Candice Storey Lee

Candice Storey Lee, Vanderbilt’s vice chancellor for athletics and university affairs and athletic director. Named to the position on May 21, 2020, Lee is Vanderbilt’s first female athletic director and the first Black woman to head an SEC athletics program. A team captain, four-year letter winner, and five-time SEC Academic Honor Roll selection as a member of Vanderbilt women’s basketball team, Lee earned undergraduate, masters, and doctorate degrees from Vanderbilt’s Peabody College of Education and Human Development.

Lee has been recognized by peers and media as one of the leading administrators in college athletics. She was named Athletic Director of the Year in 2026 by the Sports Business Journal and in 2024-2025 by the National Association of Collegiate Director of Athletics. In 2022, she was named Athletic Director of the Year at the Black Student-Athlete Summit. The Sports Business Journal named her to its college sports “Power Players” list in 2019, and Adidas named her to its “NEXT UP” class in 2018. In addition, Lee received the John McClendon Scholarship for Black administrators in 2017. Lee is married to Sean Lee, the executive director of a Middle Tennessee housing authority. They have an adult son, Andrew.