ARLINGTON – Helping steward the continued endeavors of Maverick student-athletes, UT Arlington officials are pleased to announce Dr. David Gray from the College of Business as the department's new Faculty Athletics Representative.
 
A Professor of Management, Dr. Gray's additional responsibilities will now include serving as the direct representative of University President Dr. Vistasp Karbhari in faculty athletics matters, and providing a direct liaison among Athletic Director Jim Baker, the Department of Athletics and the University community.
 
"We are excited to welcome Dr. Gray into this extremely-important role in our department," said Baker. "His longtime dedication to the University, his interaction with our student-athletes, coaches and staff and his knowledge and understanding of what is needed to fulfill this role made him the ideal candidate. We're looking forward to the positive impact Dr. Gray will make on our student-athletes and department as a whole."
 
As part of his FAR responsibilities, Dr. Gray will communicate the legitimate needs of the Department of Athletics and demonstrate an unqualified commitment to intercollegiate athletics by insisting upon integrity in all areas. He will be the department's academic representative to the Sun Belt Conference and NCAA, while also serving as the chair of the University's Athletics Council / Intercollegiate Athletics Compliance Committee.
 
"I am very pleased to be appointed Faculty Athletics Representative and to become more involved in UT Arlington Athletics," stated Dr. Gray. "Serving on the Athletics Council for 10 years has given me insights into NCAA compliance, operations of the department, the acquisition of student-athletes and development of high performance sports teams by the coaches.
 
"I've also witnessed the significant representational value of our student-athletes for the University, and the great infrastructure of academic and other support our student-athletes receive from the department and many other programs and offices across campus," Dr. Gray added. "Our student-athletes are very strong performers in many sports, but they also perform at high levels in the courses they take to complete degree requirements."
 
UTA student-athletes have enjoyed tremendous success academically, graduating with the 2nd-highest rate among all Division-I public institutions in Texas last year. They have made an impact locally and regionally, winning the Sun Belt Community Service Award three-straight years. Athletically, the Mavericks have claimed 97 conference championships – most recently earlier this month with men's indoor track & field – and have produced, in just the last year, a national champion high jumper in Alexus Henry and a handful of professional players.
 
Dr. Gray's teaching and research interests are in the areas of human resource management and labor relations. He obtained B.B.A. and M.A. degrees from the College of Business Administration at the University of Iowa in 1967 and 1969. In 1974, he was awarded a Ph.D. in Business Administration from the School of Management at the University of Massachusetts. During his tenure at UTA, he has served more than 30 years in five different Associate Dean positions and has been an Acting Chair of the Department of Management on two occasions for a total of five years.
 
At different times over the past three decades, he has also been Program Advisor for the Ph.D in Business Administration, MBA and MS in Human Resource Management. For the 2003-04 academic year, he served as Director of the Goolsby Leadership Academy, the result of a $2 million cash gift in honor of John and Judy Goolsby.
 
Additionally, his involvement in local professional organizations has included serving in officer positions (including President) of the Fort Worth Chapter of the American Society for Training and Development and the North Texas Chapter of the Industrial Relations Research Association.