University of Rhode Island

Meghan Coutts (formerly Ellis) returned to her alma mater in the spring of 2023 and now serves as the Assistant Director of NCAA Compliance and Student-Athlete Development.

Initially, she joined the staff as a member of the media relations staff and was the primary contact for the football, baseball, rowing and women’s track & field teams. She was promoted to her current role in the summer of 2025.  

Before making the move back to Kingston, Ellis made stops at Army West Point, Florida Gulf Coast University and her family’s consumer electronics business. While working at FGCU, she graduated with her M.S. in Sport Administration from Arkansas State University (online) in August of 2020 with a 4.0 GPA.

Originally from Bedford, N.H., Ellis had a postgraduate stint as a Media Relations Assistant at URI, serving as the primary contact for women's rowing and swimming & diving. During this time, she was also the on-site media coordinator for the 2018 Atlantic 10 Indoor Track and Field Championships and assisted with game day responsibilities for men's and women's basketball.

A 2018 Rhode Island graduate, Ellis was a four-year member of the women's rowing team. During her time with the Rams, Ellis helped lead the team to two Atlantic 10 titles and an Atlantic 10 record in the Varsity 4 boat her freshman year. A two-time A-10 All-Conference selection, she earned first team honors in the spring of 2018 after being named to the second team her junior season. In the spring of her senior year, Ellis was chosen as URI's honoree for the 2018 Rhode Island Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women Distinguished Athlete of the Year and was also nominated for NCAA Woman of the Year. 

Ellis was a two-time A-10 Academic All-Conference selection and graduated magna cum laude from URI's Honors College in May of 2018 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in public relations and a minor in leadership studies. She also served as the president of URI's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) for two years and was the first Ram to participate in Coach for College, an international service learning program that allowed her to teach academics, sports and life skills at a children’s summer camp in rural Vietnam. 

She is married to Jackson Coutts, a former standout on the URI Baseball team.