Giordan Harris leaves Iowa Lakes for NAIA Ave Maria University
Head Men's and Women's Swim Coach Giordan Harris will be leaving Iowa Lakes Community College to serve as the Head Men's and Women's Swim Coach at Ave Maria University in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) division located in Ave Maria, Florida. Harris coached at Iowa Lakes for the past two years and previously swam for Iowa Lakes from 2013 to 2015.
During his time at Iowa Lakes, Harris had many successes, including one National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Champ in two events earning 2 Gold Medals, 1 Silver Medalist, and two Bronze Medalists. Additionally, student-athletes broke 28 school records across 17 events and recorded 36 individual Top 10 fastest swims at Iowa Lakes, of which 21 are in the top 5 fastest swims in program history. In addition, the team had 13 NJCAA All-Americans, with eight students achieving Academic All American. The Men's swim team placed 5th at NJCAA Nationals, the second-highest program finish, and earned the Men's team's first dual meet win in over eight years. The Lakers also had the third-largest team of swimmers qualify for Nationals this year.
Grateful for his time at Iowa Lakes, Harris said, "My time here at Iowa Lakes, both as an athlete and a coach, has meant the world to me. Competing as a Laker and leading the Men's team to a 2nd place finish at Nationals as an athlete, then returning to lead the program as a swim coach and developing the Women's program's first NJCAA National champion, has been astounding. The support of the Laker family, the swim team, and my coaching career has been unmatched and made my time here absolutely incredible."
"We're excited for Giordan and his new opportunity. This new position will allow him to coach at a four-year school in Florida and grow as a coach while being closer to his family, which is very important. We will miss him at Iowa Lakes, as he has done a good job with our men's and women's swimming programs, but he will be leaving the Iowa Lakes program in better shape than he found it, and that is all we can ask of our head coaches. We wish him nothing but the best," said Iowa Lakes' Athletic Director Troy Larson.
Looking forward, Larson is hopeful about the program's future: "I'm very excited to get a new coach at Iowa Lakes and to see our swim program continue to improve. We have a good foundation with good returning swimmers with outstanding character."
Iowa Lakes has begun a national search for the next Head Men's and Women's Swimming Coach. Details on the job description and application process can be found at iowalakes.edu/about/employment-opportunities.
