What Really Matters: Diane Taylor Philipp, ’82

Written by Doug Goodnough

This article is part three of four in The Leadership Game series, published in the spring 2024 edition of Arete.

Diane Taylor Philipp, ’82, would love to say her experience as a student-athlete helped shape her as a future senior leader at Hillsdale College.

But she can’t.

Philipp was not an athlete at Hillsdale. However, Hillsdale College Athletics still tremendously impacted her after she served nearly two decades as a Hall-of-Fame track and field and cross country coach. Those experiences, including coaching the Chargers to multiple championships and many former and current All-American and Olympic-caliber athletes, have guided her in her current role as Hillsdale’s vice president for Student Affairs.

“[Then-Hillsdale Athletic Director] Jack McAvoy just came up to me one day, like a month before graduation,” said Philipp of how she ultimately became Hillsdale’s women’s track and field and cross country coach. “He said, ‘I know someone who could coach our cross country and track team.’ And I thought he was going to ask me for a recommendation. I said, ‘Yeah, really?’ He said, ‘You.’ I asked, ‘Why?’ because I didn’t know much. He said, ‘You can learn.’”

And learn she did. After taking a week to decide whether she wanted to coach or pursue law school, the history major decided to stay at Hillsdale and coach. Philipp quickly reached out to some of the most successful college coaches at the time and asked for advice.

“They guided me those first couple years, and the kids kept getting better,” she said. “And then I just figured it out. If a coach can inspire young people to realize intense, hard work pays off, the team will see success and goals will be met. Plus, it’s a lot more fun to win after you commit to the work.”

Philipp said recruiting talented student-athletes was important, but she was also looking for other qualities.

“I learned success comes from hard work, a positive attitude, and the ability to recover quickly after a setback,” Philipp said. “I would go after as many [NCAA] Division I kids as I could. Once you got to know them, I definitely made sure our coaches and the team knew them. Sometimes the team would come to me and say, ‘It’s not a good fit, coach.’ And that mattered more. Sure, you have to be talented, but attitude really mattered.”

Hillsdale won 22 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships over Philipp’s tenure. She coached 11 individual national champions, more than 50 All-Americans, and was named the GLIAC Coach of the Year an astounding 20 times. A member of the NAIA Hall of Fame, she served on the board of directors for USA Track and Field and was named the youngest and first female president of the Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. She coached the U.S. National Team at the 1995 World Championships and assisted USA Track and Field in a variety of other capacities before stepping down as Hillsdale’s coach in 1999.

Philipp and her husband, Al, were raising a young family when she decided that the recruiting grind and never-ending duties of being a college coach did not mesh well with being a wife and mother of two young children. She accepted a position as a teacher and athletic director at Hillsdale Academy, then spent six years as director of Special Projects for the College’s Admissions Office. In 2006, she was named the vice president of Student Affairs and concurrently served as dean of women from 2006-2020.

Philipp said her experience as a coach made the transition to her current position easier.

“It’s the same kind of job,” she said. “This locker room smells better than the one at the Sports Complex, but you really are doing the same thing. You are trying to help students to become the best that they can be.”

She said handling adversity and developing “grit” to overcome challenges are all things she emphasized as a coach that she applies every day in her current role.

“It’s hard as an athlete and it’s hard as a student at Hillsdale,” Philipp said. “The purpose of athletics at Hillsdale College is to help young people develop their intellect and character. These are the same purposes of Hillsdale College as stated in the mission.”

Philipp said she looks for the same qualities in her Student Affairs team as she did as a coach. In fact, many of her staff are former athletes.

“It goes back to that character issue,” she said. “A resume can look awesome, but if they don’t have the spirit and fire to help young people, the ability to work as a team and come together when the times are tough and trust each other, it’s not going to work.”

Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s senior director of Alumni Marketing. He enjoys connecting with fellow alumni in new and wonderful ways.