Recently hired New Mexico State Univ. AD Mario Moccia said he is preparing for the move by getting "up to speed from a business perspective, marketing, compliance, academics, etc.," according to a Q&A by Jason Groves of the LAS CRUCES SUN-NEWS. Moccia, an NMSU alum, will begin his new gig during the first week of January after spending the last eight years at Southern Illinois Univ. Below are excerpts from the Q&A:
Q: What is your top priority for the first month, the first six months and the first year?
Moccia: The first month, I think it’s critical to meet all of the staff and as many people as you can. ... You talk about a year, you have a lot more knowledge. You can look at what kind of facility projects do we need, do we have the funding and is it a campus priority?
Q: How do you grow the budget at NMSU?
Moccia: I think private dollars are key for the scholarship fund. ... I really need to be on the ground and hear from everybody, but the scholarship fund is key for generating revenue. ... This area is wrought with a bunch of millionaires that we have managed to, through the football and basketball games, make a fun atmosphere and meet people through the existing donors and that’s how we have been able to grow it. … The second thing is the marketing. We do our marketing in-house (at NMSU). I have looked at those numbers preliminarily. I would like to do some more study and talk to the people on the ground. ... I really want to take a good hard look. Ninety-five percent, if not more, are aligned with a multimedia rights partner. … The third big prong is ticket sales. You want to increase marketing and do this that and the other.
Q: What is your current understanding of three or four priority facility projects?
Moccia: It seems like the focus is that we have a debt that we have to repay. ... I’ll take a look at what the facility needs are, how we are from a Title IX standpoint. It is my understanding there is no current funds that have been pledged for any facility projects (LCSUN-NEWS.com, 12/13).
