Adviser’s Note:  Athletic Director’s interview in Journalism I sparked stories worth reading.  Here are two of them.

“If you work hard, you’re going to achieve your goals,” said Mr. Matthew Koenig, Notre Dame Academy’s athletic director of six years. 

Working hard was Koenig’s motto throughout his life. “I worked hard,” he said. He had to because Koenig grew up struggling in school because of a learning disability. 

Koenig grew up in Cincinnati, graduated high school there in 1997, and struggled through school. He spent hours on end studying and working multiple jobs but “[he] didn’t get into most schools [he] applied to.”

He was accepted to Xavier University in Cincinnati. He grew up with four older brothers, so sports were always in his life, and he took that interest with him to Xavier.

Koenig approached the head basketball coach and said, “I want to work with the basketball team.” This led to helping out with sports teams and their games, eventually leading him to a sports manager position.

This wasn’t a position to settle in on, but luckily he bumped into an old friend, and he offered Koenig an internship for Assistant Athletic Director at a high school.

It wasn’t until 2002 “[he] got an official full-time athletic director job.” He continued that job, and in 2019 a position for athletic director at NDA came up, and his sister sent the application to him.

“I did a lot of soul searching,did a lot of praying,” Koenig said. He eventually took the job where his “main responsibility is all student-athletes, paperwork and teams, scheduling, and logistics.”

“Athletic director is not a 9 to 5 job,” he said. “You’re always on the go,” and “I never seem to get caught up [with work].” 

However,he finds joy within the busy hours and busy work: “There’s always something going on, and I think that’s the fun part.”

—Ryker Thomas

************************

Matthew Koenig’s path to becoming the athletic director at Notre Dame Academy wasn’t easy, but his love for sports and hard work helped him get there.

Koenig grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, where sports were a big part of his life. “My whole childhood was based around sports,” said Koenig, but in school, he struggled. “I was not a good student,” said Koenig. “I had to find my grit.”

In high school and college, he was very focused on working and earning money.  But when it was time to think about his future, he realized he wanted to do something with sports.

College wasn’t easy either. “Colleges and pro teams didn’t have systems for anyone to become an intern or manager,” said Koenig. He worked two or three jobs to support himself. “You can’t let your inabilities stop you from reaching your goal,”

After college, he didn’t even know that high schools had athletic directors, but he was determined to work in sports. A family friend who played basketball at the University of Miami helped him get a job at King’s High School, and that’s where he started his career.

Now in his 16th year as an athletic director, Koenig has spent the last six years at NDA. One of his main jobs is registering athletes for sports, but he also organizes sports seasons and supports coaches. “The job is never boring,” said Koenig.

One of his proudest moments came in 2022 when the NDA girls basketball team won a state championship.

Koenig loves sports, especially baseball, football, hockey, and softball. He also believes high school sports are really important. “Club sports are interrupting high school sports,” said Koenig.

Moving to Green Bay with his wife and four kids was a big decision, but he’s glad he made it. “I did a lot of soul searching and praying, but it was all worth it,” said Koenig.

—-Nicholas Felker