Denise Thompson joined the Big Sky Conference in August of 2017 as the Assistant Commissioner for Communications and External Affairs.

Thompson oversees the Big Sky communications staff and works primarily with the conferences football, men's and women's golf programs, and men's and women's cross country. She also serves as head of external affairs for the conference, and is responsible for all marketing initiatives of the conference, including the Men's and Women's Basketball Championships. In addition, Thompson handles sport administrator duties for Men's and Women's Cross Country and Indoor and Outdoor Track & Field.

During Thompson's first year with the league office, she coordinated the most halftime acts at the basketball championships since moving to a neutral site location. She also created the Big Sky's first-ever annual report. Thompson increased that number in year two with an overwhelming amount of fan interaction during the basketball championships in Boise resulting in tickets sold and increased fan attendance.

Thompson arrived at the Big Sky after serving four years (2013-17) as the assistant athletics director for communications at Northern Arizona University.

While with the Lumberjacks, Thompson helped to promote the 2015 FCS STATS Freshman Player of the Year Award Winner Case Cookus with the tagline and website MakingACaseForCase. The publicity assisted in Cookus finishing fifth in voting for the FCS STATS National Offensive Player of the Year; the only freshman on the ballot.

In 2015, Thompson helped publicize a Lumberjack men's basketball team that won a school record four postseason games, en route to advancing to the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament Championship Game.

While at NAU, Thompson successfully nominated the Lumberjacks' first National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete award winner and AFCA Good Works Team honoree.

During her time at Texas State, Thompson worked closely with the media in generating coverage for the men’s basketball and softball teams with additional experience with football, volleyball, and men’s and women’s cross country and track & field. In addition, she was in charge of all graphic designs, served as a mentor to the sports information student interns, and was the athletics liaison for the community relations college awareness program.

Prior to Texas State, Thompson served one year as a post-graduate intern at the University of Memphis. While with the Tigers, Thompson worked closely with the women’s soccer and men’s and women’s cross country and track & field teams. Her soccer guide was named “Second Best in the Nation” by CoSIDA for the 2007-08 school year.

Thompson graduated cum laude from Fairleigh Dickinson University, where she was a four-year member of the cross country and track & field teams. She served as captain her senior season, and won three Northeast Conference Championship medals during her sprinting career at FDU.

Thompson earned her bachelor’s degree in communications from FDU in 2007 and later earned a master’s degree in sport management from Texas State in 2011.

She is a member of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), where she serves on the board as an at-large representative and the chair of the Radial & Social Justice Working Group. Thompson also serves on the Goodwill and Wellness and Professional Development, Continuing Education committees. Thompson is chair of the Black College Sports Information Directors of America (BCSIDA) and a member of Women Leaders in College Sports. In addition, Thompson is a member of the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four Media Coordination team.