G. Anthony Grant, Ph.D., will be leaving Metropolitan State University of Denver after more than four years of service as athletic director.
 
He has accepted a role as director of athletics and head of the Department of Athletics, Physical Education and Recreation at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In this new capacity, Grant will oversee the entire athletics operation at MIT, including club sports, intramurals, campus recreation and physical education, as well as intercollegiate athletics. He plans to be at MSU Denver through holiday break.  
 
"Anthony has been a great leader for our Athletics program and the University as a whole," said President Janine Davidson, Ph.D. "I've always been impressed by his focus on the student-athlete experience, expertly balancing achievements on the field with those in the classroom."
 
Grant's focus on student success was never more apparent than during the 2017-18 academic year, when the Roadrunners set a record for the most student-athletes to make the Athletic Director's Honor Roll, which requires earning a semester grade-point average of 3.5 or above – a total of 89 achieved that GPA during the fall semester. At the same time, all of MSU Denver's team sports reached their respective conference tournaments that year.
 
Grant says he is proud of the team he has put together in his time at MSU Denver because each staff member is committed to providing a well-rounded experience for students.  
 
Among his many notable achievements was raising the profile of the Athletics program and University by facilitating national championships on campus. Grant credits his staff for putting together successful high-profile events such as the 2016 NCAA Division II Spring Sport Festival and the 2019 NCAA D-II Softball World Series as well as hosting the event again in 2021 and 2022. This week, MSU Denver will host the NCAA D-II Volleyball National Championship.
 
"This decision is bittersweet," Grant said of his choice to move on. "I feel like our team was making great strides toward its goals, but that there was still much more left to accomplish. I hoped to be here to experience achieving those goals with the team, however I am confident that our athletics programs are on the right track and I look forward to following their future successes."

Grant was instrumental in the athletics department's partnership with the Colorado Rockies in the 50/50 raffle that has helped raise nearly $500,000 for MSU Denver athletics, as well as for negotiating a new partnership with Nike and Eastbay to bring jerseys and apparel to MSU Denver Athletics while including promotions to enhance fan experience. The partnership was agreed upon through 2020 with the option to extend through 2022.

And, under Grant's leadership, the athletics department also received a transformational gift for student-athlete scholarships, which led to the naming of the Cohen Center for Athletics at the Regency Athletic Complex.
 
He also guided the program as it received an overture from the Western Athletic Conference about a potential transition to NCAA Division I. After a feasibility study and consideration from the MSU Denver Board of Trustees, MSU Denver elected to stay in Division II
Grant has shaped the future of MSU Denver athletics with the hiring of 11 new head coaches while overseeing a 16-sport program with more than 200 student-athletes.
 
MSU Denver continued its successful trend in 2018-19, as the volleyball program extended its streak of national tournament appearances to 19, the women's cross country team returned to the national championships for the first time in five years, the baseball team posted a school-record 14-game winning streak and the women's tennis team won a third straight Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference regular-season championship. MSU Denver had three student-athletes win RMAC player of the year honors, and four others earned RMAC freshman of the year distinctions. In the classroom, 73 student-athletes achieved grade-point averages of 3.5 or better in the fall semester, and 72 reached that mark in the spring. The list includes the RMAC Academic Player of the Year in women's basketball for the third time in four seasons.
 
The volleyball team qualified for its 20^th straight NCAA Tournament this fall, with Roadrunners Alyssa Kelling and Jessa Megenhardt earning the RMAC's Co-Academic Player of the Year Award.
 
Grant expressed his pride in the progress made by MSU Denver's Athletics program over the last four years. With a department-level strategic plan in place – which he co-created – he is confident the department will continue to move in the right direction. And he is also proud of the part he played in helping the program better align its priorities with the mission of the University as a whole.
 
"MSU Denver is a special place," he said. "I was always so inspired to see people come together around the shared mission of supporting students. I will miss that unique culture."