Rachelle Paul was hired as Miami’s Deputy Director of Athletics and Senior Woman Administrator in 2023.
Paul comes to Coral Gables after serving the past four years as Director of Athletics at Saint Peter’s University.
Saint Peter’s enjoyed tremendous success during Paul’s tenure, most notably when the men’s basketball team became the first No. 15 seed in NCAA Tournament history to advance to the Elite Eight in 2022. Later that year, Paul was named the NCAA Division I Nike Executive of the Year by Women Leaders in College Sports.
Peacocks men’s basketball advanced to at least the semifinals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament in all four of her years at the helm, while the women’s basketball team made the 2021 MAAC Tournament final, its first appearance in 20 years.
Saint Peter’s finished in third place among all MAAC institutions in the Learfield Director’s Cup standings at the conclusion of 2021-22 and witnessed one of the program’s best athletic seasons in nearly 30 years during 2019-20, placing second in the MAAC Pepsi Zero Commissioner’s Cup Men’s Standings. The runner-up finish was the second highest in program history behind a first-place finish in 1993-94.
Paul oversaw the renovation of the Yanitelli Center with the creation of “Run Baby Run Arena” which opened during the 2021-22 academic year and houses the Peacocks’ men’s and women’s basketball and women’s volleyball programs.
Under Paul’s leadership, Saint Peter’s posted a 95 percent NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) following the 2020-21 and 2021-22 academic years, which matched the school record. The Peacocks placed a school-record 161 student-athletes on the MAAC honor roll in 2019-20.
Paul joined Saint Peter’s after serving as Senior Associate Athletics Director/SWA and Deputy Title IX Coordinator at Seton Hall University. She was responsible for the leadership and management of all areas of student-athlete development, including the organization and application of a comprehensive NCAA and BIG EAST rules compliance program and the implementation of relevant and effective programming to promote and enhance the personal growth and development of student-athletes. She also served as chair of the BIG EAST SWA Committee. Prior to Seton Hall, Paul held positions at Monmouth University, Canisius College, the Northeast Conference (NEC) and the MAAC.
Paul is a 2003 graduate of Canisius, where she also earned her master’s degree in sport administration in 2004. A four-year letterwinner in lacrosse, she graduated from the program seventh in school history in career points (65), eighth in career goals (49), eighth in career assists (19) and third in career ground balls (133). She also earned two varsity letters as a member of the soccer team. Paul is married to Tim Paul and is a native of Buffalo, N.Y.
