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Pfeiffer University has announced that Jeff Childress will join the university as the vice president of athletics and external relations on June 1. Childress will also serve as a member of the President’s Cabinet.

As vice president, Childress will oversee all aspects of athletic programming and athletics-related advancement activities. Key responsibilities will include working with Pfeiffer staff in developing a master facilities plan for the athletics division. The plan will constitute one portion of the university’s strategic plan and vision which will undergo a revision from 2022 to 2024 to ensure that Pfeiffer is an attractive destination for prospective students for years to come.

Childress currently serves Catawba College as the associate athletic director for athletic development and the director of the Catawba Chiefs Club. Under his leadership, Catawba Chiefs Club membership rose from 306 to more than 700, raising more than $200,000 in gifts in the 2021-2022 fiscal year.

“Catawba is and will always be a very special place to our family and me. It was a tough decision to leave Catawba. However, I am looking forward to taking on new responsibilities and challenges at Pfeiffer University.” said Childress.

During his time at Catawba, Childress also served as the head coach for men’s and women’s tennis. Childress guided the men to 276 wins and the women to 174 victories. Before his service at Catawba, Childress was the director of athletics at Pfeiffer University.

Childress played tennis and ran cross-country for four years at Pfeiffer from 1985 to 1989. He served as the graduate assistant for the men’s and women’s tennis teams at East Carolina University from 1990 to 1991. Childress received his M.A.Ed. from East Carolina in 1995.

“In recent years, we have enhanced our athletics-related fundraising and our attentiveness to our student-athletes’ physical, academic and spiritual needs — as well as their needs in the area of mental wellness,” Pfeiffer President Scott Bullard said. “Mr. Childress’ work with Director of Athletics Danielle Lafferty and Director of the Falcon Club Zac Chilton will only bolster our ability to serve well these important members of the student body and attract the next generation of Pfeiffer Falcons.”

Childress is married to Dr. Donna Childress, MD. They have two sons, Michael, a senior on the University of Richmond golf team; Ben, a senior at The Cannon School who will attend Duke University after graduation; and a daughter, Lauren. The Childress family resides in Salisbury.