NEW HAVEN, Conn. (February 4, 2026) – Wilmington University Director of Athletics Dr. Stefanie Whitby has been selected as the 2025-26 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Athletics Director of the Year, CACC Commissioner Dan Mara announced today. Whitby was chosen by a vote of her fellow members of the CACC Directors Council.
Under Whitby’s guidance, Wilmington finished a program-best 74th in the Division II Learfield Directors’ Cup standings during the 2024-25 academic year while simultaneously achieving a grade-point average of 3.23. The Wildcats won five CACC championships plus two regular-season crowns, sent eight teams and an individual to NCAA D-II Championship events, and produced eight All-Americans.
Whitby has been the A.D. at Wilmington since February 2018. During that time, the Wildcats have won 23 CACC titles and six men’s Restaino Cup trophies for conference all-sport excellence. Whitby has overseen Wilmington’s hosting of 10 NCAA regional or super-regional championships, and Wildcat athletes have met a departmental GPA of 3.0 or better for each semester during her tenure.
“Dr. Whitby is a talented leader and administrator,” Mara said. “Since assuming leadership of the WilmU athletics department, she has guided a golden era for the Wildcats. Wilmington has prioritized student-athlete welfare and academic achievement while still producing championship teams that excel – in both men's and women's sports – on the conference, regional and national levels.”
Wilmington is constructing its first on-campus strength and conditioning room for student-athletes, the latest of several improvements Whitby has organized. She is a member of the NCAA Division II Men’s and Women’s Tennis Selection Committees and is the CACC supervisor of men’s and women’s track & field. In 2025, Whitby was chosen as one of Delaware’s Most Influential People in Sports by The News Journal and DelawareOnline.
Whitby possesses a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Villanova University (1990), where she was an All-Big East performer in indoor track & field (distance medley relay). She completed an M.Ed. in education counseling from Temple University (1992) and an Ed.D. in organizational leadership from Wilmington. She was the head men’s and women’s track & field coach at Temple from 2005-09. Prior to becoming A.D., she worked at Wilmington as the Senior Director of Alumni Relations and Senior Director of the University Partnership Center.
Founded in 1961, the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference has been affiliated with NCAA Division II for 20 years. Conference institutions compete for championships in 17 sports – seven for men, nine for women, and one co-ed. The CACC contains 11 full members in Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Membership includes the University of Bridgeport, Caldwell University, Chestnut Hill College, Dominican University New York, Felician University, Georgian Court University, Goldey-Beacom College, Holy Family University, Post University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Wilmington University.