The Baron Club Dinner serves as the chief fundraising effort for the Franciscan Athletics Department in conjunction with the Community Relations office. The dinner helps support the Franciscan student athletes in their Academic and Athletic endeavors and funds major projects to benefit our athletes.
Previously named the Century Club, the Baron Club honors those from the Ohio Valley and Pittsburgh area who have made exceptional contributions to sport and the community. Previous honorees include Kaleena Davidson, Zach Collaros, Derek Wolfe, Frank "Digger" Dawson, and Gerald "Yonk" DiLoreto, though the complete list is long and impressive. Each year, the Baron Club is blessed with an extraordinary keynote speaker, with the likes of Jim Leyland, John Calipari, Jamie Dixon, and Lou Holtz once gracing the stage. This year we are excited to bring to the valley, Kevin Stefanski.
Kevin Stefanski Biography:
Kevin Stefanski was named the 18th full-time head coach in Cleveland Browns history on January 13, 2020. He spent the previous 14 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, where he moved up the coaching ladder from assistant to the head coach to offensive coordinator.
In his five seasons as head coach, the Browns are 40-44 (.476). Stefanski has led the team to two postseason appearances and two 11-win seasons. He joined Pro Football Hall of Famer Paul Brown (1951 and 1953) as the only coaches in team history to record multiple seasons with at least 11 regular season wins.
In his first season with the Browns, Stefanski led the team to its first playoff appearance since 2002 and first playoff victory in 26 years over the Pittsburgh Steelers. He notched the most wins (11) by a first-year Browns head coach since Paul Brown had 12 in the team’s inaugural season in 1946. Stefanski’s 11 regular season wins were the most by first-year head coach in 2020 and marked just the 11th time since 1970 a first-year coach has won 11 or more games. Stefanski was named NFL Coach of the Year.
In 2023, Stefanski became the 16th coach to win the Associated Press NFL Coach of the year award multiple times since its inception in 1957.
As a player, Stefanski served as team captain his senior year at the University of Pennsylvania in 2003. Stefanski was part of one of the most successful stretches in the history of the Quaker football program. The team won three Ivy League titles (2000, 2002, and 2003), and went 10-0 in 2003 to become the first undefeated Penn team in a decade. During Stefanski’s tenure, the squad posted a 42-7 record and a 32-3 mark in Ivy League play.
Stefanski earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Penn and attended St. Joseph’s Prep in Philadelphia.
In 2024, Stefanski and his family launched the Keepers Foundation. The foundation focuses on serving underprivileged kids in Northeast Ohio. Stefanski and wife, Michelle, have a daughter and two sons.
2011-Present Baron Club Speakers and Videos
List of Past Baron Club Honorees
