Bart Bellairs enters his first year as the Athletic Director at Savannah State University. Bellairs comes to Savannah State from Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in Lexington, Va., where he served as the senior associate athletic director, a position he held for three years. He also worked for ESPN as a color commentator for NCAA basketball.
At VMI, Bellairs was instrumental in tripling revenue totals for the first two years as senior associate athletic director. He worked with the VMI Keydet Club, an alumni athletic donor organization, which raised over $3 million in a single year to support both scholarships and the operating budget.
Bellairs was head men’s basketball coach at VMI from 1993 to 2005. During that period, he was named Southern Conference Coach of the Year, Virginia Coach of the Year and Sports Illustrated Unknown Coach of the Year.
A native of Richmond, Ky., Bellairs earned his undergraduate degree in sociology/social work at Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, N.C., where he was a letterman in both basketball and baseball. He earned his master’s degree in physical education and athletic administration at Western Illinois University in Macomb, Ill.
“Becoming the AD at Savannah State is a great leadership opportunity with a program that has incredible potential,” said Bellairs. “I’ve seen the blueprint President Yarbrough left at Virginia State, and I am excited that I’ll have the chance to work with him, Dr. Flythe, the coaches, student athletes, alumni and so many others to craft a new legacy for athletics at Savannah State.”
As athletic director, Bellairs is responsible for all matters related to managing SSU’s 15 intercollegiate sport teams for men and women. This includes directing and administering athletic programs and budgets; overseeing compliance with all NCAA rules and regulations, Board of Regents’ policies and university policies and procedures; and fundraising for programmatic needs.
