Chancellor Kent Syverud today announced that Interim Director of Athletics and Managing Director of the Carrier Dome Peter Sala will assume a new senior leadership role at the University once his interim director appointment concludes on July 6.
Peter Sala
Sala will serve as the University’s vice president and chief campus facilities officer. In this new and expanded role, Sala will continue to oversee all operations at the Carrier Dome. He will now also oversee several departments on campus, including Campus Planning, Design and Construction; Business and Facilities Maintenance Services; Physical Plant; Housing and Food Services Maintenance; and Energy Systems & Sustainability Management. Sala will report to Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Louis Marcoccia. The appointment is to be confirmed by the University’s Board of Trustees at its next meeting.
Sala has served as interim director of athletics since March. Mark Coyle, director of athletics at Boise State, has been selected to be the University’s new athletic director following a national search. Coyle assumes his new role July 6. Sala will work closely with Coyle to continue and expand the strong relationship between the Carrier Dome and athletics operations.
“I want to sincerely thank Pete for stepping up and serving the University well as interim director of athletics these past few months,” Chancellor Syverud says. “Pete’s knowledge stretches far beyond the walls of the Carrier Dome and his new role will help ensure a top-quality overall campus physical environment that supports and contributes to an outstanding student experience.”
Sala says in the 30 years he’s worked at the University he has had the opportunity to collaborate with countless people and departments to make the Carrier Dome the special place it is—as both an athletics arena and a living classroom for students. “I am grateful for the opportunity to continue building relationships across campus and look forward to leading efforts to develop and implement the best environment for student success,” says Sala.
“I have the highest regard for Pete’s abilities and his focused commitment to achieving quality outcomes in accordance with University strategies, goals and objectives,” Marcoccia says. “His talent, experience, commitment and passion will be of great benefit as the University moves forward with implementing its Campus Framework. Having Pete, a trusted and skilled colleague, in a senior leadership role will be very beneficial to the entire campus community.”
Prior to being named interim director of athletics, Sala was the senior associate director of athletics for facilities and was responsible for all athletics department facilities and operations, including the Lampe Athletics Complex, Carrier Dome, Hookway Practice Fields, Softball Stadium, Ten Eyck Memorial Boathouse and Drumlins Tennis Club.
Sala started at the Carrier Dome in 1982 as a production assistant and advanced through the ranks to production manager in 1988 and operations manager in 1991. He served as assistant director of facilities operations for the Carrier Dome from 1991 through June 2005, when he was promoted to associate director of athletics for facilities. In 2010, Sala assumed the role of managing director of the Carrier Dome.
At the Dome, Sala is responsible for all aspects of the day-to-day operations of the facility, including coordinating and scheduling events, managing the box office, maintaining the budget and overseeing all necessary building maintenance. He supervises a full-time staff of 35, part-time staff of more than 400 and the nearly 100 students that assist in Dome operations and facility changeovers. Sala also serves as the Dome’s contact person for television productions.
Along with his Carrier Dome responsibilities, Sala is also the construction manager for all athletics facility upgrades and new building projects, including such recent additions as the football weight room, five new outdoor synthetic turf fields, the Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball practice facility and the remodeling of Manley Field House into a new multi-use indoor practice facility.
A 1979 graduate of Jamesville-DeWitt High School, Sala attended Morrisville College before transferring to the University of Massachusetts, where he completed its program in turf management.
