Deborah Yow began her career as an athletic director at Saint Louis University, followed by 16 years at the University of Maryland.  In 1994, she accepted the Athletic Director position at the University of Maryland. At Maryland, Yow became the first female athletic director in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Under her leadership, Maryland won 20 national championships and established the all-time best federal graduation rate of 80 percent.

In 2010, Yow returned to her home state  to serve as Athletic Director at NC State for 9 years, where she hired 17 new head coaches. When she began at NC State, Wolfpack athletics ranked 89th in the Directors’ Cup standings. Under Yow, NC State saw its place in the standings rise steadily, soaring from No. 89 in 2010 to No. 15 in 2018.

She was the recipient of the 2018-19 Under Armour AD of the Year Award, and the NACDA’s James J. Corbett Memorial Award in 2019. She was also the first-ever female to receive the NFF John L. Toner Award in 2019.

Yow has served as President of the NACDA, and as the only female President for the Division I AD’s Association (now LEAD1). She was selected to serve on the President’s US Department of Education Commission on Opportunities in Athletics to review the status of Federal Title IX regulations, and has been inducted into six Halls of Fame.

In addition, Yow has co-authored books on strategic planning and human behavior to inform and inspire athletics professionals, delivering presentations in prestigious settings such as Harvard University and the NACDA, among numerous others.

She holds an English degree from Elon University and a master’s in Counseling from Liberty University, as well as three honorary doctorates for lifetime achievement.