Staff Directory
- Title:
- Senior Associate Athletic Director, Development
- Email:
Uri Farkas joined Cal Poly in March of 2026.
Farkas brings more than 20 years of experience working in collegiate athletics with him to San Luis Obispo. He spent the previous eight years at NAU, including one year as the school’s Director of Athletics. Farkas joined NAU Athletics in 2018 as Deputy Athletic Director. During his tenure, he played a key role in shaping the department's strategic direction, with a focus on record-setting fundraising, innovative revenue generation, and proactive preparation for the evolving revenue-sharing landscape in collegiate athletics. Under Farkas' leadership, NAU Athletics recorded a historic fundraising year exceeding $4 million, the highest single-year total in department history.
Prior to his time at NAU, Farkas spent four years at Washington State as the Associate Athletic Director/Executive Director of the Cougar Athletic Fund. During that time, Farkas acted as the chief fundraiser for Washington State Athletics and its 17 intercollegiate athletic programs. He led Washington State to its largest fundraising year in history at $13.1 million in 2017 and was responsible for a 31-percent growth in generated annual revenue from 2015-17. Farkas increased the membership of the Cougar Athletic Fund 15 percent from the previous year and successfully secured capital gifts for facility projects including WSU's $60 million football operations headquarters, a $28 million indoor practice facility and $10 million baseball clubhouse.
Before his stint in Pullman, Farkas held the title of Assistant Athletic Director for Development at the University of California-Berkeley. In addition to being a member of the senior staff, he supervised a team of major gift officers and led the collaborative efforts with University Relations and campus partners to develop numerous successful cross fundraising campaigns.
Farkas was responsible for a fundraising team that collected $8 million in committed pledges in 2014. He successfully managed a portfolio of over 150 high-rated donors and was the key liaison to Cal-Berkeley's premium sales unit that generated $2 million in in premium seat renewals for the 2015 football season.
Farkas began his career in intercollegiate athletics at the University of Oregon as the Associate Director of the Services of Student Athletes. He managed a staff of full-time employees including athletic advisors and learning specialists. He was also responsible for organizing and managing on-campus recruiting activities for the Oregon Ducks football program, including giving presentations at high-profile recruiting events.
Farkas earned his B.A. degree in Journalism at the University of Montana in 1998 and followed with an M.A degree in Sport Management from Ohio State University in 2000.
