athletic director.

Chris Pelchat

Headshot of Chris PelchatDr. Chris Pelchat believes in the importance of a servant leader approach to empower those around him. He has a proven track record of building collaborative and productive teams. Pelchat works hard to ensure equity across organizational structures. His educational career spans over 19 years with experience in community colleges and universities. He is currently an assistant professor and Faculty Assembly chair at North Idaho College where he teaches courses focused on designing an intentional life.

Pelchat has worked at Stanford University where he was the director of Health and Human Performance in the Athletics Department. He built this role and program from the ground up. Through an innovative and collaborative approach, he was successful in merging seven programs together to make Health and Human Performance. While at Stanford he had the duties of Business Operations for Recreation and Wellness added to his workload. In this role he worked closely with the 37 club sport teams. With the help of his colleagues he founded the Climbing Team, which became National Champions in their fourth year. He also attended the Climbing World Championships in Shanghai, China, with three Stanford Athletes.

Pelchat has worked many years combining athletics, leadership and self-exploration into the curriculum he teaches. He taught at Ithaca College where he designed a Bachelor of Science degree in Outdoor Adventure Leadership. This program’s purpose is to develop visionary educational leaders who are prepared to be agents of change in the world, whether in a wilderness context or a context where these transferable skills are implemented. The creation of this degree included a study away experience where the students would spend four months in a wilderness setting. Pelchat lived and traveled with the students for the entirety of the semester sea kayaking, whitewater rafting, rock climbing and mountaineering. His understanding of team development was built during these semesters.

Pelchat earned his Doctorate in Education from the University of Idaho, a master’s degree in Education from Eastern Washington University and completed his bachelor’s degree in Recreation at EWU.

Pelchat was born and raised in Washington. Outside of work, he enjoys spending time with his family, snowboarding and whitewater rafting. His family just recently expanded with the addition of two Samoyed puppies, Nanuk and Ama.

Mason Pike

Headshot of Mason PikeMason Pike is currently an associate director of enforcement (business operations) with the NCAA. Since joining the NCAA in 2011, he has overseen the enforcement division’s business operations group, which is responsible for providing operational support to the division’s development and investigative teams. Mason also serves as the division’s hiring manager and oversees its campus placement and mentoring programs.  In addition to his program and project management responsibilities, Mason also investigates and processes violations of NCAA legislation and represents the enforcement staff before the NCAA Committee on Infractions.

Prior to joining the NCAA, Mason served as deputy general counsel for the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration specializing in regulatory compliance and administrative appeals. He taught comparative politics as an adjunct professor at Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis for several years and is currently an adjunct professor at Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law where he teaches amateur sports law.

Mason has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Brigham Young University and a law degree from Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. When he is not working, Mason enjoys spending time with his wife and 10-year old twins as well as cycling and volunteering with various local organizations.

Mason’s wife, Erika Pike, is the founder of Sew and Serve, a volunteer organization founded in March 2020 that has sewn and provided more than 95,000 masks and surgical caps to health care professionals and first responders throughout Indiana.

Jim Sarra

Headshot of Jim SarraJim Sarra is an experienced educator and athletics administrator with a broad-based and diversified leadership experience that spans 26 years at nine NCAA institutions. Sarra has expertise in strategic planning and sport management, fundraising, budget and business operations, student-athlete welfare, external relations and master facility planning.

Sarra served as director of Athletics, as well as an adjunct professor in the College of Business and Management Administration at the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS). He also is an experienced negotiator of apparel, multimedia rights, television and radio contracts, as well as developing, managing and balancing athletics budgets up to $26 million. He deeply believes in community outreach and his athletics department completed over 3,000 community service hours, including staff participation in the Springfield Meals on Wheels program.

At UIS, Sarra rebranded the athletics program, developed a facility master plan, as well as initiating a five-year strategic plan. During his short tenure, the department saw an increase in fundraising by 40% and corporate sponsorships by 35%. He served on the NCAA Division II Management Council, NCAA Division II Membership Committee, NCAA Division II Management Council liaison to Minority Opportunities Athletics Association, NCAA Division II Midwest Women’s Basketball Regional Advisory Committee, GLVC Steering Committee, GLVC Scheduling Committee, GLVC Women’s Basketball Committee, GLVC Awards Committee and Springfield Capital Area Sports Commission.

Prior to becoming director of Intercollegiate Athletics at UIS, Sarra spent 11 years at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), serving as the deputy director of Athletics for the last seven years. While at UTSA, he was part of launching the institution’s Division I football program, transitioning it from I-AAA to FBS, and from the Southland Conference to Conference USA.

He earned a bachelor’s in Elementary Education and master’s in Education from St. Bonaventure University. He also earned a master’s in Sport Management from Western Illinois University. He is currently completing his Doctorate of Education in Organizational Leadership with an emphasis in Organizational Development from Grand Canyon University. Sarra and his wife, Heather, have a son, JT, and a daughter, Jordin.