While the physical attributes of The University of Texas at Austin Recreational Sports are impressive, what’s truly remarkable is on the inside — its team, creative revenue streams, rich intramurals history and more.
If you simply breakdown The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) Recreational Sports (RecSports) by its numbers, you’ll see it’s impressive.
With a reported 55,000 enrolled students in Fall 2025, seven recreation facilities that amount to over 400,000 square feet of indoor space, 40 acres of outdoor recreation space and a professional campus rec staff of 40-plus individuals, UT Austin is among the largest campus recreation operations in the U.S.
However, the numbers don’t tell the whole story. When you drill to the heart of the department — its people — you’ll find that’s what’s most remarkable.
As Randall Ford, the director of Communications and Development, put it most aptly, the team works to constantly pull in the same direction, expecting the highest quality in whatever they do. “Our culture is built upon mutual respect and the ability to hold each other accountable,” he said.
However, this doesn’t happen without effort. When Jennifer Speer, the assistant vice president for RecSports, stepped into her leadership role at UT Austin, she wanted to build on a long-established culture. To do so, they began with a meeting where the team developed what they wanted their department to look like. The list of attributes includes specific behaviors, ways to ensure recognition, various norms and how to treat one another. Every year, the staff reviews the list and culture to make sure they’re on track.
One norm is the monthly all-staff meeting that kicks off with anonymous shout outs. “We make sure everyone gets a chance to say to their colleagues, ‘Hey, I see you. I see what you’re doing, and it’s appreciated,’” explained Speer.
Another norm is the pushing of boundaries and trying new things. “We’re encouraged to take risks and fail safely,” said Cecilia Lopez Cardenas, the associate director of Communications. “We’d rather take the risk and not be successful than stay stale.”
That willingness to change and take risks can be seen in the Intramural Sports program. For instance, Speer shared the annual schedule is never just set. They’re constantly responding to student input and needs, which has them offering the traditional sports — such as flag football, basketball and volleyball — both semesters. In addition, seasons are shorter now based on student needs.
While UT Austin is willing to innovate, the team also understands that some things don’t have to change if they’re working. For example, Intramural Sports has been managed by students since its inception. So, two professional staff alongside student staff oversee the annual 10,000-plus intramural participants.
In addition to a student-run program, Intramurals also has its 100-plus-year wall of fame located in the Gregory Gym. Dating back to 1919, you’ll find a timeline in photographs of intramural champions. Speer noted they’re running out of wall space but are actively looking for ways to continue this tradition beyond just the digital realm. “One of the things we love is when alums come back, they bring their kids or their grandkids and say, ‘We’re here to see the wall of fame,’” she shared. “This is something we hope to continue forever.”
Like all campus rec departments, sometimes the decision to change is simply out of their control. That was the case in 2005 when UT Austin flattened tuition and RecSports moved to a fee allocation. “That allocation has been flat since 2008, so we have to figure out ways to make the difference,” said Speer.
The typical methods include selling memberships to faculty, staff and the community, as well as facility rentals. While these helped, it wasn’t enough.
“We recognized there was this gap, and that obviously corporations want to be in front of students,” said Speer. “Because we have such a high level of engagement with the students at UT Austin through our programs and facilities, it made great sense.”
One of these corporate partnerships is an Amazon pick-up location inside Gregory Gym. The location has been in place since 2016, with RecSports overseeing the lease-like agreement.
Another is with University Federal Credit Union that wanted to establish a branch on campus. “We worked with them to put a mini branch in Gregory and allow faculty, staff and students to interact with them,” said Speer.
However, no two partnerships are alike, which Speer and the rest of the team know. They try to be as creative as possible to allow for more open doors. “We have tailored opportunities to work with those companies to meet our needs and theirs, always focused on benefiting UT students,” she shared.
But, it isn’t simple. Speer noted there are a lot of steps when it comes to corporate partnerships. It isn’t just collecting the money and moving on. Thankfully, the team has two key pieces that allow them to be successful in the corporate partnership game.
First is the collaboration with Longhorn Sports Properties (Learfield). The agency works to find and contract corporate partnerships for the department. Then RecSports implements the activation.
The second essential piece is dedicated corporate partnership staff. UT Austin alum Kari Terry, the senior assistant director for Corporate Partners, joined the team in 2019. Coming from a stint as a Fitness Services Graduate Assistant at The Ohio State University, she was excited to return to UT Austin, even if the subject matter was new and initially challenging.
Since then, Terry has seen a significant evolution of this area of RecSports, showcasing the department’s commitment to invest in corporate partnerships. “For example, in May 2024 we welcomed Genevieve Nhan as a dedicated full-time staff member to support our corporate partnership initiatives,” said Terry. “With increased staffing, we’re able to provide more personalized attention and seamless experiences for our partners, which in turn strengthens these relationships and encourages long-term collaboration.”
In addition to staff, Terry shared they’ve evolved from transactional sponsorships to offer more mutually beneficial partnerships. This involves co-creating experiences through activations, facility enhancements or event sponsorships.
One example is with Peloton. A racquetball court inside Gregory Gym was transformed into Peloton at Texas in February 2025. By the end of the spring semester, RecSports saw 6,900 individual workouts in that space. “There is no racquetball court in the country that’s seeing that kind of action,” said Speer.
These partnerships have allowed RecSports to offer unique experiences for the campus community. “These improvements not only elevate our spaces but also introduce innovative fitness options that inspire our community to stay active and engaged,” shared Terry.
When it comes to tapping into corporate partnerships, Terry said campus recreation departments have unparalleled access to an engaged student audience. It’s key to recognize this value, communicate it and demonstrate how partnerships can enhance the impact of campus rec on students.
All in all, RecSports revenue streams have made an incredible operational impact. “The search for new revenue streams to offset stagnant budgets has grown to now support yearly operations and not just enhancements,” said Ford.
While the flattening tuition led to corporate partnerships for RecSports, it also brought about a direct benefit to the students: the Brodnax Recreation Fund.
As part of their tuition, students can access all RecSports facilities any time they’re enrolled in classes. However, it doesn’t cover any participation in programs. So, in 2024 alumni John and Ann Brodnax set up an endowment that funds roughly $5,000 a semester in program fees for students with a financial need. “We’ve been fortunate enough to fund 40 students each semester,” said Speer.
For Spring 2026, students can apply to have one of the following programs fully funded by RecSports: climbing wall pass, TeXercise all-access pass for group classes, or an Adventure day or weekend trip registration. Cardenas said they’re ultimately working to build awareness as the need is definitely there.
In summary, the RecSports team at UT Austin is pulling in the same direction of excellence. While the physical attributes are impressive, what’s on the inside of the department is truly remarkable.
Cardenas perhaps summed it up best. “We have great experts and professionals, but also good people in their roles,” she said. “We just have some really great humans.”
