The Final Exam is your chance to get to know leaders in the industry. For the July/August 2024 issue, Campus Rec Magazine spoke with Jason Thornton, the director of Recreation and Wellness at Creighton University.
1. How did you get started in the industry?
During my first two years of undergrad at SUNY Brockport I bounced around majors. I started in athletic training, switched to exercise physiology and finally landed in sport management. The director of Campus Recreation was one of my professors in a sport management class. The university was constructing a new rec center on campus then. He let us know he was looking to hire staff. Later that year, I was working as a fitness floor attendant and progressed up the ranks over the next two years.
2. How would you go about describing Recreation and Wellness at Creighton University?
Recreation and Wellness is at a transitional time right now at Creighton. With my staff and I all being at the university under a year, we are very much still finding out what the department is and what the Creighton community needs it to be. We have a great opportunity to refresh our programs and services with two major summer renovations and increased institutional support for our sport club program. The student body here is very engaged, active and eager to provide feedback on how to best serve them.
3. What has been one of the biggest challenges you have faced throughout your career?
I’ve been forced to learn quick as I’ve progressed through my positions. Largely, my family life has driven my job searches, often requiring I leave previous jobs before I had intended. This has meant I’ve had to make the most out of my experiences and adapt quickly to challenges. I would say the two most challenging skills for me to learn have been learning to supervise people who are older than me and learning my opinion is not always the best one. I’m much more open to feedback and criticism than I was in my first few years in the campus recreation industry.
4. What has been one of the biggest accomplishments of your career in campus recreation?
I’m proud I’ve been able to get to the director level as quickly as I have. I’ve worked with great supervisors throughout my career who have helped prepare me very well to take on the role, so most of the credit goes to them. Like many of us, I wouldn’t be where I am today without great leaders and mentors that came before us. That is one thing I appreciate most about our field.
5. What is one lesson you have learned that other recreation professionals might benefit from?
One important lesson I’ve learned is to get involved in your department’s programs and services. I make it a priority to use our facilities, take group fitness classes and play intramurals with our student employees. It gives me an extra point of contact to our staff, the general student population and informs my work on a daily basis. You’d be amazed how much you can learn from using your facilities’ equipment or playing pick-up basketball. The students definitely appreciate when those that manage the department are also invested users, just like them.
6. What is one fun fact about yourself others may not know?
I find joy in creating and fixing things. Outside of work, I am a very creative person. I’ve done a decent amount of woodworking in the past, recently got into paint-by-number kits and make wood burned Christmas ornaments each year. The past few years I’ve made ornaments for my staff as a Christmas gift. This past year I even raffled some off at our student employee end-of-fall celebration.
