TIFTON– As the tennis coach at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Alan Kramer always challenged his players to perform at a different level.As the new Assistant Dean of Students at ABAC, Kramer is ready to accept that same type of challenge.
“I am looking forward to the new challenges presented with the student centered administrative focus,” said Kramer. “It is a very exciting time at ABAC as we expand our student services along with our bachelor’s degree programs. There is a lot of excitement and energy on campus, and our students are more engaged than ever before.”
Kramer began his new duties July 1. He will also continue to serve as ABAC Athletics Director.
“Alan Kramer has done an excellent job in his role as a faculty member, coach, and director of athletics, and I know he will take on this new role with just as much energy and enthusiasm,” said Dr. Niles Reddick, ABAC’s Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Kramer completed his B.S. degree in exercise science at Truman State University where he played intercollegiate tennis for four years and captained the squad his senior season.He received an M.S. degree in education with emphasis in health and human performance from Baylor University.
Kramer was named the Under Armour Athletic Director of the Year for the Southeast Region in 2009-10.He is a 2010 graduate of the Emerging Leaders Institute sponsored by the Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce.
As the ABAC coach, Kramer compiled a career record of 339 wins and 217 losses including a 191-110 record with the Fillies and a 148-107 record with the Stallions since he began his ABAC career in 1993. The Fillies won the Region XVII Championship 19 straight years before the streak ended this season when they finished second.
Kramer won 24 Region XVII Coach of the Year awards and led ABAC to 14 Fillies’ and 10 Stallions’ Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA) Championships.Kramer’s women’s teams finished in the top 10 nationally 10 times, and his men’s teams finished in the top 10 nationally 12 times.
Highlighting these strong finishes was a women’s national runner-up in 1999 and men’s national runner-up teams in 2002 and 2003.His Stallions finished third in the nation in 2006, 2008 and 2009.Kramer coached 58 All-America selections (22 women, 36 men), including five national champions (Milena Stanoytcheva, Monica Lalewicz, German Dalmagro, Arya Vafaei and Matthew Holland).
Kramer was named ITA/Wilson National Intercollegiate Women’s Coach of the Year in 1998 and 2007 and was inducted into the NJCAA Women’s Tennis Hall of Fame in 2010.Kramer served as the vice-president of the NJCAA Men’s Tennis Coaches Association from 2006-2009 and as president from 2009-2011. In 2006, Kramer was the recipient of the Hershel Stephens Award for Outstanding Service and Dedication to the Men’s Coaches Association.
He served as the Women’s National Ranking Chair from 1998-2000 and as Men’s National Ranking Chair from 2004-2008 and 2012-13. He was the Southeastern United States Women’s Ranking Chair from 1995-1999 and Men’s Ranking Chair from 2001-2003.
Kramer was a member of the ITA National Small College Operating Committee from 2004-2008 and was the GCAA Men’s and Women’s Tennis Chair from 1994-2013. Kramer was named the Southern Section USTA/ITA Campus Recreation Award Winner in 2003.
Kramer admits that he will miss coaching, but he has an open invitation from Dale White, the new tennis coach, to bring his racquet out of mothballs anytime he wants at the Red Hill Center.