At first glance, it looks unusual--like it might even be an error. The Hope College staff directory lists Eva Dean Folkert, Director of Athletics, and Tim Schoonveld, Director of Athletics. How can a school have two people with the title?

For many years, Hope had separate directors for men's and women's athletics, but following the retirement of longtime Men's Athletic Director Ray Smith in May, the school decided to re-evaluate its administrative structure. It wanted to retain the two-athletic director model, but not separate men's and women's sports. Thus, Hope has hired two people for what is usually a one-person role.

"We tried to pair the oversight of the same men's and women's sports as much as possible," says Folkert, who has worked at the school since 1985 and became Women's Athletic Director in 2005. "That way both athletic directors will take ownership of gender equity oversight and assuring that all our programs are getting what they need to succeed."

"We sat down with Mark Northuis [who oversees athletics as Chair of the Kinesiology Department] to talk about what might work best and how to balance the workload," says Schoonveld, who previously served as Athletic Director, Vice Principal, and Head Girls' Basketball Coach at nearby Holland (Mich.) Christian High School.

The decision to continue with two athletic directors was largely driven by the school's belief that all its athletic staff members should spend time in the classroom. "Having our professionals here in the department teach is a rudimentary philosophical tenet of Hope College," Folkert says. "We want our coaches and administrators to stay in touch with what our student-athletes are going through as students, which we can do best when we're teaching. If we went to a one-athletic director system, that person wouldn't be teaching any longer because there wouldn't be any time for it."

What will Folkert and Schoonveld do when Hope is given one seat at the table, such as during conference meetings? They say that a process is already in place where opinions are shared and decisions are made beforehand among the leaders of the department. Northuis, who also serves as Head Coach of Women's Cross Country, is part of the discussions as are the school's Faculty Athletic Representatives.

"We try to come to a consensus, and more often than not, we're all in agreement," Folkert says. "When we don't have agreement, we have an understanding that it is a collegial atmosphere where someone might not have their way."

Folkert takes the same approach with the day-to-day decisions that come with running an athletic department. "Having two voices involved is a good thing," she says. "It provides some checks and balances that we wouldn't get otherwise, and somebody is always there to question whether a certain decision is really best for the college. There were times with Tim's predecessor when we would disagree, but in the end, as long as we understood what the other was saying and maintained respect for each other, it worked. I expect that will continue."

Finding someone who could fit into that kind of collaborative system was a key part of the hiring process. "One of the things they emphasized during the interview process was that there had to be a good fit between Eva and whoever they hired," says Schoonveld, who spent three years as a j.v. basketball coach at Hope after graduating from the school in 1996. "It really comes down to the two of us working hand in hand to meet the mission of the college. And since we have a great relationship, I anticipate it will work quite well."

"You can't be worried about being heard, having your ideas implemented, or feeling like you're the one who makes the decisions," Folkert says. "If we consider what's best for Hope College, we're going to make the right decisions. But it can only work if both people are starting from those same foundations."