Peter Fields Position: Director of Athletics Institution: Montana State University

As Peter Fields enters his seventh year as Montana State University's fourth full-time Director of Intercollegiate Athletics, the impact of his success in the position range far beyond the domed roof of the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse.

Fields has served since May 1, 2002, and he has overseen tremendous growth and success in the Bobcat athletic programs. During his tenure, MSU teams have captured 10 Big Sky Conference Championships and Bobcat student-athletes 52 individual conference championships.

A 1979 University of Maine, Presque Isle graduate, Fields was a standout varsity wrestler who earned induction into his school's Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006. He was also a wrestling coach at UMPI, and received his M.A. from the U.S. Sports Academy in 1987. He came to Montana State from the University of Missouri, where he worked from 1996-2002, including the last four as Associate AD. He previously worked at Toledo (1988-96) and Kent State (1985-88) in business and budget management, with a wide range of duties at each stop.

While restructuring all areas of MSU Athletics' administrative and support areas, Fields has overseen the implementation of a comprehensive strategic plan, annual reports following each fiscal year, the transition of MSU's mass media and corporate efforts to Learfield Sports, and NCAA re-certification. He has remained extremely active nationally, serving as President of the College Athletic Business Management Association (1999) and holding posts on the FCS Athletic Directors Association, in which he is 2nd Vice President, and as Chair of the NCAA Management Council's FCS Subcommittee.

As reward for his work in the athletic business management field, he was named CABMA's national Manager of the Year in 2004. He was also earned a General Robert R. Neyland Outstanding Athletic Director Award from the All-America Football Foundation in 2007.

Fields' proudest professional achievements remain the achievements of Bobcat student-athletes. For the past 16 semesters, Bobcat student-athletes have maintained team grade point averages of over 3.0, a remarkable show of consistent academic success. Under Bobcat Athletics' two-year old A.L.L. Program, Bobcat student-athletes have compiled over 8,000 hours of service in the Bozeman and MSU campus communities, and have been honored on numerous occasions by the University for academic achievement and service.

Several Athletic Department initiatives enacted during Fields' tenure directly benefit Bobcat student-athletes in assimilating to campus life, including a mentoring program linking student-athletes to members of the campus community, academic advising assistance program to train members of the faculty and advising community on NCAA rules, and the CATS program, providing intensive academic assistance.

MSU Athletics rewards its elite student-athletes. Over 220 student-athletes earned invitations to the Department's 3.0 Ice Cream Social, and those with a 4.0 GPA with a special dinner typically attended by President Dr. Geoff Gamble and members of the school's academic community. The Department also functions as part of the One Team program to help athletics function seamlessly in the campus community. Bobcat Athletics has produced five MSU Awards for Excellence honorees in each of the past two years, and seven of this year's Student Achievement Award winners are female student-athletes.

Fields's wife Debbie is a nurse in the Livingston school system, and their daughter Briana, an Academic All-Big Sky Bobcat basketball player, presently works in the athletic administration at Missouri.