Longtime University of Iowa athletics official retires after planning thousands of events

IOWA CITY — If you've attended a Hawkeye athletic event in the last 30 years, you might consider sending Paula Jantz a thank-you note.

Jantz, senior associate athletic director for sports administration and operations, has been a key part of planning Hawkeye events including games, tournaments, Olympic trials and one-of-a-kind undertakings, such as concerts and an outdoor wrestling meet at Kinnick Stadium.

'For us to invite guests to our house, so to speak, is really special,' said Jantz, 62, who is retiring Feb. 1 after 36 years working in the University of Iowa Athletics Department. 'I've loved what I've done all these years.'

Jantz grew up on a farm in northwest Oklahoma, playing every sport she could. She focused on softball, field hockey and basketball as an undergraduate at Oklahoma State University before applying to graduate school at the UI in 1978. Christine Grant, director of UI women's athletics from 1973 to 2000, hired Jantz as an administrative assistant in 1980.

'Dr. Grant helped write Title IX,' Jantz said, referring to the federal law that provides equal opportunities for men and women in education, including sports. 'She was an advocate for equal opportunity from day one. It was life changing for me.'

Although the UI men's and women's athletics programs were separate, leaders worked together in a way that wasn't common across the country, Jantz said.

'There were other institutions where women could not be vocal,' Jantz said. But 'Christine and the men's Athletic Director, Bump Elliott, had so much respect for each other.'

Jantz was a jack-of-all-trades when she started at Iowa, helping with event planning, scheduling, admissions, housing and financial aid for female student athletes. Starting in 2000, she focused on the planning and logistics of all athletic events, of which the UI now hosts more than 200 a year.

One of the highlights of Jantz's early career was when the UI set a national women's basketball attendance record with 22,157 fans at Carver-Hawkeye Arena at the Feb. 3, 1985, game against Ohio State University. She remembers tracking gate attendance on a slip of paper and sweating as it surged over the 15,500 building capacity with fans standing in the aisles and concourse.

'Christine got a letter of reprimand from the vice president for finance,' Jantz said. 'She framed it.'

Other memorable events included the 2015 Grapple on the Gridiron, a first-of-its-kind outdoor wrestling meet between the UI and Oklahoma State. It drew 42,287 fans — the largest dual crowd in NCAA history — and the UI won the meet.

'Everyone thought we were crazy to have a wrestling meet in our football stadium,' Jantz said.

But when someone comes up with an idea for a UI athletic event, Jantz and her team find a way to get it done, said UI Athletic Director Gary Barta.

'Paula has the incredible ability to deliver great customer service under the highest of pressure situations,' he said in an email. 'I've worked with a lot of event managers during my thirty years and I've not worked with any better than her.'

Jantz also has inspired younger women in athletics administration.

'I probably wouldn't be where I am today without her guidance,' said Kate See, director of operations for UI Track & Field and Cross-country. See, who worked with Jantz as a student intern before being hired in 2014, said Jantz expects a lot from her employees, but goes to bat for them if necessary and leads by example. See remembers Jantz staying up until the wee hours of the morning to help get Carver-Hawkeye ready for the NCAA women's basketball tournament.

'She never asks you to do something she's not willing to do herself,' See said.

Like many athletes and coaches, Jantz is a little superstitious. She doesn't wear new clothes to competitions, used to eat a hot dog at each event to help the team win and changes seats at halftime if the Hawkeyes are losing.

One of the biggest misconceptions about her job is that she gets to watch all the sporting events she coordinates. While she always knows who won, she often misses much of the on-field action because she's making sure everything is going smoothly.

'When I retire, I will know more than whether we won or lost,' Jantz said. 'I want the fan experience.'

She's also planning a 24-day trip to Australia and New Zealand — a novelty because athletics officials don't get to travel for fun during the school year.

'I'm really looking forward to firsts,' she said.