Rutgers Launches Search for Athletics Director
Rutgers University today announced that it has retained executive search firm TurnkeyZRG to assist in the national search for a new athletics director at Rutgers-New Brunswick and that an advisory committee has been formed to support the search.
“Athletics often serves as the front porch to a university, and it is essential that Rutgers partner with an established firm to identify a leader who continues to move the program forward during a period of transformational change,” President Jonathan Holloway said. “Rutgers is a Big Ten Conference institution in our nation’s largest media market, and we look forward to welcoming an athletics director who can leverage our many assets to build prideful results for our students, staff, faculty, alumni and fans.”
A firm specializing in leadership and coaching recruitment in U.S. college athletics, TurnkeyZRG conducted many recent athletics director searches, including for The University of Iowa, Texas Christian University, The University of Pittsburgh, and Northwestern University. TurnkeyZRG also assisted with the search for the new Big Ten commissioner and has conducted the NCAA president search, as well as the Big 12 and American Athletic Conference commissioner searches.
“Rutgers is well-positioned, as the Birthplace of College Football, a proud member of the Big Ten Conference and one of the nation’s oldest and respected public universities, nestled in the heart of the country’s No. 1 market, to attract the best and brightest to lead our athletics department,” said Amy L. Towers, chair of the Rutgers Board of Governors. “On behalf of the Board of Governors, we look forward to working with the administration and TurnkeyZRG to identify and select a candidate with the required skill, experience and vision to guide Rutgers into this new era of intercollegiate athletics.”
The search advisory committee will provide institutional guidance and insight to the firm throughout the process. Search advisory committee members:
- Marco Battaglia (SMLR ‘18); Senior Advisor to the Rutgers University Foundation President
- Arthur Certosimo (RC ’77); Professor and Chair, Board of Advisors, Rutgers Business School
- Meredith Civico; Field Hockey Head Coach
- Hollis Copeland (RC ’78); Rutgers Board of Governors
- Robert H. Friedman (RC ’74, NLAW ‘83); Rutgers Board of Trustees
- Ann Gould; Academic Athletics Oversight Committee Faculty Representative and Dean of Academic Programs, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences
- Gary B. Taffet (RC ’88); Rutgers Board of Governors
- Brian Ballentine; Senior Vice President for Strategy and Chief of Staff
- J. Michael Gower; Executive Vice President – Chief Financial Officer
President Holloway will work with the chair of the Board of Governors and, when named, his successor as university president to select the finalist.
The Rutgers Department of Intercollegiate Athletics is comprised of 24 men's and women's varsity sports serving more than 730 student-athletes competing in the Big Ten Conference.
Inquiries, nominations, applications and requests for more information regarding the search for the athletics director are invited and should be submitted via email to ChadChatlos@TurnkeyZRG.com
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a leading national research university and the state of New Jersey’s preeminent, comprehensive public institution of higher education. Established in 1766, the university is the eighth-oldest higher education institution in the United States. More than 69,000 students and 27,000 faculty and staff learn, work and serve the public at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers University-Newark, Rutgers University-Camden and Rutgers Health.
