Dalton State College announced Friday that Derek Waugh is leaving as athletic director to become the president and CEO of an unnamed Georgia statewide athletic organization.
Waugh's new job starts July 1, but he and his wife and three children plan to keep living in Dalton, where he has "immersed himself in the life of the community," as the college's announcement release pointed out. The Atlanta native has been active in the Dalton Convention and Visitors Bureau, Dalton Rotary Club, Family Frameworks, Archway Partnerships and the Alzheimer's Association, and he has coached recreation and church-league sports teams.
The former Furman University basketball star and Stetson University men's basketball coach and assistant athletic director was hired in January 2012 to build Dalton State's athletic program as a four-year institution, 34 years after the school discontinued its junior college sports.
The Roadrunners basketball team under coach Tony Ingle won the 2015 NAIA national championship in its second year of existence and its first season of tournament eligibility, and several other DSC sports teams have become accustomed to national rankings. Golfers Julia McQuilken and Sean Elliott also won NAIA championships last year.
"In the short term that Derek has been here, he has made a huge imprint on our campus and this community," school president Margaret Venable said in Friday's release. "He has brought a vibrancy and energy that make us all proud to be citizens of Roadrunner nation. He cares passionately for young people and for the livelihood of his adopted hometown. We are pleased he has this opportunity to share his gift on a larger scale and that he will remain a part of our community."
The search for his successor "will commence soon," according to the release.
"I am very appreciative of the opportunity I was given at Dalton State to restart the athletic program, and the greater Dalton community for all the hard work and commitment they have poured into the program," Waugh said. "Any success we have had is totally due to a true team effort amongst an amazing group of people.
"I am certainly proud of our achievements on the field of play, but I am most proud of the fact that I believe we have transformed lives and helped expand the culture of this great school, all while doing things with passion, enthusiasm, fun and integrity."
Praising Venable and her predecessor who hired him, John Schwenn, as well as the coaches, boosters and athletes, Waugh said, "My family and I are blessed to have been able to come to Dalton. I look forward to now becoming a Roadrunner fan as I tackle a new and exciting opportunity within the state of Georgia to showcase how the power of athletics can transform lives."