Guide to the Tom Steinke Westminster College athletic director sports records

Tom Steinke coached basketball, taught physical education and sports, and served as athletic director at Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah) for 34 years from 1996-2000.

Thomas Edward Steinke was born April 28, 1935 to Rudolph F. "Rudy" Steinke (1911-2003) and Garnette Eileen Thomas who were married Feb. 14, 1933. Tom's younger brother, Ron E. Steinke (1940-2007) was born four years later. Tom's grandfather owned a barber shop and restaurant in Colorado. Tom's father Rudy was named Denver's best softball player in the late 1930s and early 1940s by the sports editor of the Denver Post; Rudy was also active in basketball and hockey.

The family moved to Salt Lake City, Utah and both Tom and Ron graduated from Granite High School, where they were outstanding basketball players.

Tom attended Brigham Young University from 1954-1957. He entered B.Y.U on a baseball scholarship playing on the Cougars baseball team, but soon became a basketball star, receiving All-American honors. After graduating with a B.S. degree, he went on to earned a master's degree in physical education at B.Y.U, and was an assistant basketball coach. Next, he was hired as head basketball and football coach at Golden High School in Golden, Colorado.

In 1966, Tom Steinke was named head basketball coach at Westminster College in Salt Lake City. Two years later he was named Athletic Director and Dean of Men. Tom remained at Westminster College until his retirement in 2000. Upon his retirement, he was named Professor Emeritus of Physical Education. The following year in 2001 the Thomas E. Steinke Student Athlete Scholarship was established at Westminster College by college alumni who are grateful to have studied under Coach Steinke. The scholarship awards $5000 annually, alternating between a female and male student-athlete recipient each year.

Tom Steinke was inducted into three Halls of Fame over the years: the B.Y U. Hall of Fame in 1981, the Utah Sports Hall of Fame in 2002, and Westminster College's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011. In the announcement of his Westminster induction, it was stated:

• "Tom Steinke was an outstanding athlete. He was the MVP of his high school team and selected for All-State. At BYU, he was selected for First Team Little All-America, Second Team Helms All-America, played in the East-West College All-Star Game, and was recognized as the Skyline Conference Player of the Year."
• "And he was able to teach others the skills that he had developed. As a coach at Westminster, his teams competed in two NAIA district tournaments, were RMAC champions three times, and won 62 percent of the games they played for him between 1966 and 1976, a better record than any school in the RMAC League. He was named Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Coach of the Year three times and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) District 7 Coach of the Year twice. He served as Westminster's Athletic Director and as Chair of the Department of Physical Education. He was here when the basketball program was discontinued, and he was here when it was resurrected. He received an Honorary Doctorate from Westminster in 2000."
• "Just as Westminster recognized his talent, so did others. He worked for the Utah Jazz as a scout and consultant. He was appointed to the Utah State Athletic Commission. And he served as the athletic-fitness instructor for the Utah Police Academy for 26 years."

Married to Sandra Kay (Gifford) Steinke, Tom and Sandra are the parents of two children and live in Sandy, Utah.

The Westminster College Intercollegiate Athletics program is an integral part of campus life serving more than 250 student-athletes annually. The athletic program has experienced both regional and national success over the years, with national championships, national tournament appearances, conference titles, All-Conference and All-American academic and athletic honors. The athletic program has a rich tradition, storied history and many athletic alumni dating back to 1928. The Westminster College athletics website includes current sports schedules and game results, plus information on student athletes, support athletics, staff, facilities, and photographs.

Sources:

• Westminster Hall of Fame announcement
• Ron E. Steinke obituary, published July 1, 2007, Deseret News (viewed online Oct. 6, 2016)
• Rudolph F. Steinke obituary, published Feb. 2, 2003, Salt Lake Tribune (viewed online Oct. 4, 2016)

This collection consists of student papers and athletic teaching guides collected or written by Tom Steinke, coach and athletic director of Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah. The materials date from 1959-1972 and include many student papers on teaching techniques of specific sports, course materials and syllabi written by Steinke and other athletic studies teachers at Westminster College. Some papers include a history of the sport, are illustrated, and/or include bibliographies. While most of the papers date from Steinke's tenure at Westminster, a few were collected while he was attending or coaching basketball at Brighham Young University, and on staff at Colorado State College.

While some papers are undated and anonymous, many identify the author, date, and/or class. Authors represented in the collection include: Glen Tuckett on baseball (BYU); Terry Heck on billiards (submitted to Coach Steinke); Witbeck on boxing (syllabus for P.E. 222, Sports fundamentals for majors, Fall 1959) and handball (P.E. 125); Kathleen Williamson, Ila Kaul, Chris Crane, Lauren Tohill, and Mary Ann Schepler on modern dance (research papers, January 1967); Linda Clarke on bowling, field hockey, touch football, and weight training; Reg Bruce, Guy Brown, John Bushman, Ernest Tripp, Bruce Harding, Bert Steed, Mike Fitch, and Ray Child on methods of teaching gymnastics (papers submitted to Coach Steinke, May 1972); Shirley Dickey, John Allen, Lloyd G. Hogan, Leo Briggs, Martha Kittleson, and Diane Davis (papers submitted to Mrs. McGivney for Health and Safety Education class, May 1970); C, Ian Bailey and Francis L. Teller "Test questions for soccer" (published booklet); Tom Steinke (syllabus and handouts for class "Teaching and Learning Procedures in soccer"); Jan Hanley and John M. Grentzer on swimming (paper submitted to Mr. Steinke, P.E. 232, May 1970); Chad Wilson on swimming (Coach Steinke, Lifetime Sports class); David Parsons on track and field (Coache Steinke, December 1971); Jan Woodcock on jogging and weight training; Doug Tate on volleyball; Mike Fitch, Jim Fife, Wayne Christofferson, and Mickey J. McBride on wrestling; Bernard P. Mordret on wrestling (Mr. Steinke, History and principles of P.E., December 1966); Bob Thomsen, wrestling coach at Chabot College, on basic moves in wrestling.

Restrictions on Access:

Open to public research.

Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Twenty-four hours advance notice is encouraged.

Restrictions on Use:

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.

Permission to publish material must be obtained from the director of the Giovale Library.

Preferred Citation:

Tom Steinke Westminster College athletic director sports records, 1959-1972, ACC-195, Giovale Library Archives, Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically by sport.

Processing Note:

Processed June 2010 by Giovale Library staff.

Creator:

Steinke, Tom, 1935-

Language:

Collection materials are in English.

Quantity:

0.4 linear feet

Language of the Finding Aid:

English.

Author of the Finding Aid:

Finding aid written in September 2016 by Sarah J. Shaw.

EAD Creation Date:

2016 September 27 by Sarah Shaw

Standard:

Describing Archives : A Content Standard (DACS)

Subarea:

Archives

Related Material:

Related collections and photographs in Giovale Library Archives:

• Westminster College sports records, 1971-2005 (ACC-108)
• Westminster College Alumni Affairs sports alumni scrapbook, 1921-1978 (bulk 1921-1936) (ACC-136)
• Photograph of Basketball coach Tom Steinke
• Photograph of Tom Steinke, BYU basketball guard, 1954-1957
• Photograph of Westminster College basketball team, 1975/76
• Photograph of Westminster College basketball team
• Photograph of Westminster College basketball team
• Photograph of Payne Gymnasium
• Photograph of Westminster College retirement party, May 2000

Corporate Names:

Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1902-1983)--Archives
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1902-1983)--Faculty
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1902-1983)--Sports
Westminster College of Salt Lake City--Archives
Westminster College of Salt Lake City--Faculty
Westminster College of Salt Lake City--Sports
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- )--Archives
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- )--Faculty
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- )--Sports

Subject Terms:

College athletes--Education--Utah--Handbooks, manuals, etc.
College sports--Utah--Salt Lake City
Instructional and educational works
Physical education and training--Curricula--United States
Outlines and syllabi

Form or Genre Terms:

Instructions (document genre)
Booklets
Faculty papers
Papers (documents)
Syllabi

Personal Names:

Steinke, Tom, 1935- --Archives

Geographical Names:

Salt Lake City (Utah)--History--Sources