RICHMOND, Ky. – The Eastern Kentucky University Athletic Department has named Terry Johnson the new Senior Associate Athletics Director of Sport Sponsorship, a news announcement made Monday by Kyle Moats, Vice President and Athletic Director.

Johnson replaces Sean Hamilton, who has moved to EKU’s Office of Development and Alumni Engagement and will serve as executive director of athletics development.

“I am excited to have Terry join our team,” said Moats. “I have had the pleasure of working with him in the past and our goals and expectations are similar. He brings a wealth of experience not only in the athletics field, but also knowledge of our region and our partners that will give him the tools we were looking for in this role as we continue to push EKU Athletics to excellence.”

Johnson comes to the EKU athletic team with more than thirty years of experience in the sports industry. Most recently, he was the owner of a regional sports marketing startup, DonBar Ventures, LLC, specializing in assisting clients with business-to-business opportunities, sales representation and business development.

For the previous nine years, Johnson served as the athletic director at Lexington Christian Academy (LCA), a position he held since 2014. Johnson was responsible for all aspects of the department and oversaw the school’s 23 athletic programs, more than 500 student-athletes and more than 80 coaches. In addition, he was responsible for all fundraising and sponsorship sales. During that tenure, Eagle Athletics raised more than $2 million for capital improvements, won 7 KHSAA state titles, 12 All-“A” state championships and signed 118 student-athletes to play college sports.

Prior to LCA, Mr. Johnson spent four years as Executive Director of the Bluegrass Sports Commission, the organization responsible for organizing, recruiting and developing sporting events in Central Kentucky. This role included selling sponsorships and driving participation for the Bluegrass State Games and seven other events under the auspices of the BSC.

Prior to joining the Bluegrass Sports Commission, Terry served as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. In this role, Mr. Johnson and his team were responsible for the marketing, sponsorship sales, ticket sales, hospitality program and exhibition activities for the 2010 Games. With revenues of over $73 million, Terry’s group was an integral part of the success and impact of the 2010 Games on the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The 2010 Games were the largest sporting event ever held in the region, attracting more than 500,000 visitors.

Prior to the 2010 Games, Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher appointed Johnson as the first executive director of the Kentucky Sports Authority. In that role, he led the state’s efforts to attract all types of sporting events to the state, including the 2008 Ryder Cup (Valhalla) and the 2010 World Equestrian Games, to boost tourism and economic development. Before taking over as head of the Sports Authority, Johnson served for two years as deputy commissioner of tourism.

Earlier in his career, Johnson spent 11 years in collegiate sports, working for the Big East Conference, the University of Kentucky, Morehead State University and HOST Communications.

A native of Kettering, Ohio, Terry received his bachelor’s degree from Bowling Green State University and his master’s degree from the University of Kentucky. He and his wife, Cindy (EKU ’90), live in Lexington and have two grown sons – Matthew and Drew.