Eastern Illinois athletic director
Tom Michael has announced the hiring of Johnathan Jordan as the new head coach for the Panthers men's and women's swim programs. Jordan becomes the ninth head coach in program history.
An experienced coach at the collegiate level with additional experience on the international level, Jordan comes to EIU following a seven-year stint as the head coach at Lincoln College where he helped grow the program from a two-year college program to a member swimming at the NAIA level.
On the international level, Jordan was a member of the Marshall Islands Swimming Federation coaching staff with athletes competing in the World Championships, Pacific Games Oceania Games and the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. He also worked on the Fiji Swimming Federation coaching staff for one summer helping develop the program's Olympic qualification standards and as a member of the Oceania National Olympic Committee.
"First off, I would like to thank President Dr. David Glassman, Athletic Director
Tom Michael, Deputy AD
Mark Bonnstetter and Assistant AD
Dr. Tonya Sawyer for the opportunity to lead the Panther swimming program. This is an exciting opportunity for me to be able to continue the swimming traditions of EIU while evolving the team into the future," said Jordan. "I believe that with the support that EIU has put in place, the team will rise in the rankings of the Summit League."
"We are excited to welcome Johnathan and his wife Amber to Charleston as the new head coach for our Panthers swim programs," said EIU Athletic Director
Tom Michael. "Johnathan brings a wealth of experience with him to our program having coached not only at the collegiate level but recently on the international Olympic stage. I think that vast range of knowledge will help our EIU programs grow and I look forward to Johnathan providing a great experience for the young men and women in our Panther swim programs."
A former swimmer at Albion College (Mich.), Jordan began his collegiate coaching career at the University of South Dakota working as an assistant coach for two seasons as the program transitioned into competing in the Summit League (2008-10). He would then spend five seasons as the head coach at Iowa Lakes Community College where he started the program in 2010 and coached until taking over the Lincoln College program in the summer of 2015.
Jordan has coached three swimmers that have competed in the Olympic Games with Giordan Harris representing the Marshall Islands in 2012 and 2016 and most recently Colleen Furgeson and Phillip Kinono at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
In the summer of 2022 Jordan coached the Bloomington-Normal YMCA WAVES swim club program. He has additional experience as a USA Swimming Assistant Coach at the high school level in Michigan.
Jordan earned his bachelor's degree from Albion College in 2008 and master's degree from South Dakota in 2010. His wife Amber is a former collegiate diver at South Dakota.
