Jill Bodensteiner enters her eighth year as Vice President and Director of Athletics at Saint Joseph’s University in 2025-26, leading the Hawks’ 20 NCAA Division I men’s and women’s varsity sports and the University’s Campus Recreation Department.
Coming to Hawk Hill in June of 2018 after an accomplished 20-year tenure at the University of Notre Dame, Bodensteiner has helped St. Joe’s develop a holistic approach to college athletics with a comprehensive focus on the field, in the classroom, on campus, and as an industry leader.
Over her first six years, Bodensteiner has overseen the genesis of an exciting era in St. Joe’s Athletics, defined by competitive excellence, transformative student experiences, facility upgrades, and creating a premier destination on Hawk Hill.
Competitive Excellence
During her tenure, Saint Joseph’s field hockey program has transformed into a nationally-ranked power, capturing four Atlantic 10 titles, while appearing in the NCAA tournament four out of five years, and winning the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament game,
a 3-1 win over #10 Wake Forest in 2022. In the spring of 2022, the Hawks’
men’s and
women’s lacrosse programs each won their respective conference titles and appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history, helping Saint Joseph’s earn its highest-ever Division I LEARFIELD Directors Cup rank, 133rd, and finish first in the A-10. This past spring, Saint Joseph’s baseball team won its
first A-10 regular season title in nearly 50 years, while men’s lacrosse captured the
inaugural A-10 regular season championship.
Transformative Student Experiences
Under Bodensteiner’s direction, Saint Joseph’s created the
Beyond the Hill program to develop student-athletes in the areas of academics, leadership, diversity and inclusion, spirituality and service, and career. A notable aspect of
Beyond the Hill involves the neighboring Gompers Elementary School. In 2021, St. Joe’s used funds from a $100,000 grant it received to design and implement a recess curriculum; while throughout the year,
dozens of student-athletes volunteer to support Gompers students during recess.
Recreation and Facilities Upgrades
During the 2023-23 academic year, $84 million in renovations of the recreation and athletic facilities will begin, including a
comprehensive renovation to the Fitness & Recreation Center, a basketball practice facility, an indoor turf training space, renovated locker rooms, and renovated high performance space. In previous years, Bodensteiner has overseen facilities upgrades to the basketball locker rooms, practice courts and offices; Sweeney Field, including the installation of a new energy efficient LED lighting system; and SJU Softball Field.
Premier Destination
Behind Bodensteiner’s guidance, Hawk Hill has transformed into a premier destination for Division I conference championships, high school athletic events, and e-Sports competitions. Saint Joseph’s strong success on the field of competition has led the Hawks to hosting numerous conference postseason championships, including A-10 field hockey, lacrosse, soccer and softball tournaments, and NEC men’s lacrosse championships. In 2023, Saint Joseph’s Hagan Arena was the backdrop for the Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association boys and girls basketball championships, along with a sold-out crowd for the highly-anticipated boys’ basketball game between nationally ranked Camden High School and Imhotep Charter. At the University City’s Athletic Recreation Center, Saint Joseph’s hosted both the Philadelphia Catholic League’s girls’ basketball semifinals, and the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Esports Association e-Sports State finals.
Industry Leadership
Bodensteiner brings to Saint Joseph’s strong NCAA leadership experience, currently serving on the Division I Women’s Basketball Committee, the Committee on Academics, and the Division I Council's NIL Working Group. Bodensteiner previously served on the Committee on Women’s Athletics, the Federal and State Legislative Working Group (charged with evaluating issues related to name, image, and likeness), and the Division I Legislative Solutions Working Group (charged with crafting legislative proposals related to NIL).
Videocast/Podcast Links
Hometown
• Valparaiso, Indiana
Education
• University of Notre Dame - BA Psychology/Sociology
• Washington University in St. Louis School of Law - JD
• University of Notre Dame - MBA
Industry Service
• NCAA Division I Council NIL Working Group
• NCAA Committee on Academics (2021 - present)
• Women Leaders in College Sports, Member, Board of Directors (May 2020 - present)
• Member, Division I Women’s Basketball Committee (2016 - 2018; 2022 - 2025)
• NCAA Division I Legislative Solutions Group (2019 - 2021)
• NCAA Federal & State Legislative Working Group (2019)
• Chair, ACC Women’s Basketball Strategic Planning Committee (2016 - 2018)
• LEAD1, Fellow in Residence in Washington D.C. (Spring 2017)
• NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics (2011 - 2015)
