Marie Tuite Named Senior Associate A.D./Chief Operating Officer

Marie Tuite, a creative major college athletics leader and administrator whose professional career includes executive positions at Pacific-10 Conference universities and the NCAA, has accepted the position of Senior Associate Athletics Director/Chief Operating Officer at San Jose State University. Tom Bowen, the Spartans' director of athletics, made the announcement.

Her appointment at San Jose State University is effective June 1, 2010. Currently, Tuite is a Special Assistant to the Athletics Director at Seattle University. She assisted Seattle University's recent transition to NCAA Division I athletics status and provided administrative leadership to the Redhawks' men's basketball program successfully negotiating a facility lease of the 17,000-seat Key Arena and a local radio contract with an ESPN broadcast affiliate.

"We conducted an extensive national search to find the best collegiate athletics administrator to fit San Jose State University. We had an outstanding pool of candidates and an outstanding pool of finalists. It's a privilege to bring Marie Tuite to the San Jose State University athletics team," says Bowen.

In her new role, Tuite will oversee all of the Spartans' internal components and affairs. She will manage the daily operations of the department, direct supervision of student services and supervise specific sports programs to be assigned at a later date.

"This is an exciting time for San Jose State athletics and I'm looking forward to joining the Spartan family. I want to especially thank Tom Bowen and everyone involved for giving me this tremendous opportunity," says Tuite, whose Bay Area ties go back to her tenure as the assistant women's athletics director at the University of California in the 1980's.

NCAA CHAMPONSHIPS EXPERIENCE

Tuite then relocated to the NCAA office in the Kansas City area and served as an Assistant Director of Championships from 1989 to 1994. She assisted the organization's sport committees in the administration of the National Collegiate Championships program and coordinated the Association's corporate partner, merchandising, promotional, and official ball programs for NCAA championships.

"I have had the privilege of knowing and working with Marie for the past 20 years. San Jose State is getting a proven administrator who brings a wealth of experience to the Tom Bowen team," says Karl Benson, commissioner of the Western Athletic Conference, who worked with Tuite in the NCAA's Championships division.

UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON ATHLETICS ADMINISTRATOR FOR 14 YEARS

Tuite returned to a campus setting in 1994 as a senior associate athletics director at the University of Washington. Her duties included overseeing the process and appointment of new head coaches, directing day-to-day operations including fiscal responsibility and leadership opportunities for numerous sports, and initiating and implementing "keys to success" for priority Husky sports programs.

Highly-respected, she served a term on the NCAA Division I Championships Cabinet and was a member of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee and the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Issues Committee.

A two-sport student-athlete and graduate of Central Michigan University, she was inducted into the university's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1990 as just the third female inductee. Tuite played field hockey and was a star basketball player who majored in physical education. She earned her master's degree from her alma mater in athletic administration.

Tuite has two sons, Michael (17) and John (15).