Portland State Taps Jennifer Nolfi as Athletic and Outdoor Industry Director

Thursday, September 10, 2015

GoLocalPDX News Team

Jennifer Nolfi; courtesy of Nolfi's Twitter page

On Thursday, Portland State University announced that Jennifer Nolfi, most recently the Director of Portland-based Athletic and Outdoor Industry design firm Looptworks, as the head of its Athletic and Outdoor Business Program.

“One of Jennifer’s greatest strengths is her ability to weave together ideas, people and resources to form partnerships and bring programs to life,” said Dan Connolly, dean of PSU’s School of Business Administration. “She is a natural fit for the A&O program, and the A&O industry is a natural fit for Portland State. We’re stepping up to serve this industry in ways no one else can.”

The department was previously lead by Lauren Beitelspacher, who left earlier this year to accept a position at Babson College in Boston.

About Nolfi

Nolfi is a native of Oregon and a graduate of Lewis and Clark College. She has served on the University’s A&O advisory board since the program’s inception in 2013.

As Director of the program, Nolfi will be responsible for designing A&O courses and building ties between the school and the state’s outdoor industry.

“We want to work with industry and our public partners to broadcast to the world that Portland is the global hub of the A&O industry. If you want to come work in the industry or learn about the industry, Portland is the place to be and PSU is the school,” Nolfi said.

Before working for Looptworks, she spent 12 years with the Portland Development Commission, where she lead a public-private leadership partnership of the A&O industry. She is credited with helping to devise a strategic plan to position Oregon as a leader in the industry.

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