Having reached the peak of his personal mountain, Bruce Van De Velde decided to step down while on top.

With a balanced budget, secure coaching staff and vastly improved facilities since he was hired on Oct. 15, 2000, Van De Velde resigned from his position as athletic director Aug. 8.

“The program is on top,” Van De Velde said. “I looked at the goals I had coming in and said, ‘what else do I have to accomplish?’

“As I judged the political climate I decided it was time to look for a new challenge and for Iowa State to have a new leader in the athletic department.”

He will continue in his role as athletic director until Dec. 31 or until a new director is found.

“Right now I’m just concentrating on doing the job here,” Van De Velde said. “We’ve poured our heart and soul into Iowa State and we want to continue doing a great job until that last day when we walk out the door. We have a tremendous amount of work to do over the next few weeks to get ready for the football season. I’m still focusing on the task at hand.

“I want to leave it in great shape. It’s in good shape and I want to leave it that way and walk out on top.”

Van De Velde’s contract expired July 1 and ISU President Gregory Geoffroy decided to not offer the athletic director another long-term contract. Instead, Van De Velde was given the title ‘exempt professional and scientific’ employee, serving at the pleasure of the president.

With minimal job security, Van De Velde started considering a move.

“When the university decided that I would not have a multiple-year contract, you lose your effectiveness, and at that point I started to think about [a move],” Van De Velde said.

Geoffroy said he didn’t renew Van De Velde’s contract because it gave both the university and the athletic director more options.

“The decision I made was because I thought it would give us the greatest flexibility, was to put Bruce on . not a contract, but an appointment, a professional and scientific staff appointment, and Bruce agreed to that,” he said. “He would have probably preferred a long-term contract, but I didn’t wish to do that.”

Geoffroy praised the work Van De Velde had done while at Iowa State.

“He has built a great foundation to recruit a new director around,” Geoffroy said. “The program is in great shape from a budget standpoint, and has a strong group of coaches and staff. Bruce is still leading through this transition.”

While at Iowa State, Van De Velde oversaw a turnaround in the athletic department, leading the Cyclones financially from red to black, departing with $4.5 million in the bank.

He also helped improve athletic facilities, upgrading Jack Trice Stadium and completing construction on the Bergstrom indoor practice facility.

“The facilities were in the Dark Ages when I got here, going on 11 years ago,” said head football coach Dan McCarney. “We started the upgrade before Bruce got here with [former athletic director] Gene Smith. There were a lot of things that needed to get done and Bruce picked up where Gene left off.”

But the good isn’t what most will remember him for.

Faced with serious money problems, Van De Velde cut baseball and men’s swimming and diving, which was not a popular move. He also recommended men’s basketball coach Larry Eustachy be fired after pictures surfaced showing the coach partying with University of Missouri students.

Although many feel he mishandled Eustachy’s situation, Van De Velde said he has no regrets about his tenure.

“To me it’s very important that adults set a good example for young people, and at one time we didn’t have that in our department,” Van De Velde said. “But I feel that we have restored integrity and have good role models and examples for young people to look up to, and I’m proud of that.”

Although he does not have a destination just yet, Van De Velde said he is convinced there is a place for him in collegiate administration.

He may also take time off to complete work on his doctorate.

Van De Velde said he received athletic director offers by several universities, including the University of Colorado, while at Iowa State, but never seriously considered a move.

“I have had several athletic director jobs offered to me since I’ve been here, but they weren’t in the region of the country where I really wanted to live,” Van De Velde said.

The possibility of making a move into either NCAA or conference administration had not been ruled out.

Van De Velde said he wants to “safeguard” collegiate athletics from those that would not have the student-athletes’ best interests in mind.

“There is a tremendous amount of pressure on intercollegiate athletics today from people outside the university who want to run and operate the athletic department or the system the way they think it should be done. That’s OK if their goals and aspirations are what’s best for the students and university.

“But when they’re not, it takes individuals who are in leadership positions to be a gatekeeper and to be able to stand up and have the courage to say, `No, that’s not what’s right for these young men and women, that’s not good for them academically and that’s not going to help them as people,’ and my goal is to continue to be a good example and serve in that capacity.”