Randy Meck, Dartmouth's Assistant Director of Athletic Facilities and Operations, arrived quietly in Hanover on a calm July day. Only a handful of people at Dartmouth knew about the storm he had left behind in Virginia.
Meck, the former athletic director at Cave Spring high school in Roanoke, Va., was caught in the center of a county educational scandal that ended in his firing and the retirement of the Roanoke County school superintendent.
The spark that started the fire was an innocuous comment that Meck had made in public about the delays in the construction of soccer and baseball fields at Cave Spring. Bizarrely, Meck was then asked to resign from his position as athletic director by the county school superintendent.
"There are lots of political activities that go on in Cave Spring. If you say or do things in an innocent way, when these activities are done in a public forum, it can be embarrassing for the politicians there who are trying to accomplish things," Martha Cobble, the popular principal at Cave Spring high school, said.
After Meck's demotion in March, the superintendent took a leave of absence to avoid clashing with hundreds of angry parents that supported Meck.
"I had a philosophical difference with some of the leaders in the school system where I was previously working," Meck said. "As a high school athletic director, I fought hard for our coaches and athletes to have the best facilities that we could get our limited resources of money and space. While recognizing that athletics was not going to be a huge priority, I pushed hard for facilities we could be proud of. I became frustrated when it took years to get those facilities and made some comments that I should not have made."
When Meck resigned from his former post, community members were enraged. In a matter of days, parents of Cave Spring high school students collected over 1,000 signatures for a petition that called for Meck's reinstatement. But Meck was set on leaving.
"I decided that it was time for me to go," Meck said. "I had tremendous support and made some great friends over my tenure. I think those people loved the fact that I was going to do whatever I could to help the school I was working at and make life a little better for their children, athlete or not."
Meck's supporters continued to cheer for him even after his resignation.
In an e-mail sent by the Cave Spring high school booster club, the sender wrote, "Randy is the best [athletic director] in the state of Virginia and his new school is incredibly lucky to have him."
"He was very efficient and very enthusiastic. He did everything that I asked him to do," Cobble said. "Everyone in the community loved him because he brought a lot of enthusiasm to the games."
Meck contemplated a few offers from large high schools after he left Cave Spring but decided that he wanted to work in a college athletic department. He subscribed to an NCAA e-mail job listing and answered a Dartmouth job posting. He jumped at the opportunity when he was contacted for an interview.
"I absolutely love working here at Dartmouth," Meck said. "I had heard about the incredible academic reputation of the College but I am quickly learning about the athletic accomplishments as well. One of the things that really attracted me to Dartmouth was the commitment by the College to improve the athletic facilities."
Meck, who has found employees of the Dartmouth College Athletic Department "great to work with and very welcoming," has transitioned smoothly into his new job. Meck's current focus is on helping displaced coaches move into their new offices in Alumni Gym. He is also preparing for the return of student-athletes, and will be working with the grounds crew in maintaining fields and facilities.
Meck attended Robinson Secondary School in Fairfax, Washington D.C. and then attended Virginia Tech, where he received a degree in Business Management and Sports Management. Meck was the team manager for the winning National Invitational Tournament basketball team in 1995 and helped the Hokies advance to the second round of the NCAAs in 1996.
After finishing a second major in Business Education, Meck was hired to teach and coach basketball and baseball at Cave Spring. As a baseball coach, Meck trained several players that went on to play Major League Baseball. Meck also coached J.J. Redick, the 2006 College Basketball Player of the Year, when Redick was a student at Cave Spring.
