Mike Holmes, Athletics Director, will build upon athletics success
In his first year as athletics director at St. Ambrose, Mike Holmes will build upon the growth and success Fighting Bees athletics have enjoyed for decades.
"Sister Joan and Ray Shovlain have created a special product here with the obvious help of many dedicated coaches, athletes, and members of the campus community who have supported the vision," Holmes said. "Job number one will be to make sure I do not break it. Within that construct, I hope that I can bring some ideas and experiences to help the program continue its upward trajectory."
Holmes inherits a program featuring 29 varsity sports teams, with more than a third of the school's undergraduate students participating. More importantly, Fighting Bees student-athletes have excelled in the classroom. In 2018-2019, St. Ambrose led the nation for a third straight year with 23 NAIA Scholar Teams.
That's a legacy the new athletics director also intends to continue.
Holmes is a native of Des Moines and coached basketball at five Iowa high schools and another in Indianapolis, before entering the college-coaching realm.
He left Southwestern Community College in Creston, Iowa, in 2014 to become basketball coach and athletics director at the University of Maine at Presque Isle. He has been a full-time administrator since 2017 when he became athletics director at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio.
Holmes is excited to return to his Iowa roots.
"College athletics have taken me to interesting places where I have met tremendous people," he said. "Iowa gets deep into your bones, however, and seems reluctant to loosen its grip. It is hard to describe the thrill I have that my children will be able to grow up in such a wonderful area."
Holmes replaces Shovlain '79, '82 MBA who stepped down as athletics director after 25 years on the job. Shovlain will continue to coach men's basketball and teach in the College of Business, while also leading the Leadership Academy for Fighting Bees athletes.
"I am honored for the opportunity to work with Coach Ray and a great group of coaches, student-athletes, faculty and administrators," Holmes said. "Athletics are in a very solid place at St. Ambrose."
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