Director of Athletics: Michael Lipitz

Michael Lipitz joined UIC in October 2019 following two decades in the Atlantic Coast Conference at North Carolina State University and the University of Maryland.

Through his first three years at the helm, Lipitz has led the Flames to historic results in the classroom, in competition, and in the community. He also successfully spearheaded UIC’s move to the Missouri Valley Conference beginning with the 2022-23 academic year.

The Flames have posted the best academic results in school history in recent years, recording a cumulative 3.4 GPA for the 2020-21 academic year, and an all-time high 91% Graduation Success Rate in Fall 2021.

UIC captured its first-ever Horizon League Women’s All-Sport Trophy in 2021, as measured by team finishes in the regular season and championships. The Flames won three Horizon League Championships in softball, women’s tennis, and volleyball, along with three individual titles in women’s diving, men’s diving, and men’s cross country. In addition, Lena Kurz of women’s soccer won the 2021 Senior CLASS Award recognizing the nation’s best all-around senior, the first UIC student-athlete in any sport to be so honored.

Athletics has set fundraising records as well, with Giving Tuesday 2021 achieving record donor participation, after raising the most dollars in program history in 2020. UIC also received its third largest endowed scholarship gift in program history last year. Athletics recently relaunched its annual giving program, the Flames Athletics Fund, to incentivize annual giving and better reward current and future donors, and created Sparky’s Kids Club for its youngest Flames.

Student-athlete health and wellness are a focus for Flames Athletics under Lipitz’s leadership. In fall 2020, the department launched the Flames Leadership Institute to provide comprehensive programming in leadership, career development, personal development, equity and inclusion, and service to the campus and Chicago communities. In spring 2021, UIC Athletics developed the Flames Unite initiative as an umbrella for its DEI efforts and resources. The department also invested in a multi-year partnership with Millennium Counseling that has significantly expanded student-athlete access to mental wellness resources.

UIC is enhancing its athletics facilities, too. The Flames Athletic Center basketball practice facility and team spaces have been renovated, while enhanced branding has been installed throughout athletics facilities following the department’s comprehensive refresh of its athletics brand. UIC opened Chicago’s premier collegiate soccer venue in fall 2022 following a $5M renovation of Flames Field. Presently, the Flames are pursuing a comprehensive student-athlete performance center to enhance student-athlete resources in athletic medicine, sports performance, nutrition, mental wellness, and related health and wellness services.

Lipitz serves in leadership roles on UIC’s campus and nationally. He is a member of the Chancellor’s Cabinet at UIC and serves on the MVC Council of Athletic Directors, Finance Committee, Long-Range Planning Committee, and Sports Medicine Committee. During the 2021-22 academic year, he was one of 10 athletic directors nationally on the NCAA Division I Competition Oversight Committee.

He holds a law degree from Villanova University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Maryland, where he captained the men’s tennis team. He and his wife, Kerry, have two sons, Henry and Charlie, and a dog, River.