INDIANA, Pa. – Jacob Oberdorf has been hired as the director of strategic communications and ideation for the Indiana University of Pennsylvania athletics department. Oberdorf begins his tenure at IUP on May 19 in the role formerly known as the sports information director. 
 
Oberdorf is the successor to Samantha Traini, an IUP alumna who filled the interim director role during the 2024-25 school year. 
 
Oberdorf comes to IUP following a four-year stint at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, an NCAA Division III school competing in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. Serving as the director of sports information, Oberdorf managed the office and internship program at UPG. 
 
He was responsible for the set up and tear down of athletic facilities during home events, the department's social media channels and the athletic website, among other duties. 
 
"I would like to thank Todd Garzarelli and the rest of the hiring committee for their time and for trusting me to fill this role," Oberdorf said. "I am excited to be part of such a successful athletics department and help tell the stories of our student-athletes."
 
Oberdorf's responsibilities at IUP will include creating online content for IUP's 19 NCAA Division II varsity programs, home event coverage and in-game statistics, game recaps, social media management, live streaming, department photography and updates to the IUP Athletics website. 
 
He will also serve as the athletic department's primary liaison to the media and other campus stakeholders. 
 
"We are excited to welcome Jacob to his new role here at IUP," said Todd Garzarelli, the director of athletics. "He brings energy, enthusiasm, and wide-ranging experience to this important position in our department. We know his work will benefit our student-athletes, coaches, programs, and our university in this new era of intercollegiate athletics."
 
A 2015 graduate of Clarion University of Pennsylvania (now PennWest Clarion), Oberdorf was a sportswriter and then sports editor for the Clarion Call student newspaper. 
 
After graduation, Oberdorf worked as a sports reporter for the Kittanning Leader Times and as a freelance writer for various blogs and sports outlets in the greater Pittsburgh area. He completed internships in the Office of Admissions at Penn State-New Kensington and for the Butler Blue Sox collegiate baseball club.
 
A native of Leechburg, Oberdorf is involved in the community as a volunteer basketball coach for Leechburg Senior High School.

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