Eastern Mennonite University sports information director James De Boer was tabbed as the 2013 Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Sports Information Director of the Year at the annual league meeting of SIDs back in May. De Boer, who just finished his fourth year with the Royals, is in charge of publicizing 17 varsity sports.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am extremely humbled to be honored this way by my peers from the ODAC,\u201d said De Boer. \u201cBeing singled out and recognized by my fellow SIDs in what is one of the best conferences in the nation is a high point in my career. I have an incredible group of student workers assisting me throughout the year and there is no way my office would run as well as it does without them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJames is very deserving of this honor as he embodies what a dedicated sports information professional should be,\u201d said Randolph College SID Jamie Chagnon, President of the ODAC Sports Information Directors Committee. \u201cThe hard work that James has put in and the quality of his work has resulted in the advancement of the sports information office at EMU in many facets.\u201d<\/p>\n
De Boer saw the addition of men\u2019s and women\u2019s golf at EMU this year, while also providing news and notes on the women\u2019s basketball team at Eastern Mennonite, which made its second-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2012-13. The men\u2019s and women\u2019s cross country and track teams set numerous records, while he also increased EMU\u2019s presence on social media platforms during the year.<\/p>\n
One of the more interesting stories De Boer was able to share this season was that of 2002 alum Erik Kratz, who has become an important member of the Philadelphia Phillies. The former ODAC Player of the Year\u2019s rise within the organization was well chronicled by De Boer on both the school\u2019s athletic website and on social media sites. He also oversaw the successful video webcasts of all basketball and volleyball games.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing recognized by your peers is a great honor and I’m delighted to know that others realize what we at EMU have known all along – that James is one of the best in the sports information business,\u201d said Eastern Mennonite Director of Athletics Dave King. \u201cHe is a hard-working professional who is committed to doing the job the right way. His writing ability makes the events come to life on the page and he has a passion for both the story and the statistics of a sporting event, using each to capture the storylines of an event.\u201d<\/p>\n
De Boer, a 1998 graduate of Dordt College in Sioux Center, Ia., is a member of both the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) and the Virginia Sports Information Directors Association (VaSID). He also just completed his two-year term as President of the ODAC Sports Information Directors. He lives in Bridgewater, Va., with his wife Sarah and his year-old twins, Isaac and Harper.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"