General | 11/8/2022 3:40:00 PM
OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University director of athletics Corey Bray has named Natalie Graves associate athletic director for compliance and academics.
Graves will officially join the OCU staff on Nov. 14.
"I am excited to have Natalie join our team as the Associate Athletics Director for Compliance and Academics. Her experience as a skilled athletics administrator, coach, and faculty member will provide a tremendous foundation for her success in this position," said Bray. "Her mission and values are a great fit and there is no doubt that she will provide strong leadership as OCU athletics continues to be the home of champions: in the classroom, in the community and in competition."
Graves comes to OCU from Redlands Community College in El Reno, Okla., where she most recently served as associate athletics director and head cross country coach. Graves implemented both the women's and men's cross country programs, which began competition in 2019. The first-ever men's team finished second in their regional, while the women's team won the NJCAA Division I Regional Championship title for Region II of the NJCAA. That team also included the individual female champion, and earned the Academic All-American Team of the Year Award. Graves was a nominee for the 2019 Women's Coach of the Year Award from the USTFCCCA/NJCAA Coaches Association, for Region West.
"I'm excited to be joining the Oklahoma City University family, and the 'Home of the Champions,' " said Graves. "I am very thankful for those who have helped me get here. It was an honor to learn from so many wonderful people, and I will carry that knowledge with me into the next phase of my career. I would also like to send many thanks to Corey Bray for this exciting opportunity to work with such an incredible group of student-athletes, and a great team of administrators and coaches. I cannot wait to embark on this new journey!"
At Redlands, Graves also served as the assistant director of women's sports for NJCAA Region II. In that role, she served on national committees for division one women's basketball and soccer, and division two women's softball.
A graduate of Baker University (bachelor's) and the University of Kansas (master's), Graves was a multi-sport athlete for Baker in both basketball and track, and an NAIA Academic All-American. While at KU, she served as a graduate research assistant, then research coordinator, where she managed and organized studies related to physical education curriculum, as well as a pilot study on obesity.
