Purdue taps Razorback Foundation communications director for associate AD position
by February 27, 2020 1:55 pm 913 views
Kassidie Blackstock, director of strategic communications and stewardship at the Razorback Foundation Inc. in Fayetteville, has accepted a job at Purdue University as associate athletics director for strategic communications.
Blackstock said her final day with the foundation is March 3.
“I am thrilled to have been offered the opportunity to join the Purdue Athletics family,” Blackstock said in a statement. “I look forward to working with the talented communications team and continuing to promote and highlight Purdue student-athletes, coaches and the traditions that have made it a national brand.”
Blackstock joined the Razorback Foundation in September 2018. She managed all communication platforms and messaging to educate and inform donors and non-donors about the benefits and impact of investing in Razorback athletics. The Razorback Foundation is the private fundraising arm that raises millions of dollars in support of the university’s athletics department.
At Purdue, Blackstock will manage and lead the strategic communications team charged with distributing information to a variety of constituents, including alumni, donors, fans and media. The team reports on and publicizes 18 sports programs.
“We are excited to welcome Kassidie to the Purdue family,” Purdue athletics director Mike Bobinski said in a statement. “Her experiences working in strategic communications across multiple industries offers unique perspective and a complementary skill set to lead our strategic communications team. Her background of planning and executing integrated, strategic communications programs is an ideal profile as the communications industry continues to evolve.”
Blackstock also held positions including the assistant director of public relations at the University of Tennessee athletics department, vice president at FleishmanHillard International Communications, and deputy general manager of Isom Global Strategies.
Following Isom Global Strategies she transitioned to a business development consultant during her time living abroad before returning to the United States and accepting the role as the director of donor communications and sponsorships at the University of Tennessee Medical Center.
Blackstock, a Knoxville, Tenn.-native, holds a bachelor’s degree in communications with an emphasis in broadcast journalism from the University of Tennessee.
Blackstock was also a member of the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal’s Forty Under 40 class in 2019.