My name is Mark Holtzman and I’m proud to serve as the Senior Advisor for Athletes. I have more than 20 years of advising experience at Ball State, and I strive to make sure my students feel welcome and supported in all they do during their time at Ball State. I often say that Ball State is a family affair for the Holtzman family. My wife, Mellisa Holtzman, brought us to BSU when she secured her first teaching position as a professor. Since, she has won multiple teaching awards and directs the graduate program for the Department of Sociology. Both of our sons earned their undergraduate degrees from Ball State. Because of my “dad experience” and my emphasis on humanizing the Ball State experience, I have had many students claim that my support “was like having another dad on campus!”

I was a first-generation student at Eureka College in Eureka, IL. and earned my Master’s in Teaching at Tufts University in Boston. Having grown up in the small, rural town of Roanoke, Illinois, I have always been, and will always be, a loyal Chicago Bears Fan. I was a national award winner in 4H and continue to enjoy country life with horses, a dog, a garden, and a big yard. I love to travel, most of my weekend and vacation adventures are focused on camping, hiking, biking, and trail riding with my home-raised Quarter Horses. And if you love music, you’ll enjoy our meetings because I’ll usually have hits from the 70’s, 80’s, 90’s streaming on the computer!