Portland State Director of Athletics Valerie Cleary is leaving the Park Blocks to take on a new challenge as Athletics Director for the Multnomah Athletic Club in downtown Portland. The MAC is the largest and most prestigious athletic club in the Portland metropolitan area. Cleary leaves PSU after five years as AD and seven years of service in all.
"I am thankful for Val Cleary's time and dedication to Portland State Athletics," said PSU President Stephen Percy. "Her unmatched care and support of our student athletes and her enthusiasm for helping them shine touched every corner of this campus and her deft and skillful navigation of the COVID-19 pandemic ensured that student athletes could safely train and compete. During the challenging and unsettling pandemic experience, PSU athletes sustained their academic progress and achievements. We will miss Val very much and wish her every success in the future."
“I am so grateful for my experience with the Viking Family over the past eight years,” Cleary said. “Portland State University will always hold a special place in my heart. I especially want to thank Dr. Wiewel for the opportunity to lead the Viks and Dr. Percy for his support of me and athletics. I will forever be a fan of the Portland State Vikings!”
Cleary is scheduled to start at MAC in late August and will be responsible for the club’s Athletic division, which includes 26 sports, extensive health and fitness programs, and hundreds of junior recreational camps and classes. Cleary will serve on MAC’s Executive Leadership Team and work closely with member committees and the Board of Trustees to establish strategic priorities and help plan the club’s Campus of the Future.
Cleary began her career at Portland State in 2013 serving as Associate Athletics Director and Senior Woman Administrator for two years. Cleary was named interim AD in late 2014 prior to the hiring of Mark Rountree. She moved on to Willamette University early in 2015 to take on her first Athletics Director position. Cleary returned to Portland State upon Rountree’s departure, being named Athletics Director by then-PSU President Wim Wiewel on Dec. 6, 2016.
When Cleary returned to Portland State, she stepped into the development and completion process of the Viking Pavilion, the academic and athletic center that now houses the department and hosts basketball and volleyball in a 3,000-seat arena. The Viking Pavilion, which opened in 2018, also features upgraded amenities, and improved weight room, training room and academic advising facilities.
During her time as PSU AD, Cleary has hired new coaches in men’s basketball (twice), women’s basketball, track and field, women’s soccer, men’s and women’s tennis. She originally hired Bruce Barnum as football coach while interim AD in December 2014. In addition she has brought on numerous administrative staff members to support the student-athlete experience and maintain academic excellence among athletes .
Recent successes have included Big Sky Conference Championships in women’s basketball and softball in the past two years. Cleary also successfully guided PSU Athletics through the extraordinary challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, successfully overseeing health and safety protocols for PSU student-athletes and staff.
During the 2020-21 academic year, Portland State student-athletes maintained a combined 3.387 grade point average. Over the winter and spring terms, every team had a GPA above 3.00.
Cleary will move to her role at Multnomah Athletic Club in late August. Portland State will begin a national search to fill the Athletics Director position.