Machtley's vision became Bryant's course of action

Providence Journal Web Site:  www.projo.com

Under school president Ronald K. Machtley, the Bulldogs have become the model for athletic and academic success in the Northeast-10 and among their peer institutions in the Northeast.

Sunday, September 3, 2006
BY MIKE SZOSTAK
Journal Sports Writer

SMITHFIELD -- They still tell the story at Bryant University about the morning that the new president, in search of a cup of coffee, followed a delivery truck to a dining hall, met a few volleyball players and accepted their invitation to practice.

And how later that day he dropped by the gym, thinking he'd join the volleyball players for a workout. But after watching in awe as they ran set-and-kill drills, he decided he was better off not competing with such talent and told them he didn't have his gym stuff. Then he left, stopping outside the door to grab his gear bag from the floor.

Seeing how good and how determined those young women were convinced the new president that athletics were a way to enhance Bryant's stature, so he charted a course that would change the school forever. A decade later, Ronald K. Machtley remains at the helm, convinced that he made the right choice when he started as president in 1996.

"I just had lunch with the women's soccer team," he said Thursday afternoon. "They are terrific athletes who are terrific students who will be terrific parents and CEOs of companies."

Bryant has become the model for athletic and academic success in the Northeast-10 Conference and among its peer institutions elsewhere in the Northeast. Under Machtley's leadership, Bryant has added seven sports, built new baseball and softball fields, erected a 4,400-seat stadium, expanded the gym into a wellness center, installed a new outdoor track and artificial turf field, built new tennis courts, recruited talented young administrators, hired coaches with national reputations and given them the tools to compete.

Machtley also has led a $35-million capital campaign, built an information and technology center, put up residence halls, broadened the curriculum and expanded Bryant's vision beyond its 420-acre Smithfield campus, Rhode Island and even the United States. He and his staff have forged relationships with five universities and municipal officials in China and are initiating a program that they hope will result in every Bryant student spending some time abroad.

"The general plan from Day One was to try to take everything to the next level," he said.

"Ron has been a visionary," said volleyball coach Theresa Garlacy, who started as an assistant coach at Bryant in 1994 and took over the head job in 1996, when Machtley arrived. She was running that two-line drill that so impressed him.

"If you looked at this campus 12 years ago, you saw an aging, retro-'70s look, and it was the '90s," she said. Indeed, Bryant, founded in 1863, had moved to Smithfield from Providence in 1971. The Unistructure that dominated the campus was cutting edge when it opened, but was tired 25 years later. Five dormitories stood empty. Machtley saw all of that and, befitting his background as a Navy officer and three-term U.S. Representative from Rhode Island, formed a committee that produced a 12-point strategic plan. The overall objective was "to raise everything from technology to student life."

"He asked for sweeping changes and got the trustees to back him," Garlacy said.

Machtley was clear that athletics was a critical component of his vision. To fill beds, foster school spirit and diversify the Bryant population, he added football (1998). To satisfy Title IX and attract more women to campus, he added golf (1998) and field hockey (1999). To become more appealing to students from the Mid-Atlantic region, he added men's (2000) and women's (2002) lacrosse. To take advantage of student interest and a new pool, he revived men's swimming (2006) and added women's swimming (2006).

Bryant supports 22 varsity sports at the NCAA Division II level.

Machtley also launched the Campaign for Bryant in 2001, which raised $35 million before ending in 2004. The Chace Wellness and Athletic Center opened in 2001 and the Bello Center for Information and Technology in 2002.

Today, as freshmen settle into their rooms and upperclassmen return to new townhouses, Bryant is more popular than ever. There are 3,200 full-time and part-time undergraduates, an increase of 1,000 students in 10 years. Every bed is filled, and some freshman will have to triple up this semester.

Bryant has become more selective, accepting 42 percent of applicants in 2006 versus 82 percent in 1996. About 5,800 students vied for 800 slots in the freshman class.

This success has not been without growing pains. When 100 football players arrived in 1998, campus life changed overnight.

"Bringing in 50 minorities and dropping them on an all-white campus, you're going to have some problems," said Mary Burke, head women's basketball coach since 1991 and an assistant for four years before that.

"In my early years here, there were probably 10 minorities on campus and 10 on the men's basketball team. The rest were nerdy business types," she said.

A fight between black football players and white fraternity members in December 1998 sparked a period of introspection. Machtley and his staff recognized that the issues transcended race and football versus frats. Working with both sides during the spring, they managed to foster an atmosphere of cooperation. Now there are few, if any, extraordinary problems.

"The football kids are awesome," Burke said. "They are great kids, and they support the other teams."

Yesterday, her basketball players staffed the concession stands at Bulldog Stadium for the football season-opener against Southern Connecticut.

Machtley has demonstrated a critical eye in hiring talent. He plucked Dan Gavitt from the private sector to be his director of athletics, and Gavitt in his quiet way took the program to new heights.

"Dan was an extension of Ron. He is a great person and has great people skills. He knew what kind of coaches to hire. He fit in perfectly. He was young and a go-getter," Burke said. Gavitt's successor, Bill Smith, seems to possess the same skill set.

When Nevada-Las Vegas dismissed colorful basketball coach Max Good, Machtley hired him. Good took the 2004 Bulldogs to the championship game of the NCAA Division II tournament. When Machtley decided that Jim Miceli had done all he could with the football team, be brought in Marty Fine, a no-nonsense assistant coach from Iowa State. The Bulldogs were 7-3 in 2005. When Duke forced out highly regarded lacrosse coach Mike Pressler last spring in the wake of rape charges against three of his players, Machtley conducted an exhaustive background check, satisfied himself that Pressler was solid and then hired him.

"Ron always does his homework," Burke said.

Machtley has charged his coaches with recruiting better athletes and better students every year. He wants to win -- he was a lightweight football quarterback at the Naval Academy -- but he also wants to produce solid citizens and future leaders.

"That's why we don't put money just into fields but into technology as well," he said, noting that Bryant is one of the most wired campuses in the U.S.

The results are impressive. Five years into Machtley's presidency, Bryant ranked eighth of the 15 schools in the NE-10, had won only one conference championship (golf) and had sent only golf and volleyball to NCAA tournaments. In the last five years, the Bulldogs finished second three times and first twice in the NE-10 Presidents' Cup, a ranking based on results. Bryant teams won four NE-10 titles in each of the last three years. Eight Bryant teams qualified for NCAA tournaments in 2003-04 and eight again in 2004-05. Seven teams went in 2005-06.

Bryant athletes also regularly garner academic awards.

Archie Boulet, starting his 43rd year as golf coach, has seen it all.

"The last seven or eight years we're up to about 42 people in the department. Almost every major sport has a full-time head coach and full-time assistant coach. That's made a heck of a difference and is an advantage in the Northeast-10. We have the best facilities in the conference. No doubt about it, a lot has to do with Ron," he said.

Machtley, 58, is not resting on any laurels. Plenty of work remains. Construction of a chapel is scheduled for next summer. A 200-bed residence hall should be finished next September. Another academic building is on the drawing board, and he would love to tuck a nine-hole golf course on campus. Machtley and his wife Kati, an integral player on his management team, welcomed 14 tenure-track faculty last week and expect another group of 17 next year.

On athletics he said that "we haven't hit our stride yet. We haven't won a national championship. Some teams haven't won the league yet. There's a lot of growth potential here."

He doesn't have time to think about retiring.

"I still feel very enthusiastic . . . and as long as Kati and I are healthy and the faculty and board are still supportive, we're going to be here. We really appreciate and feel lucky to be here."

mszostak@projo.com/(401) 277-7340