If you in any way, shape or form are involved within the Landmark College community, then you should know the name Kari Post. As she returns from maternity leave, Kari picked up right where she left off when it comes to leading the athletics department at Landmark College. Having worked at Landmark for seven years as of 2022, she has spent the last five years as the director of athletics, where she remains an important figure to everyone in the Landmark community, making an impact to students and faculty everywhere; coach, athlete, and non-athletes as well. Before she was the Director of Athletics, Post worked as the Coordinator for the Center for Women and Gender and as the Assistant Director of Recreation and Outdoor Programs.

Kari Post studied Health and Exercise Sciences at The College of New Jersey, where she received her Bachelor of Science, and she received her master’s degree in Environmental Studies and Environmental Education at Antioch University New England. Post is also a Certified Wilderness First Responder and a Certified CPR and First Aid Instructor. While mountaineering in South America, she climbed up to 19,000 feet, and has also spent time in Haiti teaching photography to underprivileged youth.

But what does it mean to be the Director of Athletics at Landmark College, and what inspired Kari to rise to be the great leader she has become today? Throughout the years, Post spends most of her time organizing all the athletic teams’ games, hiring the appropriate coaching staffs, finding officials, creating practice schedules, setting up intramurals, and promoting all athletic events via SharkNet. Post is also in charge of organizing the various physical education classes provided at Landmark College and deciding which instructors are to run each class. When asked what the most impactful and meaningful part of her job, Post highlighted that it was less about the athlete’s growth as athletes, but growth as people.  “I’ve had some student athletes who’ve come in, I’d be like, well, this kid’s full of ego and kind of a pain. And then, two years later, they’re amazing team leaders, they’re communicating so much better with their peers. It’s far less just about them and more about the team and seeing that change is really rewarding.”

Post was first inspired to study health and physical education in college from her high school track coach, who Post referred to as someone who knew how to motivate all his athletes and offer gentle support and help his athlete lean on their strengths and realize them. Today, Post incorporates the same approach to a more “club sport” vibe for athletics at Landmark College, with the sports teams having no tryouts, and anybody can play. Part of what makes a great leader is being able to embrace diversity and create an inclusive atmosphere, which is what Kari strives for. With students coming from different athletic backgrounds, sports teams are inclusive and accepting whether someone is wanting to play for the first time to athletes who have been playing for a long time. What makes Post’s job so difficult is that due to our school’s athletic restrictions, which makes it difficult to find proper opponents for all the sports teams, and interschool play doesn’t happen often as Landmark prioritizes student academics.

Work Cited

Northouse, P. G. (2021). Introduction to Leadership (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.