Ona Halladay named Vice President for Athletics and Planning at D’Youville University

President Lorrie Clemo announced the appointment of Ona Halladay as vice president for athletics and planning at D’Youville University. Halladay, who was appointed as executive director of intercollegiate athletics and recreation in 2022, will continue in that role while also serving in a university-wide senior planning position.

As vice president for athletics and planning, Halladay will continue to oversee the successful Saints athletics program, comprised of 20 NCAA Division II teams. The athletics program is integral to the university’s educational mission – with just under 25% of undergraduates participating as student-athletes. The Saints were recently ranked third among DII member institutions on the 2023 NCAA Presidents’ Award for Academic Excellence. The award recognizes DII schools that have achieved an Academic Success Rate of 90% or higher. D’Youville’s academic success rate is 98%. D’Youville has more than185 student-athletes recognized on the East Coast Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll. As D’Youville’s director of athletics, she started four new athletic programs including men’s lacrosse, women’s track and field, women’s wrestling and women’s field hockey. She has also overseen the sustained effort by the university to increase and diversify its student population and foster an inclusive campus environment.

Halladay’s role in strategic planning began in 2021, as a member of the University Strategic Planning Steering Committee. The committee helps develop university strategies for growth, academic excellence, student experience, and community engagement. Since 2022, Halladay has served as co-chair of the planning committee. In her new role as vice president, Halladay will work closely with the president and other senior leadership to plan for the sustained future of the university and identify its strengths and weaknesses through the strategic planning and budgeting process. Coordinating with departments across the university, Halladay will plan, strategize, and execute specific goals of D’Youville’s Strategic Playbook. Halladay will also provide general strategic oversight, identifying core key performance indicators for university effectiveness and translating university performance metrics into actionable strategies.

Halladay has been with the university since 2013 and holds a BS in Psychology from the State University of Brockport and a MS in Sports Management from Canisius University.