Who is new MSU athletic director Bill Beekman?

Eric Lacy
Lansing State Journal
Bill Beekman was named Michigan State University's new athletic director on Monday, July 16, 2018..

EAST LANSING -- Michigan State's new athletic director, the university's 19th, has no experience being in charge of college sports programs.

But Bill Beekman, 51, has spent over two decades at MSU serving a variety of roles.

He also has the temperament to handle stress and adversity, said Stepheni Schlinker, a friend for over 20 years. 

“He’s always smiling," Schlinker said. "He could probably be on fire inside and you wouldn’t know that.”

For four years, Schlinker worked two floors below Beekman in MSU's Hannah Administration building.

Schlinker quickly became impressed with the care and attention to detail Beekman displayed with co-workers on campus. He "genuinely cared about your life," she recalled.

News Monday of Beekman's appointment as permanent athletic director adds a new title to his already extensive resume.

Beekman's salary and terms of his contract are expected to be made public Tuesday following the MSU Board of Trustees' 9 a.m. meeting inside the Hannah Administration Building.

In February, Beekman received a salary increase to $400,000 along with the interim athletic director title. 

Beekman also served briefly as interim president before the MSU board tapped former Gov. John Engler to lead the university through fallout from the Larry Nassar sexual abuse scandal. 

Lou Anna Simon and Mark Hollis left their positions as president and athletic director in late January. Engler was named interim president Jan. 31.  

Beekman, a Okemos High School graduate, now may have the most daunting task of his career, overseeing an athletic department with 25 sports programs for over 800 student-athletes.

The department ranked No. 21 among nationwide in revenue ($126,021,377), according to USA Today,  which used data from the 2016-17 year.  

Former Lansing Mayor David Hollister is intrigued by MSU's hire and recalls Beekman as a welcoming presence within the university's political structure. 

Hollister was the mayor from 1993 to 2003 and often saw Beekman in his MSU office before meetings with Simon, who was then provost, and M. Peter McPherson, who preceded her as president. 

“He played a very quiet behind-the-scenes role," Hollister said of Beekman. "Very confident, very skilled, very diplomatic."

Beekman's has been vice president and secretary to the Board of Trustees since 2008.

Beekman rose to prominence at MSU quickly after several staff and faculty roles, which included executive director of  MSU Alumni Association, senior adviser to the provost and assistant dean for finance in the College of Human Medicine.

Beekman joined MSU in 1995 as an administrator with the MSU HealthTeam and spent time as assistant dean for planning and finance in the College of Human Medicine. He also taught health policy and health finance in the College of Human Medicine and the College of Law.

Beekman is a dedicated family man with a love for sports, said Steve Finamore, his son's former high school basketball coach. 

Beekman's son Nick didn't play much last season for East Lansing High School's varsity team, but that didn't stop his dad from supporting the team, Finamore said. 

“In today’s day and age, where parents complain about their son's playing time, Bill never said a word to me," Finamore said. "I think Michigan State has hired an outstanding person." 

During the season, lBill Beekman was known to offer plenty of positive reinforcement. 

In late February on the day when Finamore stepped down from coaching at East Lansing, he received an email that night from Bill Beekman, who thanked Finamore for working with his son. 

Earlier in the season, Finamore said Beekman sent him "three to five" text messages also heaped with praise. 

“You got a good person in there," Finamore said of Beekman.

Beekman has spent most of his life in Michigan, including two years working at Dickinson Wright, a Detroit-based law firm that also has an office in Lansing. 

Geoff Blair lived on the same floor as Beekman in Case Hall when they were MSU sophomores.

He wrote in a Facebook message to a State Journal reporter that Beekman has a reputation for strong ethics that hasn't appeared to change. 

"The Bill Beekman I knew was always the steady, calm influence in our circle of friends," Blair wrote. "He always treated people fairly, which is why I believe he was a wise choice."

Eric Lacy is a reporter for the Lansing State Journal. Contact him at 517-377-1206 or elacy@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @EricLacy.