Longtime collegiate athletic director Patricia H. Meiser has been appointed the Chair of the Connecticut Sports Advisory Board, a division of the Connecticut Convention& Sports Bureau (CTCSB).

 

The Connecticut Sports Advisory Board works to attract and serve international, national and regional sporting events of all sizes, thereby increasing local and state revenue and support jobs for Connecticut residents. Established in 2008 by the General Assembly, the Advisory Board works closely with the CTCSB sales team, including its new Director of Sports Marketing Robert Murdock and Sports Marketing Manager Tangier Pritchett.

 

“Pat Meiser is a well-known leader in Connecticut’s sports community who has extensive knowledge of how a destination marketing organization positions and promotes its assets,” explains H. Scott Phelps, Interim President of the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau, the State’s official meetings and sports event sales and marketing organization. “During her impressive career, Pat has cultivated relationships with numerous local and national business and sports organizations. Her reputation as a respected athletic director and former women’s basketball coach will enhance our sales efforts across the U.S.”

 

“Connecticut is fortunate to have many powerful sports organizations in such a compact state – from our impressive collegiate sports teams to the Travelers Championship, Connecticut Open Tennis, Connecticut Sun, Hartford Marathon, auto racing, and professional hockey and baseball teams,” says Patricia H. Meiser. “Our Connecticut Sports Advisory Board brings together the expertise of key individuals from these sports organizations, among others, who are committed to promoting the state. Booking new sports events here is a win-win for everyone. It means increased revenue and more jobs for the State and local economies, and greater visibility for Connecticut as a destination for visitors.

 

Meiser recently retired as the Athletic Director and Special Assistant to the President at the University of Hartford in West Hartford, Conn., after leading the Hartford Hawks program for more than 20 years. In that position, she became the 13th woman ever named an NCAA Division I athletic director in the nation. Prior to that job, she spent a decade as the Associate Athletic Director and Senior Women’s Administrator at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, and chaired the committee that recommended the hiring of current women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma.

 

Meiser has been a member of the Connecticut Sports Advisory Board since its establishment in 2012. She chaired the former Greater Hartford Sports Commission for nearly 20 years, and was Chair for two years of the former Greater Hartford Convention & Sports Bureau. Before joining UConn, Meiser was Head Women’s Basketball Coach at the Pennsylvania State University in State College, Pa. for 11 years.

 

The Manchester, Conn. resident is the recipient of many sports and leadership awards. She was named one of 25 national "Title IX Trailblazers" by the National Association of Women Athletic Administrators (NACWAA), is a two-time winner of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics’ (NACDA) Division I AAA Athletics Director of the Year Award -Northeast Region, was named one of the nation's top 50 women's sports executives by Street and Smith's Sports Business Journal, and is an inductee into the Connecticut Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. She also has been honored by the National Conference for Community and Justice, the Connecticut Women’s Education and Legal Fund. In September, she received a 2014 Commissioner's Award from the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC).

 

Meiser holds two graduate degrees from Penn State: a Master’s degree in Education with a focus on Sports Psychology; and a Master’s degree in Business Administration. The Lancaster, Pa. native received her Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from West Chester University in West Chester, Pa.

 

The Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau (CTCSB), a public-private partnership, was established in 2012, expanding the reach and responsibilities of the former Greater Hartford Convention & Visitors Bureau to cover all of Connecticut. The organization works in partnership with the state’s businesses, institutions, nonprofit organizations, and surrounding communities to market all of Connecticut – convention and meeting venues, hotels and attractions, and sporting venues – as a premier destination for international, national, regional and statewide conferences, conventions and major sports events. The public-private partnership is funded by dues from members and by the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) and Connecticut Office of Tourism. The Connecticut Sports Advisory Board, a division of the CTCSB, focuses its efforts on attracting and serving international, national and regional sporting events.

In FY 2013-2014, the CTCSB generated $68,376,436 in total revenue for State and local economies from meetings, conventions and sports events. This included $5,398,921 in Connecticut Sales Tax that translates to a Return of $6.75 to the State for every dollar invested. The CTCSB reported a total of 71,572 room nights with 338,266 attendees, and an average spending per attendee for: $202.13. In addition, these bookings supported a total of 19,188 Connecticut Jobs in the hospitality industry.

 

For more information about the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau and the Connecticut Sports Advisory Board, visit www.ctmeetings.org or call 860-728-6789.