Jon Palumbo is leaving Michigan State to join a familiar face at Kentucky.
On Tuesday, the University of Kentucky announced that Palumbo will be joining the athletic department as the Executive Deputy Athletics Director and Deputy CEO of Champions Blue., LLC.
Palumbo, who served as Michigan State’s Spartan Ventures CEO, will reunite with former Spartans athletic director J Batt, who left to take the same position at Kentucky.
Batt left Michigan State in July and the university named Palumbo as the interim athletic director while they conducted search for the next candidate. After not being named to the position permanently, Palumbo decided to make the move to Lexington.
“We all owe Jon a great deal of gratitude for the positive impact he has made on Michigan State Athletics,” MSU athletic director Dan Bartholomae said in a statement. “I am particularly appreciative of the efforts Jon has made to orient me on Spartan Ventures and his partnership in working to make my transition to campus a successful one.”
Deputy athletic director Jen Smith will oversee Palumbo’s duties within the department.
Palumbo and Batt have worked together for years now. The two spent time together at Georgia Tech before Batt hired Palumbo at Michigan State in July 2025. Now, they will continue to work together in similar roles that they held in East Lansing.
Palumbo will have a big hand in revenue and fundraising for Kentucky within its Champions Blue, LLC, which is similar to Spartans Venture. In East Lansing, this was launched on July 1 and is working toward being implemented fully.
After the move was announced, Palumbo stated that he is “honored” to be joining Kentucky.
“Jon is one of the most respected leaders in our industry and someone I trust deeply,” Batt said in a statement. “He brings a unique combination of strategic vision, operational excellence and experience leading athletic departments at the highest level.”
