BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Western Washington University is set to hire Jim Sterk as the school's next Athletics Director.
WWU is expected to make the announcement as soon as Wednesday.
The Whatcom County native replaces long-time Athletic Director (AD) Steve Card, who retired at the end of March. Card spent 33 years at WWU. The university promoted him to AD in 2014.
WWU named Senior Associate Athletics Director Steve Brummel as interim athletic director when Card stepped down.
Sterk returns to his alma mater where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1980. He played football for the Vikings where he still holds the school's record for tackles with 164. WWU cut the football program in 2009.
He went on to earn his masters Sports Administration at Ohio University in 1986.
Sterk worked in the athletics departments of multiple universities. It all started in 1990 at Seattle Pacific University as an associate athletic director. By 1991, he moved on to Tulane to become the senior associate AD.
Then Portland State gave Sterk his first chance to become in AD in 1995.
Washington State University hired him away in 2000.
Sterk's journey led him to San Diego State to run that school's athletics department in 2010. While working for the Aztecs, Sterk earned the Division I National AD of Year for the 2015-16 season. At the end of that season, Missouri hired him away.
Sterk stepped down from his job in Missouri in 2021.
The 67-year-old has now come full circle to return home to manage the Vikings' athletics department.