Austin Roark has been promoted to a full-time assistant coach with the Indiana Tech track and field program, head coach
Doug Edgar announced. Roark becomes the first full-time assistant coach for the program. He began his duties as a full-time coach July 1, 2018.
"This is a huge step forward for our program," Edgar said. "Austin has already been working full-time hours as a part-time coach, so this will be an easy transition for him. Austin has been a huge part of our success since he arrived and this allows our program to maintain a high level of performance. Austin is one of the elite jump coaches in the country and I couldn't be happier to have him here full time."
Now entering his fifth season with the Warriors, Roark is in charge of the jumps program for Tech and has mentored 44 All-Americans during his time with the program. A five-time U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Great Lakes Region Assistant Coach of the Year, he was named the Men's National Assistant Coach of the Year following the 2017 indoor season and was tabbed as Women's National Assistant Coach of the Year following this past indoor campaign.
"I want to give a big thank you to Coach Edgar, Coach
Josh Wolfe, and
Debbie Warren for the opportunity," Roark said. "The past four years as a part-time assistant for the track and field program has been some of the most fun years of coaching that I've had, and I can't wait to continue coaching in an expanded role. I look forward to working with all the Indiana Tech staff and students and am very excited to continue working with the best track and field athletes and coaching staff in the NAIA."
Before joining the staff at Indiana Tech, he spent four seasons as a coach at Eastern Howard High School in Greentown, Indiana, spending two years as the jumps and sprints coach and the final two years as the head coach for the Comets. As head coach, he coached seven state qualifiers and an IHSAA state champion. 11 Eastern High School records were broken under his watch and he coached Eastern to its second-ever sectional championship in 2013 and a fourth place finish at regionals, the highest ever at a regional. He served as the long jump coach for the Indiana Track & Field All-Stars at the Midwest Meet of Champions in 2013 and was an IATCCC Coach of the Year Nominee in 2013.
Roark is a USATF Level I and Level II-Jumps certified coach. He graduated from Brown Mackie College-Indianapolis with an A.A.S in Occupational Therapy Assisting and worked full-time as a Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant. Prior to attending Brown Mackie College, he attended Bethel College where he was a member of the track and field program.
He and his wife Kelly reside in Swayzee, Indiana with their two children, Charli and Ripley.
