The past few weeks have brought many opportunities for all of us at UW-Parkside and around the community to thank Chris Barker for everything he has done at Parkside and congratulate him as he embarks on his new journey as the Director of Athletics at Southern Connecticut State University. The bittersweet news that I am losing "my deputy" also triggered a question, one that I have gotten dozens of times from our staff, campus colleagues, and community members.
"How are you possibly going to replace Chris?"
The answer has been pretty simple. "We're not"
That does not mean that the campus sky will fall and everything at Parkside Athletics will start slipping through the cracks next week. Everything will be fine with the Rangers, and Chris deserves a lot of credit for that as he has helped us build an athletics department that is sustainable, respectable, and continually improving.
But that does not change the answer to the question about replacing Chris. I have always been taught and repeated to others that we are all replaceable. I actually do not believe that about Chris, because he is uniquely Chris.
His talents span internal and external operations. He builds genuine and productive relationships with student-athletes, coaches, staff, campus colleagues, and community members. He is equipped to hold people accountable and build them up. He can lead, he can delegate, and he can take things off your plate. He can shift seamlessly and effectively from front and center to behind the scenes. No job is too big and no job is too small.
On top of that, his mentor in this business is a legend – the late Dr. Robert "Doc" Bonn. No offense to any of the rest of us that have had the pleasure to be a college AD, but nobody has done it better than Doc Bonn. While most of us continue to mourn Doc's unexpected passing last June, Chris still talks to him every day, learns from him every day, leads like him every day, and carries on his legacy every day.
And of course everyone at Parkside knows what else makes Chris irreplaceable? JUICE! The man brings juice every day to his work, to his family, and to those around him. Barker Juice is contagious. Life giving. Positive. Inspiring. Impactful.
Chris, my friend, you will certainly be missed by all of us at Parkside. While your time here was relatively short, your impact on our University, Parkside Athletics, and all of us who had the pleasure to cross paths with you will be long lasting.
To everyone at SCSU, congrats! You're adding an incredible leader to your University and athletics department. You're adding an incredible family to your community. Our loss is certainly your gain, and we will be cheering on the Owls from afar.
Oh, and one more thing, please call him Director Barker. If experience tells me anything, it'll make him uncomfortable at first, but he'll learn to love it. Most importantly, he deserves it and is more than ready for it!
