Three positions within the Fresno State Athletics department have been eliminated.

An email from the Assistant Athletics Director for Strategic Communications, Savannah Stoeckle, sent on Monday, April 14, explained the elimination of the three positions in question due to financial concerns.

The positions that were eliminated were the Director of NIL, Aaron Mitchell;  Senior Director of Broadcast Strategies, Stephen Trembley; and Assistant Director of Strategic Communications, Josh Mitchell.

Mitchell was responsible for all media inquiries for the men’s basketball team, women’s soccer team, track and field as well as the cross country team. For now, Stoeckle will be handling those teams.

“To ensure the financial sustainability of Fresno State Athletics, the department has made the difficult decision to eliminate some positions, which was not made lightly,” Stoeckle said in the email. “The fiscal challenges facing Fresno State have deep consequences that we must address in order to ensure the long-term viability of our athletics program and university.”

The Fresno State Athletics department has also placed two individuals on a leave of absence: the Senior Associate Athletics Director (AD) for Sport Services, Carrie Coll; and Senior Associate AD for External Relations, Frank Pucher. The reason for their leave has not yet been explained.

The email also stated that there have not been any additional layoffs at the university.

As of now, no other Strategic Communications staff sport assignments have changed. This is a developing story.