Monica Jaenicke was hired as Northern Arizona’s Associate Athletic Director for Communications in November of 2022.
 
She oversees the publicity efforts for all 15 of Northern Arizona’s athletic programs including social media and graphic design, NAUAthletics.com, statistics, press releases and the oversight of the entire NAU Athletic Communications department.
 
Jaenicke joined the Lumberjacks after serving in a similar capacity as the Assistant Athletic Director for Communications at Eastern Washington University. Prior to that,
she served as the Assistant Director for Communications for four and a half years under longtime Sports Information Director, Dave Cook.
 
Jaenicke was no stranger to Eastern Washington or the athletic department, as she graduated from EWU in 2014 with a Bachelor's degree in communications with a public relations emphasis along with a minor in journalism. She was also a four-year letterwinner on Eastern's cross country and track and field teams, earning Big Sky All-Academic honors all four years.
 
While finishing her degree, Jaenicke worked as a sports information student assistant in the EWU Sports Information office, covering the cross country and track and field programs. Following graduation, Jaenicke earned her Master's degree in Sports Management from Western Illinois University while working as a graduate assistant in the athletic communications department.
 
A native of Federal Way, Wash., Jaenicke and her husband Drew Cowbrough married in July of 2023 and reside in Flagstaff.