Jane Samuels has joined the Linfield College athletic department administrative team as Assistant Director of Athletics, NCAA Compliance Officer and Senior Woman Administrator.
 
Linfield Director of Athletics Garry Killgore announced the appointment of Samuels on Monday. She brings 12 years of experience in academic advising and student support at the university level.
 
"I'm really excited to be joining the Linfield team, especially at this time," said Samuels. "Linfield has a long history of success in academics and athletics, which has fostered deep community ties over the decades. These are key ingredients in creating memorable undergraduate experiences for so many students. And now, as the educational landscape is evolving, Linfield is already poised as a leader in Oregon private schools. To be a part of this successful team is thrilling!"
 
Killgore said the search committee sought an individual whose focus was squarely on enhancing the student-athlete experience.
 
"What stood out about Jane is her ability to immediately connect with people," said Killgore. "She's very engaging, smart and student-oriented. I believe she is perfect for us in this role at this point in time."
 
Samuels will contribute input and leadership into all aspects of athletics administration as well as overseeing the department's compliance with NCAA regulations and reporting. In her role as Senior Woman Administrator, she'll provide diverse decision-making and representation for all sports programs at the campus, conference and national levels.
 
Most recently, Samuels served as the Graduate Programs Academic Advisor at Concordia University of Portland. At CUP, she also spent three years as Academic Advisor and Athletics Liaison and was Academic Advisor and Career Specialist for four years prior to that.
 
Her professional career includes eight years as Seasonal Swim and Triathlon Coach at Team in Training, a fund-raising branch of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. As coach, she oversaw training programs for as many as 125 athletes. She began her career in 2007 at InsideTrack as a Success Coach and Enrollment Coach.
 
Samuels earned a bachelor of arts degree in social sciences at the University of California at Berkeley. She followed that with a master's degree in interdisciplinary studies from Marylhurst University.
 
She is an accomplished athlete, earning All-America honors in swimming at UC Berkeley. At Germantown Academy in Pennsylvania, Samuels helped set a national high school record in the 200-yard medley relay in 1987 and later qualified for the Olympic Trials in 1988. She served Germantown Academy's swim team co-captain while leading the program to mythical national championships in 1986 and '87.
 
Her coaching career spans more than 20 years. In addition to 10 years as a triathlon team coach, Samuels has trained high school, masters and age-group athletes. She is also a certified yoga instructor.
 
Coming to Linfield, Samuels is eager to contribute her own touches to the college's broad-based NCAA Division III student-athlete offerings.
 
"I'm looking forward to partnering across campus to continue developing Linfield's diversity and equity efforts. Linfield has strong programming, dedicated staff and faculty and the leadership needed to support all students to access the education and career preparation they seek. I feel that working together with faculty and staff on this ongoing endeavor betters Linfield and each of us along the way."
 
She and her husband, Randal, reside in McMinnville. The couple recently spent much of 2017 and 2018 traveling the world, including visits to Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia.