Lucy Hood, Television Academy president and COO, dies at 56

Lucy Hood, who had only been the president and COO of the Television Academy since 2013, passed away recently at the age of 56. Hood leaves behind a husband and two children.

Hood's passing was confirmed by Television Academy chairman and CEO Bruce Rosenblum, reports TheWrap. He said she passed away "after a courageous battle with cancer."

Rosenblum added, "Lucy was an innovator and thought leader, always focused on how to best serve an industry she loved. ... Lucy will be greatly missed."

According to The Hollywood Reporter, before Hood became the president of the TV Academy, she was the executive director at USC' Institute for Communication Technology Management, starting in 2009.

She graduated from Yale and then went to Columbia University for her M.B.A. Hood founded Fox Mobile Entertainment and served as president and also was the senior vice president of News Corp.

The mobile video series 24: Conspiracy snagged Hood an Emmy nomination.