New Athletic Director, and Rutgers Alum, Is Building ‘Championship Climate’ 

From her office window inside the Golden Dome, Megan Haughey has an expansive view of the basketball court below, where middle schoolers from a summer program have been shooting hoops.

In some ways, Haughey, Rutgers University–Newark’s new athletic director, has come home. The daughter of a Rutgers football player, the granddaughter of a Rutgers science professor, and an alumna herself, she spent much of her life on the court, first as a high school basketball star and then as a coach. For nearly 25 years, she coached women’s basketball,  including a 14-year stint at Stevens Institute of Technology, where she was eventually appointed deputy athletic director.

“Sports have played a huge role in my life. My friends, my relationships, so many started there. The things you learn about toughness and overcoming obstacles and being resilient are life lessons,'' said Haughey, who arrived earlier this month.

Haughey has big plans—and a methodical approach—to building out Rutgers–Newark’s athletics program. Her ultimate goal is to establish a “championship climate,'' which includes highly anticipated games that draw crowds of spectators from RU-N and the city of Newark.

“I’m a big believer that winning is an outcome of a process. If you have a championship climate and process in place, then you can win,'' said Haughey. “It’s also about how a student-athlete feels from the moment they come into this structure. We want them to feel that it’s important, that it’s an honor to play here, and everyone knows about their games.''

But her vision of RU-N athletics extends beyond its Division III teams. It includes establishing a recreational programs for students and faculty that encompass  intramural sports, fitness classes, and off-campus  excursions, such as beach visits, hiking and canoeing trips, and time at local parks. “Recreation and wellness are crucial for overall wellness and for students to feel connected to our campus. How our students feel is in direct correlation to their experience and retention,’’ said Haughey.

She also plans to develop new programs at the Golden Dome swimming pool, such as lifeguard training, swim lessons, and classes for the residents and youth of Newark. 

Haughey wants to see Newark’s K-12 students making field trips to Scarlet Raider games, which she hopes will become citywide events.“We want all the schools in our community to come through here,” she said. “They should come to our game days. They should see Raider out there during halftime and feel the excitement. The Golden Dome should be a place everyone has been if you live in Newark.”

For Chancellor Tonya Smith-Jackson, who emphasizes the value of school spirit, recreation, and nurturing student-athletes, Haughey was the perfect fit for RU-N. "We look forward to the strategic thinking and competencies around execution that Director Haughey will bring. By investing in athletics and recreation, we are investing in the whole student. These experiences develop the mind, body, and spirit while advancing our ultimate goal: student success."

Haughey, who earned a master’s degree in social work at Rutgers–New Brunswick, is a skilled coach with more than a decade of experience mentoring other coaches.“The best coaches are the ones that coach from the heart, care about their players as people, and are invested in their growth off the court,” she said. “They’re also great communicators. It's managing all the elements that go into great teams. It’s about winning, yeah, but getting over the hard times, too. When difficulties hit, I think a strong coach is able to weather the storm.”

But coaching has changed dramatically in recent years, and leaders must adapt to a new generation of student-athletes, according to Haughey. “Students today want to be part of the process,” she said. “It's difficult to coach without a genuine relationship. They want to be involved and get to know you as a person.”

That’s why she chose Alyssa Parsons, head coach of women’s basketball at Albright University and a former Division I athlete, to coach the women’s team at RU-N. Parsons is Haughey’s first hire.

“Alyssa is the type of coach who players want to play for, as her energy and passion is contagious,’’ said Haughey. “She is a teacher of the game and a great basketball mind, and beyond that, she coaches from the heart to the heart, and values her players as people first.” 

The foundation of Haughey's career was built long before she became an administrator. Raised on a Hunterdon County dairy farm, sports were a constant presence in her family. Her father, Dennis Haughey, Class of ’79, played defensive tackle for the Scarlet Knights and was also on the wrestling team. Later, he coached high school football and wrestling.

Megan Haughey was a standout athlete at North Hunterdon High School, where she played soccer, basketball, and softball before continuing her basketball career at Lafayette College, where she majored in history.  At age  21, Haughey became the youngest varsity head basketball coach in New Jersey when she took over the girls basketball program at Phillipsburg High School, where she taught history.

The team had won just one game the previous season, but within a year, Haughey guided the Stateliners to double-digit victories. “I've always considered myself a builder,” she said. “Phillipsburg High School needed a lot of love, a lot of energy, someone who is passionate and excited and has a plan.”

For 15 years, she has also worked with United NJ, a non-profit youth basketball program, where she has served as a coach, mentor and director. During her tenure at Stevens Institute of Technology, Haughey became the winningest coach in the history of the women’s basketball program while assuming senior leadership roles within the athletic department. 

Her teams reached five NCAA tournaments, won conference championships, and earned recognition for academic achievement. Stevens, like RU-N, is Division III, where the focus is on character-building, service, and a passion for the game, Haughey explained. “I love Division III because for student-athletes this isn’t a job. You’re doing it because you love it,” she said. “You know you have to have balance to be successful.''

Her plans for fostering student success on and off the court include life-skills programming, time-management workshops, and partnerships across the university. “College is such a transformative time,'' she said. “There’s such joy in watching them prepare to go into the workforce, to see them get jobs. There’s so much going on in their lives and it’s exciting to be a part of that.''

Haughey is especially impressed by student-athletes at RU-N. “They’re hungry for success,'' she said. “You have to be tough to be here. My favorite saying is ‘if it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you.’ That’s who we are. That’s Newark.''

The diversity at RU-N was another draw for Haughey. “Every day you can meet people from different backgrounds. When you get to do that, there’s no better higher education experience.''

While she aims to further RU-N’s identity as a division leader, she also plans to form a deeper connection between Rutgers–Newark and the university’s status as a Big Ten institution. “That’s energy we need to leverage,'' she said. “The Rutgers block ‘R’ is a powerful thing. We share the same brand and the success of our team is something we share. You’re a Division III athlete but you’re part of something bigger.’’