If Kevin Beattie watches a sporting event in a raging blizzard now, it’ll be by his choice.
Presumably, he won’t hear a football thumping against the outside of his office wall anymore.
And when it comes to his work schedule, “It’s going to be more of what people know as normal business hours, versus working insane hours, nights and weekends, holidays, all those things that come with being in athletics and athletics communications,” he said on Wednesday.
For over 25 years, the Wynantskill native has been a stalwart in the athletic department at RPI, first as sports information director and most recently as associate athletic director.
Now, he’s leaving RPI to serve in a fund-raising role as major gifts officer at Albany Law School starting on Oct. 3.
He’ll bring a treasure chest of memories with him to Albany Law. He’ll also bring a resume of excellence in his profession that has been recognized by such awards as the 2011 Pillar of Rensselaer Award, the highest honor RPI gives to a staff member.
“It’s going to be different, obviously,” said Beattie, who lives in Niskayuna with his wife, Stacey, and their children, son Nolan and daughter Ella.
Beattie earned his MBA from RPI’s Lally School of Management & Technology in 2005 after having been hired by the school in 1998 as sports information director. Prior to 1998, he had worked four years with the AHL Albany River Rats, the last three as the director of communications. During his time with the River Rats, the team won the 1995 Calder Cup.
Among his personal highlights after taking the RPI job was the 2011 men’s hockey season, when the Engineers made it to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals before losing 6-0 to North Dakota in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
“In addition to all the people I’ve worked with, I’ll remember the Snow Bowl, when we played Ithaca in the [Division III football] national quarterfinals in 2003, which was in a blizzard,” Beattie said. “That jumps to mind right away.
“The success of our golf team recently is a big, big deal.”
The Engineers’ men’s golf team finished eighth at the NCAA Championship tournament last year.
For the Snow Bowl, the gametime temperature at RPI’s ‘86 Field was 18 degrees, and the grounds crew had to clear a foot of snow to make the game happen.
RPI defeated Ithaca 21-16, holding on with a fourth-down interception to end Ithaca’s final possession. The Engineers went on to lose to eventual national champion St. John’s (Minn.) in the semifinals.
Beattie is also proud of how he and the staff handled the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The following fall we didn’t compete, which is understandable, and then we got into the spring semester, and it took a ton of work to get our student-athletes back on the field, even though it was an abbreviated spring season,” he said. “And I had a lot to do with that, and that’s probably the most proud moment I had. I still remember the first couple of home games, whether it was baseball or men’s lacrosse, just to see them out on the field with what they did to persevere through that, knowing the work that went into it, was very, very rewarding.”
Oh, the football repeatedly hitting the wall while Beattie was trying to work at RPI’s East Campus Athletic Village?
That was Andrew Franks, the RPI kicker who boomed practice kicks on his homefield to give himself a chance to make the Miami Dolphins’ roster heading into the 2015-16 season. The biomedical engineering major from California made the team.
Beattie will have a quieter assignment at Albany Law School when he starts his job on Oct. 3.
As Associate Athletic Director for Communications at RPI, he assists with the day-to-day operations of the department as well as program/coach evaluation and supervision and a variety of human resource functions. He also oversees the website and publications for varsity sports.
Beattie has been the director of media relations for numerous NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey Championships, including the 2001 Frozen Four in Albany, as well as numerous NCAA Division III and Liberty League Championships.
In 2000, he was named RPI’s Person of the Year, the first-ever selected by the readers and staff of The Polytechnic, RPI’s student newspaper, and a recipient of the 2004 Mark of Excellence Award from the American Marketing Association Capital Region Chapter.
The school describes the Pillar Award he won in 2011 as “presented annually to a staff member who understands the Institute’s mission and history, has been a role model for other employees, has shown concern for students and their welfare, has added to the human dimension of the school, and who has played an active role in his or her home community.”
Beattie had a built-in connection at Albany Law, where several people he had worked with at RPI now work.
“It was an opportunity at Albany Law School to do something different,” he said. “They knew that I had an interest in being the AD [athletic director] at RPI, and when they found out I wasn’t going to have that opportunity, they thought, ‘Alright, maybe you’d have an interest outside of athletics.’
“A lot of it is going to be the relationships, getting to know people, taking the temperature of the room or individuals, things like that. I think a lot of the attributes are transferable, and that was the biggest deal. The communication skills are first and foremost.”
RPI announced the hiring of Dr. Kristie Bowers as the new athletic director on Aug. 23, replacing the retired Dr. Lee McElroy, who has held the position for the previous eight years.
Beattie leaves behind a department that is well respected for its mission to serve as a conduit between RPI athletes and the media.
“One of the things I always like to say is every day is media day at RPI,” he said. “We just try to accommodate people as much as possible.”
Contact Mike MacAdam at mikemac@dailygazette.com. Follow on X @Mike_MacAdam.