Ashwin “Ash” Puri is vice president and director of athletics, leading a division comprising approximately 500 student-athletes across 21 NCAA Division I men’s and women’s varsity programs competing in the Atlantic 10 Conference, as well as robust club sports and campus recreation programs.
Puri has been a leader in collegiate and professional sports for more than 20 years. Most recently, he served as vice president for athletics and recreation, and director of athletics, at La Salle University, where he oversaw a comprehensive program rooted in academic excellence and holistic student development. He has also held senior leadership roles with Villanova, the NBA and Oakland Athletics, where he spearheaded a program that introduced recent college graduates to the sports industry, developed a new membership access program and managed $60 million annually.
Throughout his career, Puri has established himself as one of the most versatile and dynamic athletic administrators in the country. He has led programs through transformative growth — building revenue streams, modernizing facilities, elevating academic cultures and positioning institutions for long-term success.
His experience spans the full breadth of sports, from Division I athletics to the MLB, NBA and NFL, giving him a unique perspective on what it takes to build and sustain a winning organization. Whether negotiating landmark partnerships, leading high-profile coaching searches or championing student-athlete development, Puri consistently demonstrates the vision, culture and drive that define great athletics leadership.
Puri is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where he earned his Bachelor of Science in Sports Management.
