Illinois State Hosts NIL Collaboration Event, Announces Staff Additions

NORMAL, Ill. – Recently, the Illinois State Athletics department took another step forward by hosting its Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) Community Collaboration event inside the Aaron Leetch Club at Hancock Stadium and announcing the additions of two full-time staff members Maya Bulger and Dayton Hammes to work directly with the department NIL efforts.

The event gathered Redbird coaches, staff and Bloomington-Normal business leaders for an afternoon of networking, education and the opportunity to discuss what Name, Image and Likeness is, why it's important in today's collegiate athletics environment, and how people can get involved. 

"Education is the key to success in this space and this is a very exciting time for our student-athletes," Illinois State Director of Athletics Kyle Brennan said. "We want to ensure our student-athletes and the businesses leaders successfully navigate this space in coordination with laws and guidelines, and in the best interest of everyone involved. We are excited to announce Maya and Dayton in these two important roles, and it's our goal to support and provide all the tools our student-athletes need when it comes to Name, Image and Likeness."

Brennan welcomed the group to the event, which was hosted by ISU Executive Associate Athletics Director for Student-Athlete Excellence Nona Richardson. Senior Associate Athletics Director for Compliance and Student Services Cindy Harris also addressed the crowd about NIL guidelines pertaining to the state of Illinois law enacted last summer. Brett Siegel, Associate University Counsel at Illinois State University, also spoke about potential changes to NIL laws.

Redbird women's basketball head coach Kristen Gillespie, men's basketball head coach Ryan Pedon and football head coach Brock Spack also spoke on behalf of the ISU coaches as part of a panel that discussed how NIL is impacting their programs and how it can benefit their student-athletes. ISU alum and athletics supporter Dee Miller also spoke to community members about the importance of working together to support and work with student-athletes.

Following the event, the department announced the additions of Bulger and Hammes who will be working directly with NIL efforts. Bulger takes on this role after working with Hawker Family Sports and Entertainment, a Sports Agency, specializing in college athletics and working as a graduate assistant with the development team and RB4L, Illinois State's alumni support program. In her new role as Director of Name, Image and Likeness & Community Engagement Bulger will build the department NIL platform, lead NIL initiatives and build relationships with local, regional and national companies to capitalize on NIL opportunities for Redbird student-athletes.

Hammes moves into her role as Director of Social Media, NIL & Student-Athlete Branding after working for the past three seasons in the department's athletics communications office. In her role, Hammes will develop programming to help educate and inform Redbird student-athletes about how to build their personal brands on social media. Using current technology at hand and future improvements, Hammes will assist student-athletes in elevating their platforms to better connect with NIL deals.

Anyone interested in Illinois State's NIL efforts can email Bulger (mbulger@ilstu.edu) for more information.

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