GETTYSBURG, Pa. – After seven years leading the athletics department at Gettysburg College, Executive Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Campus Recreation Mike Mattia has announced that he will depart from the role at the end of June.

Over his tenure in the Director's chair, Mattia has shaped the next generation of Bullets athletics. He has witnessed a changing of the guard on staff with several of the department's longest-tenured coaches retiring after outstanding careers. He installed new head coaches in football, men's and women's lacrosse, swimming, men's and women's golf, cross country/track and field, wrestling, baseball, softball, field hockey and men's and women's soccer in his time at Gettysburg. He was also responsible for elevating the head coach of men's and women's tennis to a full-time position and the creation of a new full-time strength and conditioning coach position.

"During his time at Gettysburg, Mike has left an indelible mark on our athletics and recreation programs," Vice President for Enrollment and Educational Services Carey Thompson said. "Under his leadership, our teams have captured 12 Centennial Conference championships. In the past three years alone, Mike has overseen the recruitment of a new generation of outstanding head coaches, following the retirement of a few longstanding leaders within our program. We are deeply grateful that Mike, his wife Anne, and their daughter Laura will remain in the area and continue their loyal support of the Bullets. I thank Mike for his dedicated service to Gettysburg College and wish him all the best in his future endeavors."

Since he took over prior to the 2018-19 season, Gettysburg has won nearly 59 percent of its games across all 24 sports. Over the last two years, that winning percentage has grown to 62.8 percent of all games and 55.7 percent of Centennial Conference games. Entering the spring 2025 championship season, 99 teams have competed in the conference championship and 36 teams made it to the NCAA championship and the Bullets are poised this spring for potentially the best season in Mattia's tenure.

In the April 3 release of the 2024-25 Learfield Directors' Cup standings, Gettysburg was 46th in Division III with 232 points and in position for its best point total and potentially highest finish in Mattia's tenure.

Mattia has not only guided Gettysburg's success on the field but he has seen unprecedented success off the field and enhancements to every aspect of the student-athlete experience.

Mattia has helped the Bullets meet and exceed their fundraising goals in each of his years at the helm. The annual Bullets Teams Challenge this past year exceeded $650,000. The 36-hour challenge on Dec. 3-4 surpassed blew by the 2023 mark of $516,000 and raised in excess of a half-million dollars from more than 2,000 donors for the second straight year, totaling more than $654,000 in support of Gettysburg athletics. He oversaw the completion of a seven-year exclusive sponsorship deal with Under Armor and helped the Orange and Blue Club exceed its fundraising goals by eight percent in his first year. The fundraising success has led to numerous facility upgrades across campus, including most recently the installation of lights on Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium.

This spring, Mattia also created the department's first strategic plan to guide the next five years and beyond of Gettysburg Athletics. Mattia has also spent the last year as the chair of the Centennial Conference Administrative Delegates and the NCAA Division III Interpretations and Legislation Committee chair

Mattia guided Gettysburg through unprecedented circumstances over his first three years. Working with campus and conference administration, Mattia was a driving force in ensuring athletic competition returned to the field in the spring of 2021, creating in-depth policies and procedures to ensure the health and safety of all participants. The return to competition was topped off by a Centennial Conference championship and NCAA Division III Tournament appearance by the softball team.

Even without sports on the field, Mattia instituted initiatives to keep student-athletes involved and engaged on campus and off, overseeing the creation of a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Athletics Committee and supporting the continued development of a well-being program for all student-athletes.

A graduate of Georgetown University, Mattia helped Johns Hopkins achieve unparalleled success since joining the staff as Associate Director of Athletic Development in 2009. Over the course of his eight years in Baltimore, the Blue Jays claimed four team national championships and 85 conference titles. Johns Hopkins finished among the top 10 in the Learfield Sports Directors Cup in six of his final seven campaigns.

Mattia oversaw an athletics department that featured both NCAA Division I and Division III programs and competed in both the Big Ten Conference and Centennial Conference. He played a key role in the men's lacrosse and women's lacrosse programs joining the Big Ten in 2013 and 2015, respectively. Mattia served as the department's administrative liaison with the Big Ten.

From his first year at the institution, Mattia had been instrumental in the growth of financial support for the athletics department, including serving as part of the Athletic Development Committee (2010-16) that executed a plan to raise over $30 million in capital projects, endowments, and annual funds. He also managed negotiations for an apparel and equipment contract with Under Armour, which resulted in a 10-year multi-million-dollar deal.

Prior to Johns Hopkins, he served as the Assistant Director of Football Operations and Team Administrative Coordinator at the University of Maryland for three years. He oversaw the operation of all Maryland football activities and was responsible for the organization, development, marketing, and promotion of fundraising activities of the Maryland Gridiron Network, the official booster organization for Maryland football.

Mattia's first introduction to the Centennial Conference came as an assistant football coach at Ursinus College in 2001. After one year in Collegeville, he went on to join the football staff at his undergraduate alma mater for four seasons.

He received his Bachelor of Arts in English from Georgetown before going on to earn a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies. Mattia also received a Master Certificate in Business and Law of Sports from Villanova University's Jeffrey S. Moorad Center for the Study of Sports Law and an Executive Certificate from Johns Hopkins' Carey Business School.

"I want to thank the whole Gettysburg College community for an incredible seven years," Mattia said. "I specifically want to thank Barbara Fritz for bringing me here and Carey Thompson, who has been an incredible thought partner, mentor and friend. We have amazing coaches and support staff who are extremely dedicated to their jobs and do wonderful work teaching, mentoring and providing the environment necessary to instill the enduring skills needed for our student-athletes to have success in their sport, in the classroom and ultimately in life after graduation. I can't thank them enough for their hard work and always going above and beyond. I also want to thank our loyal alumni and fans for all of your support. Your dedication and passion for our teams is unwavering. Gettysburg College Athletics is set up to continue its successes well into the future. It has been a great pleasure being a Bullet!"

A national search will commence shortly for Mattia's replacement.