Iowa director of athletics Gary Barta will retire from the position he has held since 2006 on Aug. 1., the university announced this morning.
The 17-year leader of the athletics department at the University of Iowa -- the fifth-longest tenured athletics director in a power-five conference -- will step away from his post in a little over two months.
Barta
"It has been an absolute privilege and honor to serve in this role the past 17 years,'' Barta said in a statement. "I'm humbled to have worked beside and on behalf of so many student-athletes, coaches, staff, donors, fans and community leaders over the past two decades.''
Multiple sources confirm that Iowa plans to announce an interim director to lead its athletics department within the next week.
Barta has led the Iowa athletics department through a period of growth -- including $385 million in facilities upgrades and new construction -- as well as competitive success and costly controversies.
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Iowa has won four NCAA wrestling championships and finished as a national runner-up in women's basketball under his tenure and the Hawkeyes have won 27 Big Ten championships. Iowa's football program has won two Big Ten West Division titles as well.
As part of his "Win. Graduate. Do it right'' mantra, Iowa student-athletes have graduated at an 89-percent rate.
Iowa has also dealt with its share of unsuccessful lawsuits during his tenure, the most costly a $6.5 million settlement in a discrimination suit filed by former field hockey coach Tracey Griesbaum and associate athletics director Jane Meyer.
Iowa also paid $4.2 million to settle a case filed by former football players alleging racial discrimination and $200,000 to former assistant track coach Michael Scott.
The department was also fined $400,000 and had to reinstate its women's swimming and diving program and add women's wrestling as part of a Title IX settlement after Barta cut four sports programs to deal with budget shortfalls during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Iowa will likely find its interim director in house.
Deputy athletic director Beth Goetz, among likely candidates to replace Barta, joined the Iowa staff from Ball State where she served as the director of athletics. She previously worked as an interim director of athletics at Minnesota while on staff there.
