Scott E. Kennell, director of athletics at Pennsylvania College of Technology, has announced his resignation in order to accept the director of athletics position at Madonna University in Michigan.
Under Kennell’s guidance and leadership the past five years, Penn College moved to NCAA Division III affiliation and membership in the North Eastern Athletic Conference. The college is in its final provisional year for NCAA Division III membership, having received an NCAA waiver to bypass the third year in the process.
Also since 2011, six coaching positions have been elevated from part time to full time, an athletics-specific website was launched, an Athletics Hall of Fame was established, the number of recruited student-athletes has increased, the Wildcat Club (an athletic donor club) was created, and many of Penn College’s athletics facilities were upgraded.
“We are extremely thankful to Scott for his leadership over the past five years,” said Penn College Chief Student Affairs Officer Elliott Strickland. “He has helped guide our athletic program through incredible growth and development.”
Strickland said the college has begun a national search for Kennell’s replacement and hopes to have a candidate identified before the beginning of the Fall 2016 season.
Jackie Klahold, head softball coach/senior woman administrator, will serve as interim director of athletics at Penn College while the national search is conducted.
Twelve of the college’s 15 intercollegiate athletic teams participate in the NEAC: men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s cross country, women’s volleyball, men’s golf, baseball, and softball.
The wrestling team competes at the Division III level as an independent, while the men’s and women’s archery team competes in USA Archery.
The following is the media release on Kennell’s hiring at Madonna Unviersity:
LIVONIA, Mich. — Scott Kennell, a 16-year veteran of athletic department leadership, including the previous five years as the head of Penn College athletics, has been named director of athletics at Madonna University following a national search. Kennell, who steps in as the leader of Madonna University athletics following the departure of longtime athletic director Bryan Rizzo, will be responsible for the overall development and general management of the Crusaders’ expanding intercollegiate athletics program, effective July 25, announced Madonna University President Michael A. Grandillo, Ph.D., on Thursday (July 14).
“Intercollegiate athletics plays an integral role in fulfilling the mission of Madonna University. During the interview process, it was clear Scott understood the impact athletics can have on the quality of campus life and community as a whole. Furthermore, he understands the athletic department’s commitment to increasing enrollment while striving to continually improve the student-athlete experience. I am excited Scott and his family have decided to join the Madonna University community and I look forward to working with him soon.”
Kennell joins an ever-expanding athletics department at Madonna University – now boasting 19 intercollegiate sports competing in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) – after enjoying a highly-successful tenure at Penn College in Williamsport, Pa. During his five-plus years serving Penn College, Kennell was able to champion a host of expansion efforts and various other ventures, including the program’s acceptance into National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III status.
“My family and I are excited and honored to be joining the Madonna University family,” Kennell stated when reached for comment earlier in the week. “I am truly grateful to Dr. Grandillo and the entire search committee for trusting me to serve in this position.”
“Madonna has a strong commitment to its athletics program and that is what attracted me to the job. Intercollegiate athletics plays a vibrant and positive role in the makeup of the university, and the program is on very solid ground. I am honored to have been chosen for this position, and I am eager to joinCrusader Nation and meet the Madonna University and Livonia community soon!”
After initiating and guiding the move to NCAA Division III status, Kennell also coordinated Penn College’s efforts to join the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC), a league that accepted the program as a member in 2014. The push to make Penn College a premier athletic department also led to the launching of the new athletics website in 2013.
In 2011, he started the Penn College Male and Female Athlete of the Year awards honoring the top athletic performers in the program. He then went on to establish the Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012.
Prior to his appointment at Penn College, Kennell served as director of athletics at Lycoming College (Pa.), a NCAA Division III program, from 2008-2011. In addition to overseeing Lycoming’s 17 sports, Kennell also served as the head men’s soccer coach, a position held since 2000. He left Lycoming as the winningest coach in program history with a 110-87-12 (.541 winning percentage) record and took his program to five Commonwealth Conference playoff berths.
During his tenure as director of athletics at Lycoming, the department saw major success including three conference championships, two national tournament berths and one national championship for wrestling. In addition, the department had more than 200 Mid-Atlantic Conference Academic Honor Roll selections and five All-Americans.
Kennell graduated from North Carolina Wesleyan College in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science in physical education. After a standout career as a men’s soccer student-athlete at North Carolina Wesleyan, Kennell was drafted by the EISL Savannah Rugaratz as the eighth overall pick. From 1998-99, he played with the United Soccer League’s Eastern Shore Sharks.
He began his coaching career in 1999 as an assistant for the Gettysburg College (Pa.) men’s soccer team and, just a year later, made his way to Williamsport to take the helm as men’s soccer head coach at Lycoming College. Kennell also coached Lycoming’s women’s soccer team for four seasons during his tenure as men’s head coach
During his first eight years at Lycoming, Kennell not only built up the soccer programs, but also became the assistant director of the athletics before assuming the role as athletic director in 2008.
Kennell’s efforts as a player earned him entrance into the North Carolina Wesleyan College Athletic Hall of Fame. The Baltimore, Md. native has also been inducted into the Perry Hall High School Athletic Hall of Fame and the Perry Hall High School Alumni Association Hall of Fame. In 2013, Kennell was named to the USA South Athletic Conference 50th Anniversary Men’s Soccer Team.
Committed to the well-rounded development of all student-athletes, Kennell’s following guiding principles encompass his philosophy for the department: Character Development, Classroom Success, Community Involvement and Competitive Excellence. Kennell’s guiding principles align nicely with the NAIA’s Champions of Character Five Core Values of: Integrity, Respect, Responsibility, Servant Leadership and Sportsmanship. As a department, Madonna athletics has been named a Five Star Champions of Character Institution for seven consecutive years.
