Coppin State Athletic Director Derek Ramsey Resigns

Coppin State University athletic director Derek Ramsey resigned today, an unexpected departure that comes less than a day before the Eagles play their home basketball opener against Goldey-Beacon College.

In a letter to the campus community, CSU President Maria Thompson announced women’s track and field coach Alecia Shields-Gadsen as interim AD. Shields-Gadsen, a Southern University alumna, also serves as senior women’s administrator and previously as the deputy athletic director with oversight over budget, events and communications.

Appointed as athletic director in 2008, Ramsey grew the university’s academic profile while advocating for fairer review and resource guidelines from the NCAA. Last August, Coppin State was among several Division I mid-major programs named to an NCAA academic progress rate improvement pilot initiative, which earned the school $900,000 to improve tutoring and learning technology for student-athletes, while developing winter semester and fifth-year degree programs.

In February, Ramsey was a finalist to become AD at Eastern Kentucky.