SAN MARCOS, Calif. – After serving as interim director of athletics for Cal State San Marcos, Morod Shah was appointed to director of athletics on Wednesday. Shah will begin his new role on Aug. 1.

"I am incredibly humbled and honored to become the next director of athletics here at CSUSM and lead our amazing student-athletes, coaches, staff and administration," Shah said. "This university means so much to my family and me both professionally and personally, so to have this opportunity is a dream come true. I want to thank the search committee, Vice President Viridiana Diaz and Dr. Kurt Patberg with Mammoth Sports Consulting for their time during this process."

Shah will provide leadership to a department that has grown and achieved significant milestones over the last 25 years. Last year, CSUSM Athletics saw a record 12 out of 13 teams make postseason appearances. The department celebrated an unprecedented number of CCAA Player of the Year awards, All-American student-athletes, CCAA Coach of the Year awards and CCAA Conference Championships. Additionally, CSUSM Athletics achieved a combined GPA of 3.31, marking the eighth consecutive year with a GPA of 3.0 or higher. The department also saw a 76% increase in general admission ticket sales and raised over $180,000 on Giving Day, breaking a department record. Overall, CSUSM Athletics raised over $1 million, the highest in 23 years, and saw a 40% increase in corporate sponsorship revenue and a 26% increase in season ticket sales revenue. CSUSM Athletics continues to exceed expectations in performance, fundraising and public recognition. Most importantly, CSUSM's student-athletes continue to excel in their respective sports as well as academically.

"I am excited to continue working with Morod in his new role as the CSUSM director of athletics and help him elevate athletics to new heights," said Dr. Viridiana Diaz, CSUSM's vice president for Student Affairs. "I want to thank the members of the search committee and the internal and external community members who attended the open forums and shared their feedback. Their input was invaluable in helping us identify and recruit the next director of athletics."

A San Marcos native and first-generation college graduate from CSUSM, Shah has been with the department since October 2013 and previously served as associate director of athletics for facilities and operations, and external operations coordinator. He played a key role in developing CSUSM's $11.6 million Sports Center and created operational protocols, technical capabilities and staffing plans and policies for the campus' first on-campus arena.

Before being hired at CSUSM, Shah worked for the San Diego Chargers as a public relations assistant and for Glacéau – the maker of vitaminwater and smartwater – as an area sales and marketing manager.

"Over the last 25 years in CSUSM athletics, we have been able to grow and evolve as a department at an unprecedented rate, and I have been fortunate enough to be a part of the growth over the last 11 years here," Shah said. "I want to honor the past 25 years, and I am excited to move and grow our department of athletics forward, together for CSUSM."

Shah earned a bachelor's degree in communication from CSUSM in 2008. He lives in San Marcos with his wife, Adrienne, and their two children.