CIU Announces Assistant AD; Men’s Soccer Coach

CIU Announces Assistant AD; Men’s Soccer Coach

CIU Assistant Athletic Director and Men's Soccer Coach James Whitaker

James Whitaker, a Greenville, S.C. native who has guided college and high school soccer teams to championship seasons, has been named the assistant athletic director and men’s soccer coach at Columbia International University.  Whitaker joins a growing roster of coaches and athletic administrators at CIU, as the school gears up for its first season of intercollegiate athletics in fall 2012.       

Whitaker comes to CIU from Clearwater Christian College in Clearwater, Fla. where he led the men’s soccer team to two National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) championships, and was twice named the NCCAA Coach of the Year.          

At the high school level, Whitaker coached his alma mater, Hampton Park Christian School in Greenville, S.C. to nine South Carolina Association of Christian Schools (SCACS) championships and was SCACS Coach of the Year nine times.        

Whitaker holds both a Bachelor of Science degree in Math Education and a Master of Science degree in Educational Leadership from Bob Jones University in Greenville, S.C., and a Master of Arts in Health and Exercise Science from Furman University in Greenville, S.C.    

CIU Athletic Director Kim Abbott says she is glad that Whitaker is coming home to South Carolina. 

“We are excited that a coach with experience of building a championship program is going to bring his expertise, knowledge, and leadership back to the Palmetto State and to CIU,” Abbott said.  “Men’s soccer is a perfect fit for CIU and its ministry.  Coach Whitaker is also a perfect fit to lead our first men’s soccer program.”

CIU will also field its first teams in men’s and women’s cross country, and women’s volleyball in fall 2012.  CIU will play in Division I of the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA), which includes North Greenville University, Cedarville University and Taylor University among others.    

For more on CIU athletics go to www.ciu.edu/athletics.