Michelle Smidt, a UNK graduate, has served in a variety roles since joining Loper Athletics in the summer of 1996.
Currently, she serves as the Payroll Coordinator, Insurance Coordinator and reconciles procurement and travel card transactions.
She also has served as Ticket Manager for the athletic department and, prior to 1999, was the athletic staff secretary.
As Insurance Coordinator, Smidt collects paperwork from all UNK student-athletes, spirit squad and dance team members on an annual basis. She informs these groups, and their parents, on the policies and procedures regarding athletic injuries.
Smidt works with UNK Athletic Sports Medicine to ensure injuries are athletic related and that claim forms, bills and primary explanation of benefits are submitted in a timely manner and to the appropriate parties. She then corresponds with medical business and secondary insurance companies to make sure the paperwork is handled in an orderly fashion.
In her previous role as ticker manager, Smidt and her staff of student workers process on-line orders, ticket requests from Loper student-athletes and coaches, and compile event information for all home athletic events where tickets are sold.
She also sets up ticket operations on game day, processes payments all ticket orders and maintains an e-mail data bases for season ticket holders. Finally, Smidt has been the ticket manager for the five NCAA Championships that have been hosted by UNK since 2005.Â
Holding a BA degree in Spanish & French, Interpretation and Translation, Smidt was the Co-Director of the Loper Woman’s Walk from 2009-11. That event helped raised monies for Loper women’s sport programs.
She also has served on several search committees for the Athletic Department.
Since 2001, Smidt has attended several professional conferences, including the MIAA Professional Workshop in June 2011 and the Dale Carnegie Leadership Course in March 2013.
Finally, Smidt is a Board member for the Concerned Nebraskans for Cystic Fibrosis and the Nebraska Regional Adult Cystic Fibrosis Patient & Family Advisory. For the later, she also served in the office of secretary and president.
Smidt resides in Kearney with her husband, Joe.
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