ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. — The Bard College Athletics and Recreation Department named Brody Smith Head Cross Country and Track and Field Coach.
"We couldn't be more thrilled to have Brody taking over at the helm of our cross country and track and field programs." said Bard Director of Athletics, Stefanie Carrington. "He's been a part of several highly successful programs and knows what it takes to motivate student athletes and elevate teams from a competitive standpoint. That, coupled with his tendency for empathy and desire to support students holistically, gives me all the confidence in the world that he's the right person at the right time to help write the next chapter of our program."
"I am super excited about the potential of the Bard program. With a supportive administration, passionate student-athletes, and a top notch training location, we have all the components to build this program into something really special. A big thank you to Stefanie and Andy for this opportunity. I can't wait to get started!"
Smith comes to Bard from MIT, where he most recently worked as their Assistant Cross Country/Track and Field Coach since being hired in August 2024. While there, he collaborated in the planning and execution of individualized training plans for 50 distance running athletes in the areas of aerobic and speed development, strength training, and race preparation, leading to men's and women's team and individual conference championships, and winning the 2024 NCAA D3 Women's XC National Championship. He also worked individually with student-athletes to develop effective life skills through time management, nutrition and sleep education, pre-race mentality preparation, and addressing performance anxiety setbacks.
From 2022 to 2024, he competed at the professional level with the Roots Running Project, racing in USATF national championships, professional track races, and the steeplechase at the 2022 US Championships.
He graduated from Syracuse in 2022 with his Masters of Public Administration. While there, he served as a graduate student-athlete for the cross country season and a student manager and steeplechase assistant during the track season.
He graduated from Purdue in 2020 with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology. As a varsity student-athlete and team captain during his time at Purdue, he assisted in building a winning culture of positivity that led to three consecutive national championship appearances and an 11th-place finish at the NCAA D1 National Championships. He is the school record holder in the mile and steeplechase. His accolades include being a 2-time NCAA All-Academic team member, a 3-time All-Big Ten Academic team member, and a Big Ten All-Conference honoree.