Photo by Krystal Hicks

Usually when you're sitting in the stands of a UNH sporting event, you're hardly wondering if the next big away game is going to set the team over budget. If you're Karla Dillon, however, that is more than just a passing thought. As the Business Manager of the Athletics department, it is Karla's job to make sure that every sports team recognized by the university maintains its financial obligations without overspending and surpassing their annual budget.

With around 15 different sports played here at UNH, Dillon oversees budgets for about 24 individual teams. She also maintains the general accounting duties, prepares management reports and monetary statements, and supervises the Business Services Center staff. For someone who admits that shopping is one of her favorite hobbies, Karla manages to effectively communicate and analyze fiscal problems with coaches and staff who don't always live in the 'budget world.'

It's hard to imagine all of this responsibility placed on the shoulders of just a few people, and Karla is optimistic about the changes being proposed for the coming summer; "We're getting ready to have a big move within our business office, and I think that's really going to benefit our whole staff," she explains. "We have such a huge budget and not enough staff, so we're going to combine with two other business service centers and they're going to renovate some space for us on the second floor of the Field House. We'll be able to spread the work out a little more and provide better customer service to everyone."

Karla maintains that the best part of her job is helping the coaches and staff to problem solve creatively and achieve the team's goals so that student-athletes have the best experience possible. "The family atmosphere here in the Athletic department makes this a very comfortable and enjoyable place to work," she states, "They are truly a fantastic group of people." As much as Karla loves her job and the "sense of community" she's experienced within her department, her outside life reflects an even brighter sense of happiness and achievement.

With a three-year-old daughter at home and another child due in August, Karla and her husband Scott have a life only few can imagine. High school sweethearts, they both attended Clarion University of Pennsylvania and got married after graduation. When Scott's job initially brought them to New Hampshire, they worked in a few different places throughout the state before finally settling in the countryside of Rochester, eager to start a family. Karla then started her first job for the University as an Internal Auditor in 1998 and worked there until transferring into the Athletics department in 2000 to start her job as Business Manager. She is also currently a member of the PAT Council, the Staff Professional Development Grant Committee, and is participating in the Managing @ UNH Program.

As much as Karla enjoys the UNH environment, she also she loves to travel with her husband. "We like to go where it's warm." She laughs. "We're both huge Jimmy Buffet fans so we've made a couple trips to Key West." With a birthday in May, she's is excited to go to Jamaica with her husband. Along with piano, gardening, and cooking, Karla says that she loves spending time with family and friends, both inside the Athletics department and out.