COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri Director of Athletics Desireé Reed-Francois named Blair DeBord as Associate AD for Development and Strategic Initiatives.
DeBord, a former student-athlete, joins the Tigers staff following a stint at the University of Memphis. He will oversee the Tiger Scholarship Fund, Mizzou Athletics’ fundraising arm.
“We are pleased to have Blair DeBord joining our team at Mizzou,” Reed-Francois said. “He is a dynamic leader and a former student-athlete who has previous experience in the Southeastern Conference. His ties to the Midwest and strategic fundraising success will be critical as we continue to elevate the Tiger Scholarship Fund. We are proud to welcome Blair, his wife Ellen, and their daughters, Evie and Ruthie, to our Tiger family and Missouri community.”
“Blair stood out in the search process as the right person to lead our Tiger Scholarship Fund team,” Chief Revenue Officer Greg Hulen said. “He has successfully led the fundraising team at Memphis, and I look forward to him working with our tremendous staff to lead Mizzou Athletics to even greater heights."
“I want to thank Desireé and Greg for such a great opportunity to join the Mizzou Athletics family,” DeBord said. “My wife, Ellen, and my daughters are looking forward to calling Columbia our home and meeting all of the wonderful people that love, support and care about Mizzou Athletics and make it so special. Mizzou has the unique status of not only competing in the SEC for athletics, but also being a prestigious AAU institution. The combination makes Mizzou a nationally recognized university and we are eager to become part of the community.”
While at Memphis, DeBord oversaw development and fundraising strategy and operations and was the sport administrator for baseball. He served as a chief strategist on external leadership team and member of AD’s strategic communication group. His development team raised a school-record $24-million in FY23. During his tenure, he led capital campaigns for a baseball stadium upgrade and a new student-athlete success center, while assisting in strategic planning and supported the launch of the 901Women Initiative, a Title IX celebration specific program.
Prior to Memphis, DeBord worked as Assistant Athletic Director for Development & Strategic Initiatives at UNLV from April 2018-Dec. 2019. He previously served as Special Project Manager at Tennessee from 2017-18 and was the Assistant Director of Development at Kansas State from 2016-17.
DeBord graduated from Kansas State in 2014 with a degree in marketing, and he also earned his master’s degree in business administration at Kansas State in 2016, while working as a graduate assistant in the development office. He was a first-team All-Big 12 catcher for the Wildcats and earned all-conference academic honors, while also being the program's SAAC representative. DeBord also participated in the NCAA's Emerging Leaders seminar.
DeBord and his wife, Ellen, were married in 2015 and have two daughters, Evie and Ruthie.
DeBord, a former student-athlete, joins the Tigers staff following a stint at the University of Memphis. He will oversee the Tiger Scholarship Fund, Mizzou Athletics’ fundraising arm.
“We are pleased to have Blair DeBord joining our team at Mizzou,” Reed-Francois said. “He is a dynamic leader and a former student-athlete who has previous experience in the Southeastern Conference. His ties to the Midwest and strategic fundraising success will be critical as we continue to elevate the Tiger Scholarship Fund. We are proud to welcome Blair, his wife Ellen, and their daughters, Evie and Ruthie, to our Tiger family and Missouri community.”
“Blair stood out in the search process as the right person to lead our Tiger Scholarship Fund team,” Chief Revenue Officer Greg Hulen said. “He has successfully led the fundraising team at Memphis, and I look forward to him working with our tremendous staff to lead Mizzou Athletics to even greater heights."
“I want to thank Desireé and Greg for such a great opportunity to join the Mizzou Athletics family,” DeBord said. “My wife, Ellen, and my daughters are looking forward to calling Columbia our home and meeting all of the wonderful people that love, support and care about Mizzou Athletics and make it so special. Mizzou has the unique status of not only competing in the SEC for athletics, but also being a prestigious AAU institution. The combination makes Mizzou a nationally recognized university and we are eager to become part of the community.”
While at Memphis, DeBord oversaw development and fundraising strategy and operations and was the sport administrator for baseball. He served as a chief strategist on external leadership team and member of AD’s strategic communication group. His development team raised a school-record $24-million in FY23. During his tenure, he led capital campaigns for a baseball stadium upgrade and a new student-athlete success center, while assisting in strategic planning and supported the launch of the 901Women Initiative, a Title IX celebration specific program.
Prior to Memphis, DeBord worked as Assistant Athletic Director for Development & Strategic Initiatives at UNLV from April 2018-Dec. 2019. He previously served as Special Project Manager at Tennessee from 2017-18 and was the Assistant Director of Development at Kansas State from 2016-17.
DeBord graduated from Kansas State in 2014 with a degree in marketing, and he also earned his master’s degree in business administration at Kansas State in 2016, while working as a graduate assistant in the development office. He was a first-team All-Big 12 catcher for the Wildcats and earned all-conference academic honors, while also being the program's SAAC representative. DeBord also participated in the NCAA's Emerging Leaders seminar.
DeBord and his wife, Ellen, were married in 2015 and have two daughters, Evie and Ruthie.
