August 18, 2008

TO THE CAMPUS COMMUNITY

Dear Colleagues:

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Mark Massari as our next Director of Intercollegiate Athletics. His tentative start date will be in September, pending approval by President Yudof and the Regents.

Mark Massari is currently the senior associate athletics director for external affairs at Oregon State University, where he has been responsible for all revenue-generating, external marketing, and communications activities. He has been leading several important units for the 17-sport athletics department, including marketing, promotions, branding, ticket operations and sales, merchandising, communications, and video and television production. As a member of senior management, he has been part of the strategic planning and success of $115 million in capital campaigns over the past six years, including multiple stadium expansions and renovations and the construction of a sports performance center. During this period the department’s annual operating budget has increased significantly, and an inherited $12 million annual deficit was erased in 2004.

Mr. Massari has been helping to lead Oregon State’s “everyday champions” program, which develops and celebrates student-athlete leadership along with academic and athletic success. He has also been teaching a winter and spring course in sports management for the health and exercise science department.

Mr. Massari first joined Oregon State in 2002; from 2002 to 2006, he managed its partnership with Beaver Sports Properties and Learfield Sports. His achievements during this period include doubling the marketing and sponsorship revenue, increasing the sports coverage on regional television and radio, and initiating Spanish-language broadcasts. Before that he worked for four seasons in broadcast sales and marketing, including three with the San Francisco 49ers; directed sports marketing and sales for the University of Miami for four years; and spent two years in the athletics department at Saint Mary’s College. He holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Sacramento State and a master’s in leadership from Duquesne University. He was a four-year scholarship student-athlete in football at Sacramento State.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank co-chairs Janis Ingham and George Thurlow, and all the members of our search advisory committee, for their thorough and dedicated work during this national search. The committee membership is listed at the end of this memo. I would also like to thank all the coaches, coaching staff, and other members of our campus community who provided valuable input during this process.

I extend our heartfelt thanks once again to Gary Cunningham for his outstanding leadership over the past 13 years. He leaves us with an exceptionally strong foundation on which we will continue to build. Gary will work with Mark and our ICA coaches and staff over the next month to ensure a smooth transition.

Mr. Massari has an inspiring vision for the future of Gaucho athletics, and I am confident that he will be an exceptional leader for our vibrant athletics program. We have all been deeply impressed by his enthusiasm for UC Santa Barbara and his commitment to supporting our coaches and student-athletes in their pursuit of academic and athletic excellence. Please join me in welcoming Mark and his wife, Kimberly, to our UCSB family.

Sincerely,

Henry T. Yang
Chancellor

 

 

Search Advisory Committee for the Director of Intercollegiate Athletics
Janis Ingham (Co-Chair), NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative; Professor, Speech and Hearing Sciences
George Thurlow (Co-Chair), Executive Director, UCSB Alumni Association; Assistant Vice Chancellor, Alumni Affairs
Marty Davis, Head Coach, Men’s Tennis
Elizabeth Downing, University Physician; Director, Student Health Service
Rune Eliasen, Community Member
Mark French, Head Coach (past), Women’s Basketball
Jay Glazer, Community Member
Tsuyoshi Hasegawa, Professor, History; Member, Intercollegiate Athletics Policy Board
Amy Jacobs, Staff Representative; Member, Intercollegiate Athletics Policy Board
Joel Katz, Associated Students Representative
Bethany Nickless, Student-Athlete Representative; Co-Chair, Student-Athlete Advisory Board
Fyl Pincus, Professor, Materials and Physics
Lynn Reitnouer, UCSB Foundation Trustee; Former Men’s Basketball Team Member
Cedric Robinson, Professor, Black Studies
James Romeo, Lecturer, Exercise and Sports Studies
Denise Segura, Professor, Sociology

Ex officio:
Ricardo Alcaíno, Director, Office of Equal Opportunity
Bobby Castagna, Associate Athletic Director
Todd Lee, Assistant Chancellor, Budget and Planning; Chair, NCAA Self-Study Group
Diane O’Brien, Associate Athletic Director; Senior Women’s Administrator
Paula Rudolph, Title IX Coordinator; Sexual Harassment Officer