Rensselaer director of athletics Bob Ducatte announced his retirement today after 34 years at the school. Ducatte, who has spent the past 30 years as the athletics director, will remain in his position until June 30.
“This is a position and a school that I feel passionately for,” Ducatte said. “It’s hard to say goodbye, but, it’s time I moved on to the next stage of my life. My wife and I have both worked extremely hard for many, many years and it is now time that we enjoyed ourselves outside of the workplace.”
During his tenure as athletics director, Ducatte led the growth of the department from 12 sports to 23, including all 11 of Rensselaer’s women’s intercollegiate varsity teams. Among RPI’s 23 varsity teams is a Division I men’s hockey team which won the NCAA National Championship in 1985.
Ducatte also helped establish and coordinate the Transit Trophy Game in football as well as the annual men’s hockey “Big Red Freakout!”. Off the field, he began the men’s hockey grant-in-aid program, the department’s internship program and he was instrumental in the forming of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Ducatte served as the tournament director of several NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey East Regional Tournaments as well as the 1992 NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey Championship. This April he will again serve as the tournament director of the Frozen Four, the NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey Championship.
Ducatte, 64, came to Rensselaer in 1967 as head coach of the baseball team and assistant coach of the football team. He was named the school’s athletics director in 1971, succeeding Warren Lutes.
