The consensus among John Kean’s colleagues and peers is that he is one of the best, if not the best, Sports Information Directors (SID) in the entire nation at the Division II level.
Recently, Kean was indirectly recognized as such, as he was appointed to the Division II Sports Information Directors Association Board of Directors at the NCAA meetings this summer.
“In Division II, this is a big deal,” Roy Pickerill, President of the College Sports Information Directors of America said. “It’s the ultimate an SID at our level can achieve.”
The committee basically sets the agenda for all Division II SIDs, discussing all the important issues of the day in college athletics, how it affects them, and figuring out ways to improve things for everybody.
Pickerill, who is also the SID at Kentucky Wesleyan College and has worked with Kean over the years, says he was excited to add Kean to the Board of Directors and that he is very deserving.
“John is very passionate about his job. In fact, at most times I don’t even think he considers it a job,” Pickerill said. “He’s the consummate professional. John, no matter what he’s doing, always goes above and beyond the call of duty, whether it’s for his own work, or for a fellow colleague.
“I’ve known John for a long time. He’s been a part of national projects that have never been done before, especially at the Division II level. He’s extremely innovative and creative. He was one of the first to do a website for a sport in Division II. He does the website for men’s basketball. That had not been done before. And, he does a great job. He’s staying up late for basketball games from Alaska and Hawaii to update them on the website. He goes way beyond to get things done.”
No surprise
It was not a shock to those who deal with Kean on a regular basis that he would earn such an honor.
When you chose a career in sports, long hours are the norm. It’s not easy to stand out based on your work ethic, as everybody works extremely hard. Nonetheless, Kean has managed to do so.
“John has been a tremendous asset for our department, and I think our university as a whole,” Missouri S&T Athletics Director Mark Mullin said. “Obviously, there is not a large staff in our Sports Information Department -- he’s sort of a one-man show -- but he really works hard to promote our programs, making sure the job gets done well. He not only assists us in with our stats, our day-to-day releases, and our Web site, but he does game management as well. He obviously has a passion for S&T Miner athletics.
“He plays an important part of so much of what we do. I think he has been instrumental in our success over recent years.”
Yes, it’s way over a 40-hour-a-week job, and you have to be ready at all hours. And, it’s not like at the Division I level where the staffs, not to mention budgets, are larger.
“Being an SID at our level is a very challenging area. It takes an extremely motivated person who really enjoys it. And, you can see that with John. It shows in his work and you can see it at games. He has a passion for Missouri S&T athletics,” Mullin said. “John works very well with the media. He also does an excellent job outside our institution. He is always willing to help. He is one of the first SIDs that volunteers for any conference activities. And, that shines a good light on our department and our institution.
“Everybody knows how hard John works. I’ve had many SIDs and athletic directors come up to me -- without me approaching them -- and compliment him for the quality of his work and his work ethic.”
Great Lakes Valley Conference Commissioner Jim Naumovich admitted he has probably done that same exact thing to Mullin. Apparently, Kean is always willing to assist the GLVC when needed.
“John is always willing to step up. He’s a great service to his institution,” Naumovich said. “You make friends with a lot of people when they know they can count on you.”
Naumovich recounted a story as an example. One year at the GLVC Softball Tournament, a softball supplier had not arrived, and they were without softballs the night before the tournament. The only way they were going to have balls for the event was if somebody could take a four-hour round trip and pick them up. Kean, who was there just to cover the Lady Miners, not even to work the tournament, heard the quandary and quickly volunteered.
“John is just that type of guy. He’s very generous with his time,” Naumovich said. “He’s one of those guys who will do whatever needs to be done.”
Yes, somehow John finds the time for everybody. Most think he accomplishes what it should take two or three people to do.
“John does a fantastic job here with very little help,” S&T volleyball coach Jason Holt said. “He does so many sports, especially now with the edition of volleyball, but he is able to balance it well. With the number of sports we have, it would be tough to do what he does with multiple people. Yet, he does a great job for every sport throughout the year. We really appreciate what he did to help promote the volleyball team in our first year.”
The media might be John’s biggest fans. Much of his work is done behind the scenes in an effort to make the media look good. He will go to any lengths to help promote S&T and its athletes.  
“John is an outstanding SID. I think what makes him so special is that he knows his history. He’s a sports zealot that knows his sports back and forth. That, and it would normally take two or three people to do what he does,” KTTR’s Lee Buhr, the Voice of the Miners, said. “There is nobody better at prep. He gets out his materials to the press long in advance and will have all the info you need for the game. He’s a splendid worker, and he’s probably massively underpaid.”
Kean will even occasionally be heard on the radio calling games when the Miners and Lady Miners are in different locations. He writes stories. He takes photos. He answers requests. This is all in addition to him being the person behind almost all printed materials released relating to sports at S&T, including game programs and media guides.
“He’s just a good person,” Buhr said. “He works in a department which is a good department. But, he makes it so much better than if somebody else was trying to do his job. I’ve seen other SIDs. John never quits working. He never stops bringing updated stats. He always keeps you up to date on records and important happenings. He is great at looking forward. He is just a tremendous person who does a great job.” 
Getting to know Kean
Kean is entering his 19th year at Missouri S&T.
After some badgering, he’ll admit that being an SID at times can take it’s toll, but that it’s a labor of love for him. 
“It’s a difficult job. There are a lot of demands on you, including on nights and weekends, in addition to the normal day in and day out work. It puts a lot of stress on yourself, but even more important, your family. Your wife and kids have to make a lot of sacrifices when you are not around,” Kean said. “You are always on call. There is always something that can come up. It’s not just being at the games. There is prep and post work. There are special events to deal with. And, there here are always crises that pop up.
“You have to be dedicated to the job. Like most every job, if you don’t enjoy what you do, you are going to struggle. You can’t survive if you don’t enjoy it or you don’t want to deal with it. It’s something you have to have a passion for. If you don’t like what you are doing, you are in the wrong profession.”
Kean indicated he didn’t dream of becoming as an SID when he was younger. Before arriving at S&T, he spent three years as a graduate assistant at Southeast Missouri State University, his alma mater. He is a native of St. Louis.
“It wasn’t my original career path to be honest,” Kean said. “I liked writing and I worked for the campus newspaper, and after my senior year I was offered an opportunity in the sports information office. I thought I would just try it and see how it went. Just try it for a while. And, it’s worked out pretty well.”
Kean is a walking encyclopedia of Missouri S&T sports history. He also is very knowledgeable on the national level as well.
“Always as a kid and throughout life, I’ve been a sports fan. I won’t deny that. I grew up watching the Cardinals,” Kean said. “But, a lot of the time it’s a matter of keeping an ear to the tracks, to see what teams are doing and to pick up on the trends. If you see something that is working for them, maybe we could do it here.”
But, Kean says his favorite part of his job is interacting with all the people he comes in contact with day in and day out.
“You have the coaches, the student-athletes, your colleagues, the people on campus, there are a lot of people you run into on a regular basis, and I really enjoy interacting with them,” Kean said. “Hopefully, I’m having a positive impact in their lives, and I get to enjoy the successes they’ve had.”
Kean has quite a few good memories of all the successes at S&T, too many to narrow down them down to a few favorites.
“In this past year alone we have had a lot would rank right up there,” Kean said. “We had the Lady Miners in basketball. That was a lot of fun. The swimming team was a lot of fun for them to compete as well as they did. I was at nationals for four days because we were the host school. The volleyball team  -- to watch them develop -- was fun too. The softball team has had two players of the year in the past two years. The cross country team has been very fun to watch. The pole vaulters, it’s been great to see how they have competed. I’m just excited when anybody does well.
“Further back, we had two basketball championships in the same year back in the 90s. You don’t forget that either. We got to host the regional tournament, and that was a great opportunity to show what we could do. It produced a lot of excitement in the community. It’s hard to pinpoint one or two things. I remember a game in my first year here, and we beat the No. 2-ranked team in the nation in basketball. In football, we played Pittsburg St. to a tie in a year they went on to win the national championship. I can probably list 20 games like that off the top of my head.”
He says more memories are on the way. He thinks there is a lot to look forward for Missouri S&T in 2008-09.
“There are a lot of teams that have been pretty good with young players that will now have a lot of experience. There are also a couple of teams that have done really well and will now depend on a lot of new players, and we’ll get to see how that develops,” Kean said. “I’m always optimistic at the start of the year. I always feel like we have the chance to do something big. Then you hope things fall in place and things turn out in the end.”
Meanwhile, Kean will just keep taking things one day at a time, no matter how much work there is to do.
“I’ve always liked to write, watch sports, and to play and be around them. I couldn’t ask for a better job in many ways,” Kean said. “I’ve got the best seat in the house every night.”