Part of the School of Business's Professional Development Series (PDS), a month full of activities and programs that will support your career and professional development needs! Part of the School of Business's Professional Development Series (PDS), a month full of activities and programs that will support your career and professional development needs!
Tuesday, March 21
12:05-1:10pm
Klingenstein Lounge
Lunch Provided
Join us for lunch as at this kick-off event as Mr. Spiotti speaks about his experience in athletics and how that has shaped his unique leadership style.
Open to All! Students: RSVP in OrgSync under the School of Business tab for Career Connections Credit at least 48 hours in advance.
About Mr. Spiotti:
Lou Spiotti, Jr. has guided the RIT Athletics program since 1980 and on August 1, 2014, celebrated his 40th anniversary at the Institute. Under Spiotti’s leadership, the RIT Intercollegiate Athletics program has experienced unprecedented growth and development.
In 2015-16 RIT athletics enjoyed another banner season, with several teams excelling in the field of play, including women’s cross country, which advanced to the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history. In addition, men’s hockey and men’s lacrosse made appearances in the NCAA Tournament. In the classroom, the 600 RIT student-athletes combined for an outstanding 3.26 grade-point average, with nearly 25 Academic All-Americans and 250 All-league academic selections.
The Rochester native and graduate of Aquinas Institute and Ithaca College had a stellar athletic career as a high school football player, earning All-American honors, before a four-year standout career at Ithaca. Spiotti also boxed interscholastically, winning three titles in three different weight classes (losing only one bout in his four-year career). In 1965, he was a member of Ithaca’s first and only undefeated football team. Spiotti and the 1965 team was inducted into the Ithaca Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015.
In 1969, Spiotti entered the United States Navy and served his active duty in Special Services as Director of Athletics for the Atlantic Fleet in Newport, Rhode Island.
Under Spiotti’s leadership, the RIT Athletics program has grown from 15 sports for men and women to 24 sports and over 600 participants. During those years, he assembled a coaching and support staff of some of the finest professionals in the nation, including Brian Mason, Doug May, Bob McVean, Ann Nealon, Bill Tierney, Bruce Delventhal, Jake Coon, Wayne Wilson, Scott McDonald, and Earl Fuller, each of whom have been honored as national or conference coaches of the year.
RIT has represented the university regionally and nationally winning scores of league titles, ECAC Championships and three national championships. Recently, the women’s hockey team won an NCAA Division III Championship (2012), the first women’s national title in school history. In 2010 and after only five years competing at the Division I level, men’s ice hockey won the league championship and advanced to the Frozen Four in Detroit, Michigan. Men’s hockey also won the Division II National Championship in 1983 and Division III title in 1985. RIT has been well represented under Spiotti’s tenure with several individual NCAA National Championships.
Spiotti has guided the transition of the intercollegiate athletics program into new leagues: Liberty League (Division III) in 2011, Atlantic Hockey (Division I Men) and College Hockey America (Division I Women) and the migration of Men’s and Women’s Ice Hockey to multidivisional (Division I) status. He has served as President of the Independent College Athletic Conference, The Empire 8, The United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association and Ridgemont Country Club Board of Governors. He recently completed a term as Chairman of the Atlantic Hockey Association Executive Committee and was appointed to the Executive Committee of College Hockey America.
For his body of work as an athlete, coach and administrator he was inducted into six sports Halls of Fame (Aquinas Institute, Section V Football, Frontier Field Walk of Fame, Ithaca College Athletics Hall of Fame, RIT Sports Hall of Fame and The Italian American Sports Hall of Fame in Rochester, N.Y.).
Spiotti lives with his wife Lynn in Greece, N.Y. They have two daughters (Lisa and Kristen) and three grandchildren (Dylan, Drew, and Alexandra).
Individuals with disabilities requiring accommodations should contact Katy Hall at khall2@ithaca.edu or (607) 274-3347. We ask that requests for accommodations be made as soon as possible.
https://www.ithaca.edu/intercom/article.php/20170302121516525