Quietly making the Westmont College Athletic Department hum behind the scenes is Associate Athletic Director of Communications, Ron Smith.

Working tirelessly to get Warrior athletes and teams the attention they deserve, Smith is now getting some attention of his own.

According to a vote of fellow conference College Sports Communicators (Sports Information Directors), the PacWest Sports Information Director of the Year is Smith. Smith was selected for the annual award, which takes into account the total package of athletic communications work from the department website to social media and everything in between. The award was announced at the College Sports Communications convention at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

"Ron is top notch in our field,” said PacWest Communications Director Russ Blunck. "This is an award that he could have won every year of his long career, but I think it is especially appropriate at this time, in that he was a one-man shop for much of the 2025-26 year.

“Additionally, he helped run the PacWest Championships in men’s soccer, baseball and men’s and women’s golf. He is someone that you can always count on to run something with experience, skill and kindness. He is one of the top ‘people’ in our profession.”

Smith has been at Westmont since the summer of 2004. He has served on numerous national committees when Westmont was a member of the NAIA and the Golden State Athletic Conference. He was a three-time winner of the GSAC SID of the Year award, has been a Westmont Employee of the Year and won the prestigious NAIA Ike Pearson Award in 2017, which honors outstanding contributions to the profession. He oversees a broadcasting class on Westmont as well.

“I am incredibly thankful to see Ron getting recognized in this way,” said Westmont College Athletic Director Robert Ruiz. “He is an invaluable member of our staff and meticulous in his craft.

“The quality of his work speaks for itself, but perhaps what stands out even more is his servant’s heart that is on display every single day that he works for Westmont College. One thing most people don’t see about Ron is how much he invests in our students. He has impacted so many lives. He is a great leader, a consummate professional and a loyal teammate.”

Like a number of people in the profession, Tim Heiduk got his start working with Smith while a student-athlete at Westmont. Years later, Heiduk and his Point Loma communications staff won the PacWest SID of the Year award in 2024 and 2025.

“No one works harder in this profession than Ron and no one is more deserving of this award,” Heiduk said. “Ever since Westmont joined the PacWest, Ron has elevated the conference’s athletic communications with expertise and attention to detail.

“I was so fortunate to begin my professional career under his tutelage, and he’s someone we all look to as an example and have gained much knowledge from. Ron is a first class representative for college sports communicators everywhere and I couldn’t be happier for him to receive this recognition.”

Prior to beginning his sports information career at Westmont, Smith worked 17 years in campus and church ministry. He and his wife Leslie have three grown children (Hannah, Josh and Naomi) and four granddaughters (Cailyn, Jaana, Ellie and Isabelle).

"I am so very blessed to be a part of Westmont Athletics and grateful for the many people that have poured into helping tell the story of our programs, student-athletes and coaches,” Smith said. “First and foremost is Robert Ruiz who has led our department and been such a tremendous ally in the work of athletics communication. I am also so grateful for Jacob Norling who worked alongside me for five years before leaving for Oregon at the end of February to pursue a new life with his young family. Jacob helped advance the work of our department in so many important ways.

"However, I particularly want to thank an army of student-workers who have contributed so much to the work of our office. Whether statisticians, broadcasters, production techs, social media content providers, game management workers, or more - their eagerness to be a part of promoting Westmont Athletics and helping to tell the story of our student-athletes inspires me every day.

"Finally, it has been delightful to be a part of the PacWest these past three years and to work alongside such talented and dedicated athletics communication professionals in both the conference office and each institution. I am grateful for each of them."

The Sports Information Department of the Year Award has been presented annually since 2010. See the complete list of past winners below.

 

PACWEST SPORTS INFORMATION DEPARTMENT OF THE YEAR AWARD
2009-10	John Barry	Hawai’i Pacific
2010-11	Scott Lowe	BYU-Hawaii
2011-12	Brandon Davis	Dominican
2012-13	Rob Garcia	Academy of Art
2013-14	Joe Reinsch, Chris Baker	Azusa Pacific
2014-15	Brandon Davis	Dominican
2015-16	Rob Garcia, Stephen Ellis	Academy of Art
2016-17	Danny Barnts	Point Loma
2017-18	Danny Barnts, Cassandra Kelley	Point Loma
2018-19	Neil Morgan, Brandon Taylor	Biola
2019-20	Jordan Herrod	Fresno Pacific
2020-21	Jordan Herrod, Christian Bond	Fresno Pacific
2021-22	Ben Rosehart	Concordia
2022-23	Kevin Hashiro	Chaminade
2023-24	Tim Heiduk, Sydney Long	Point Loma
2024-25	Tim Heiduk, Sydney Long, Shannon Hardy	Point Loma
2025-26	Ron Smith	Westmont