01/21/22- Jenny Elder, Connor Link join KHSAA Executive Staff

January 21, 2022 2021-2022 News Releases

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JAN. 21, 2022

The Kentucky High School Athletic Association introduced two additions to its Executive Staff this week with the hiring of Event Services and Social Media Director Jenny Elder and Media Relations and Publications Director Connor Link.

“We were extremely pleased to have an outstanding group of individuals interested in joining our staff,” said KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett. “These individuals stood out in terms of both their experience, and frankly, their enthusiasm, for the challenges they will face. They both have a background in a multi-event environment and their expertise in technology, publications, social media and experience with multiple sports will serve the member schools and all of our constituency very well. Coming in mid-year will be challenging, but they will move quickly into their new roles and help continue to execute our championships at the highest level.”

A native of Versailles, Kentucky, Elder joins the KHSAA by way of Georgetown College Athletics, where she served as the Sports Information Director for the past 12 years. Elder handled publicity, game management, media relations, social media, website management, archives, awards and banquets for the Tigers’ 22 varsity sports, expanding the program’s reach by implementing the growth of social media and live streaming, which earned recognition both from the NAIA and the Mid-South Conference.

“I want to thank Commissioner Tackett, the Board of Control and all the KHSAA staff for this opportunity to fulfill a lifelong dream to work for KHSAA,” Elder said. “Having competed for a member high school and played in two state tournaments, I experienced firsthand the excellent product the KHSAA provides for student-athletes, as well as the importance of that experience to each and every one of them. I look forward to continuing this mission and being a part of creating that experience for many more student-athletes in the great Commonwealth of Kentucky.”

Prior to GC Athletics, Elder spent eight years working with various media outlets, ranging from daily newspapers in Kentucky and Tennessee to a year behind the scenes at WKYT in Lexington. She graduated from Emory & Henry College in southwest Virginia, where she played collegiate basketball and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications in 2001. While a student at E&H, Elder spent two years as the Sports Director for the campus radio station, serving as voice of the women’s basketball and football teams. Before college, she was a three-sport athlete at Woodford County High School.

A native of Ashland, Kentucky, Link joins the KHSAA from University of Kentucky Athletics, where he served as a Communications and Public Relations Assistant for the past three years. As the sports information director for the gymnastics, men’s soccer and men’s tennis teams, Link coordinated press releases, gameday operations, statistical recordkeeping and website maintenance on behalf of all three programs while traveling with both gymnastics and men’s soccer to every away event. As the primary media contact for all three teams, he facilitated media opportunities and interview requests, as well as internal photo and video operations. Link also operated the official Instagram, Twitter and Facebook accounts of each program.

Link served in various other roles during his time with UK Athletics, including the Lexington Regional Media Coordinator for the 2021 NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship and the 2019 NCAA Women’s Volleyball Championship. In addition to his regular duties, he assisted gameday staff at football and men’s basketball home events.

“I am grateful to Commissioner Tackett and the Board of Control for providing me the opportunity of a lifetime,” said Link. “As a lifelong Kentucky resident and avid sports fan, I look forward to engaging in my passions across the entire state while based in the city I’ve grown to love over the past decade. I especially want to thank all of my family, friends, colleagues and educators who helped me reach this point.”

Prior to UK Athletics, Link spent two years as a Media Relations Graduate Assistant with Morehead State University Athletics, where he was the sports information director and primary media contact for the women’s basketball, soccer and men’s golf teams. He was the Media Coordinator for The Basketball Tournament at the 2019 Lexington Regional, with various stops as an intern at Kentucky Sports Radio, UK Athletics and Transylvania University Athletics. Link earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from the University of Kentucky in 2015 before receiving a Master of Arts in Communication from Morehead State University in 2018. He was a four-year member of the boys’ soccer team at Ashland Blazer High School and currently resides in Lexington with his wife, Sarah.

In their roles with KHSAA, Link and Elder will report directly to the Commissioner, while assisting all members of the Executive Staff with preparations and logistics of the KHSAA’s 19 championship events. Elder’s responsibilities will include instructions related to managing the District, Region, State First Round, and State Championship events, participating teams, workers and officials, as well as coordinating KHSAA social media activity, the NFHS Network School Broadcast program and assisting with the KHSAA website and KHSAA/Riherds scoreboard. Link’s responsibilities will include daily media relations, news releases, monitoring and maintenance of statistics, event programs and publications, the KHSAA radio network, NFHS network and webcasting operations, event media credentialing and assisting with historical event records and social media.

 

– KHSAA –

About the Kentucky High School Athletic Association
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association was organized in 1917 and is the agency designated by the Kentucky Department of Education to manage high school athletics in the Commonwealth. The Association is a voluntary nonprofit 501(c)3 organization made up of 284 member schools, both public and non-public. The KHSAA awards 215 State Championships to 51 teams and 164 individuals in 13 sports and six sport-activities, funds catastrophic insurance coverage for its more than 106,000 rostered member school student-athletes, provides coaching education and sports safety programs for more than 12,000 coaches and licenses and facilitates the distribution of training material for over 4,000 contest officials.

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