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Hashley Named Assistant AD at University of Great Falls

Longtime Kalispell educator joining UGF at transitional time as the university undergoes athletic expansion effort

By Dillon Tabish
Doug Hashley watches Glacier High School basketball practice on Jan. 11, 2017. Greg Lindstrom | Flathead Beacon

Doug Hashley, a longtime Kalispell educator, has been named the new assistant activities director at the University of Great Falls.

University officials introduced Hashley at a press conference on June 13.

Hashley has more than 30 years of experience in public education, including 29 in Kalispell. He spent 19 years at the former Kalispell Junior High School, serving in a variety of roles, including health enhancement teacher, activities director and basketball and volleyball coach. For the last 10 years, he has served as a physical education teacher at Russell Elementary.

“I enjoyed every second of it,” he said.

“The time in Kalispell is packed with memories. It’s been a perfect ride.”

Hashley is joining UGF at a transitional time as the university undergoes a rebranding and expansion effort. The university will change its name to the University of Providence-Great Falls on July 1 and the school is planning to expand its sports programs.

Hashley will serve as assistant athletic director of facilities and event management under activities director Dave Gantt.

“We’re really trying to expand some more athletics. Hopefully we will bring in football in three years and some other sports along the way,” Hashley said.

Hashley said the opportunity to live closer to his children and grandchildren motivated the move. He and his wife, Bekki Gray Hashley, are excited to live in Great Falls where their eldest daughter, Holli, has two new twins. Daughter Cassi Hashley is playing basketball at Carroll College in Helena and son, Jaxen, will be playing football at Montana State University in Bozeman next fall.

A Big Sandy native, Doug Hashley is the MSU Bobcats’ second all-time rebounder and ranks seventh all-time in the Big Sky Conference. The 1982 graduate was named first-team All-Big Sky once and second-team All-Big Sky twice. He’s a member of the MSU Athletics Hall of Fame.

He previously served as head coach of Flathead High School’s boys basketball team from 1994-97 and the head head of the Glacier High School girls basketball team from 2007-10. He has also been an assistant coach for Flathead’s football, softball, track, and girls’ basketball teams, and has served an assistant for Glacier’s boys’ basketball team since 2013.

“As we continue to try and grow Argo athletics in quantity and quality, hiring someone to manage our facilities and oversee our events was an absolute must,” Gantt said in a press release from UGF. “As soon as we created the position, I knew Doug was the man for the job. He’s been a successful player, coach, and administrator at multiple levels of athletics and has deep roots in the Montana sports community.”

Hashley said he and Bekki will miss their close friends but look forward to returning to the Flathead Valley for frequent visits.

“It’s been a very positive experience for us,” he said. “It’s a tough place to leave.”