President F. King Alexander, left, thanks Debbie and Glen Bickerstaff for their support of 49er athletics during dedication of the newly-renamed Student-Athlete Academic Services Center.

Bickerstaff Center for Student-Athlete Academic Services Dedicated

More than 200 guests attended the dedication of the Bickerstaff Center for Student-Athlete Academic Services in June.

The center is named after Glen and Debbie Bickerstaff of Los Alamitos, supporters of 49er athletics. It is nearly triple the size of the old facility and assists the more than 300 49er student-athletes throughout the year.

In 1999, the Bickerstaffs began attending men’s basketball games, and they have been very active since. Initially getting involved with the annual Jewels of the Night auction, the Bickerstaffs have given nearly $1 million in donations to the student-athlete scholarship program and have supported women’s volleyball, men’s basketball and men’s golf.

The couple has donated nearly $1 million to the student-athlete scholarship program and has supported a variety of sports. The Bickerstaffs contributed $625,000 for the Legacy campaign that went toward the naming of the new center. Their donation also helped with the construction of the “History of 49er Athletics,” a permanent display to be located on the concourse level of The Walter Pyramid. Their second Legacy commitment of $250,000 helped complete the student-athlete strength and conditioning complex.

“We are delighted and proud to be associated with Long Beach State University and the Athletic Department,” said Glen Bickerstaff. “Our family has enjoyed our many contacts with the student-athletes, coaches and administrators. It is our hope that these facilities will benefit many dedicated student-athletes for years to come.”

 

Victor Cegles Named New A.D.

CSULB named Victor Cegles, senior associate athletic director of external affairs at Temple University, as the new athletics director.

Since 2003, Cegles reorganized the Temple athletic department’s fund-raising endeavors, coordinated efforts between the department and the university’s development office and directed corporate sponsorship. Previously, he was vice president of business development for Gaylord Sports Management in Scottsdale, Ariz., after serving 16 years at Arizona State University in athletic development and external affairs, ultimately serving as the lead senior associate athletic director, external affairs.

While at Arizona State, he led the athletics department’s $25 million capital campaign to enhance facilities and endowments, and, among other responsibilities, supervised baseball, men’s and women’s golf, and women’s gymnastics. He also was assistant athletic director for development at Rutgers for five years.

Cegles served as assistant varsity basketball coach at Carnegie Mellon University and as assistant varsity basketball and baseball coach at West Virginia Wesleyan College and Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He holds a B.S. degree in business administration from Bucknell and a master’s in counseling and student personnel services from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.