In 1981, Tom McElroy moved to Cumberland, R.I. where he would help mold the Big East Conference into one of the nation's elite leagues. He figured he would spend two or three years nurturing the infant conference before getting the chance to be an athletic director. Twenty-three years later, he realized his dream when he was introduced as the 10th director of athletics in Rhode Island history.

The deputy director of athletics at the Connecticut, he was named director of athletics at Rhode Island on June 2, 2004. He assumed the athletic department's top leadership position on July 1.

McElroy oversees an operation with 22 intercollegiate sports and a recreational services program, which includes 14 club sports and intramurals programs. The Department of Athletics at URI has a budget of about $14.5 million and serves nearly 450 intercollegiate student-athletes.

He brings a wealth of experience to his new position.

As deputy director at Connecticut, McElroy managed the school's transition to NCAA Division 1-A football, which included construction and operations of a $91 million, 40,000-seat football stadium. He has also directed ticket marketing/seat licensing, scheduling and television production for football. In addition, he has had administrative policy and decision-making responsibilities for the national champion Connecticut men's and women's basketball teams.

At Connecticut, McElroy was part of an athletics operation that saw 255 student-athletes earn a grade point average of 3.0 or higher and 14 earn a perfect 4.0 in the spring or fall semesters of 2003. He played the critical role in boosting football attendance in the new stadium to 37,059 in 2003 (the first year in the new stadium), the largest increase in the nation. Corporate sponsorship in 2003 totaled a record $6.4 million, nearly doubling the total of the prevision year. In addition, Connecticut posted record season ticket sales for men¹s and women¹s basketball in 2003-2004.

He brings to Rhode Island 20 years of administrative experience with the Big East Conference, including policy decision-making, daily management with member institutions, television negotiations, scheduling and production, bowl administration, communication programs and championship management.

"It's an exciting day at URI today as we bring on board an individual with a lengthy record of excellence in the world of intercollegiate athletics," Dr. Robert Carothers, president of the University, said. "Tom brings to Rhode Island a wealth of experience from his work with our neighbors at UConn, including oversight of the two best college basketball programs in the land. But Tom's hiring means much more to URI. He has a commitment to outstanding academic performance by student-athletes and he clearly is able to connect with alumni and friends to make them feel a part of something special."

McElroy was chosen from a list of 48 applications, and was one of five finalists chosen for campus visits. "We had an extremely strong field of finalists, and now in Tom McElroy, I am pleased to say we have someone who is perfectly poised to take over this position," Dennis Nixon, chair of the search committee, said.

A resident of the state since 1981, McElroy has followed closely the fortunes of Rhode Island and its athletics program. "We have much to be proud of here at URI, including the outstanding record of our various teams, both on the field and off," McElroy said. "Rhode Island has always been among the top schools in capturing Atlantic 10 conference championships, and has consistently strong representation on conference all-academic teams. This is a great opportunity at a great university, and I look forward to making the athletics program even stronger."

Prior to his work at Connecticut, McElroy worked at the Big East Conference office from 1981 to 2001, starting as director of communications and rising to the post of senior associate commissioner in 1993. In his associate commissioner's role, he supervised and coordinated basketball and football administration, including scheduling, television, bowls and game management, championships, finances and public relations/marketing. He managed television agreements with CBS Sports, ESPN and ESPN Regional Television. In 1993, he won an Emmy Award in the New England region for a live sports series--Big East Football Game of the Week. He has been nominated five other times for Emmy awards.

Prior to working at the Big East Conference, he held a variety of positions at St. Bonaventure from 1974 to 1981. After earning a bachelor's degree in journalism from St. Bonaventure in 1974, he was named the school's coordinator of alumni services, a post he held for two years. In 1976, he was named director of public relations and added sports information duties in 1977. McElroy earned a master's degree in education administration and supervision in 1978.

He is married to the former Joanne McLaughlin. The couple has three children: Kelly McElroy Twitchell, Katherine and Erin.

Rhode Island Athletic Directors
1909-1916, George Cobb
1916-1920, James Baldwin
1920-1956, Frank Keaney
1956-1962, Fred Tootell
1962-1981, Maurice Zarchen
1981-1988, John Chuckran
1988-1989, Tom Dougan
1989-1991, McKinley Boston
1991-2004, Ron Petro
2004-2006, Tom McElroy