Jack Hayes was announced as the Director of Athletics on Brown University on April 5, 2012, and officially began his tenure on June 1, 2012. Hayes came to Brown from Hofstra University, and he succeeds Michael Goldberger at Brown.

“I am thrilled with the opportunity to come to Brown,” Hayes said. “Brown’s tradition of academic and athletic excellence was the principal factor in my candidacy for the position. I look forward to returning to Providence and beginning my work with Brown’s coaches, staff, and student athletes.”

Hayes’s appointment was the result of a national search chaired by Margaret Klawunn, vice president for campus life and student services, to whom the director of athletics reports. The search committee recommended Hayes to Brown President Ruth J. Simmons, who approved the recommendation in consultation with President-elect Christina Paxson. The director of athletics serves as a member of the President’s Executive Committee.

“We have recently affirmed the significant role of athletics at Brown and initiated an important set of improvements to the program,” Simmons said. “Jack Hayes offers the leadership experience to carry through successfully on the goals that have been set and the measures that have been put in place under the exceptional tenure of Michael Goldberger.”

Brown’s program of varsity competition is among the broadest and most diverse in the country. As director of athletics at Brown, Hayes will have responsibility for 37 varsity teams and their coaches, as well as 17 intercollegiate teams that compete at the club level. The Department of Athletics and Physical Education also supports an extensive intramural program, organizes exercise classes for faculty and staff, and manages the University’s athletic facilities, from satellite fitness centers in residential halls to the ice rink, swimming pool, and varsity facilities. A major new athletic complex, including an aquatic center, fitness center, and varsity strength and conditioning facility, will be put into service soon and dedicated in May.

“During two decades as a university sports administrator, Jack Hayes has developed a deep understanding of the role of athletics — how it can thrive in an academic setting and how it can enrich the campus experience for all students,” Klawunn said. “He is well prepared to help Brown athletics achieve its very promising future.”

Brown athletics has developed a program of community service that has become a model for all NCAA institutions. For more than two decades, the University’s varsity teams have worked with the Vartan Gregorian Elementary School at Fox Point, where each team adopts a classroom for the year and Brown student-athletes volunteer their time as tutors, mentors, and role models. During the year, varsity team members also undertake nearly two dozen special purpose fund-raising and community events — Bench Press for Cancer, Lax for Lupus, Pink at the Rink, Dash for Diabetes — and work with community organizations like the Special Olympics and the local Boys and Girls Club.

Hayes is a native of Providence, graduating from Providence Country Day School, where he lettered in football, basketball, and lacrosse. He attended Providence College, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1989 and was a member of the varsity lacrosse team. After graduation, he completed a sports information internship at Brown University, then headed to the University of Connecticut for graduate school, earning a master’s degree in education (1992) with a concentration in sports management.

Hayes has more than 20 years of experience in university sports administration. He served at Fairfield, St. John’s, and Fordham universities before his appointment as associate director at the University of Connecticut in 2001. At Connecticut, he had responsibilities for fundraising, including annual giving, major gifts, and coordination of capital project campaigns. He also represented Connecticut’s Division of Athletics as a public speaker at donor, alumni and community events.

Hayes moved to his current position at Hofstra in 2004. In addition to full responsibility for managing staffing, budget, fundraising, and facilities, Hayes has focused on achieving and sustaining a higher level of academic and athletic achievement. Hofstra varsity teams have averaged greater than a 3.0 GPA during his tenure, with 10 academic all-American honors and 16 conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards. The teams have been competitive, with 21 Colonial Athletic Association championships and 35 post-season appearances, including 26 NCAA tournaments.