Delta Kappa Epsilon - Wesleyan University

2 Delta Kappa Epsilon MIKE WHALEN '83: Restoring Wesleyan's Athletic Excellence A mong all the distinguished DKEs who have made important contributions to their local, business, national, and global communities, perhaps no one is more central to the ongoing happiness of the broader Wesleyan family than Mike Whalen '83. First, as the Cardinals' head football coach, then as Frank V. Sica Director of Athletics, Mike is responsible for restoring pride in the university's athletic program. Since his return to Wesleyan in 2010, Wes football has had five winning seasons and, after a 43-year drought, has won the Little Three championship twice in the last four years. But it's not just football that has regained its luster: Wesleyan teams won five Little Three championships this year—the most since 1992. Men's lacrosse went to the final four and the women's and men's tennis teams are now ranked in the top 10 nationally. On an individual level, Eudice Chong '18 of the women's tennis team swept the 2017 NCAA Division III individual championships in May—her third consecutive national singles title. Mike's return to his alma mater was motivated not only by an opportunity to come home, but also by the prospect of building his own program. Having spent 15 years at Williams College, including six as its hugely successful head football coach, he still felt he was operating inside the program of his predecessor. At Wesleyan, he could put his own stamp on the football team, and then on the entire 29-team athletic program when he became A.D. About 600 Wesleyan students participate in a varsity sport, which means Mike works with about a quarter of the student body. He stresses that academic excellence must come first but that student athletes must also strive for athletic excellence when representing Wesleyan. For Mike, that means hiring great coaches, like Dan DiCenzo, who served as his assistant football coach at Williams before coming to Wesleyan and taking over as head coach in 2015. As a high school center from Enfield, Connecticut, Mike was heavily recruited by a number of Division I schools, where football would be his one and only priority. The scholarship offers disappeared when he suffered an injury, and it was during a PG year at the Loomis Chafee School that he came to appreciate the importance of getting a real education at college. Meanwhile, through football coach Bill McDermott and wrestling coach John Biddiscombe, Wesleyan had been steadily wooing him with visions of being a two-sport athlete at a world-class academic institution. "Coach Mac and Biddiscombe spent a lot of time guiding me through the process over two years," Mike remembers. "They were a big factor in why I came to Wesleyan." Once at Wesleyan, he quickly saw the appeal in joining DKE. As a first-generation college student from a blue-collar family, he found support from a group of guys with similar backgrounds and shared interests. Today, he speaks gratefully of the DKE upperclassmen who guided him through his early years at the school, specifically citing Jim Baker '81, Tim O'Brien '81, Mark Molina '81, and Tony DiFolco '81. DKE was fun, but it was also a place where he grew as a person. In his sophomore year, he succeeded Molina as steward of the fraternity's eating club. "For me, being a DKE wasn't just a social experience," he said. "As steward, I learned a lot of life skills. I had to hire a cook, plan meals, and market the club to other students. To have that responsibility as a sophomore was tremendously valuable." Today, he remains close to his DKE brothers, especially 1983 classmates Steve Sorkin, Kevin Sarr, Lewis Ingall, and Mike Canarie. They've celebrated life's triumphs and heartbreaks together and remain as tightly bonded as ever. One thing the brothers have been able to celebrate was Mike's career as a coach and athletic administrator. In his senior year, Mike considered going into sales or becoming a pro in the United States Football League but ended up being asked by Coach Mac to become the assistant defensive line coach. He quickly learned he liked coaching both football and wrestling and began a steady ascent up the ladder that eventually led to the top job at Williams and then Wesleyan. It's probably not a coincidence that as A.D., he now holds a position endowed by another DKE, Frank Sica '73, who was motivated in 2016 to fund the A.D. position to encourage and maintain a strong athletic component at Wesleyan. The director's position is the only endowed chair in the athletics department, which currently employs 21 full-time faculty members who serve as head coaches for 29 varsity sports—15 men's teams and 14 women's teams. Wesleyan's athletic turnaround has had a major impact on morale among students and alumni, who feel pride in being associated with the excellence that athletic achievement symbolizes. And as success begets success, Mike's athletic program is just getting started. Look for more athletic achievements in the years ahead. Mike Whalen '83 serves as the Frank V. Sica Director of Athletics and Chairman of Physical Education for Wesleyan.

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