Professor, Teacher, Mentor, Director, Principal. Mike Olson has held diverse positions throughout his professional career. The one constant, however, has been Coach. Accepting the call from Headmaster Michael Schafer to return to the court Olson accepted the Head Boy’s Basketball position at Kimball Union Academy on April 9, 2009.
“I am very excited to once again have the opportunity to lead a team, Olson said. Many outstanding coaches have lead the Wildcats, Dave Faucher, Murray Dewdney and Stretch Gillam, to name just a few. I am very pleased and excited to be in this position.”
Olson’s most recent coaching position was at Thetford (VT) Academy, where during the 2007-2008 season he guided the Panthers to an overall 19-5 record and a semi-final berth in the State Tournament.
From 2002-2004 he was Associate Head Coach at Dartmouth College. In charge of team defense Olson guided the Big Green to top half Ivy League finishes in field goal percentage and scoring defense. As national recruiting coordinator he helped sign five players early decision in 2003.
Olson came to Hanover, NH following a successful three year stint as head coach at Minnesota State University Moorhead, an NCAA II program and a member of the strong Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. During the 2002 season the Dragons went 16-11, the highest win total in ten years. The team was regionally ranked, defeated every conference foe at least once, and won at Western Washington, then ranked #2 nationally.
On January 20th, versus Minnesota-Crookston, Olson achieved a coaching milestone recording his 300th collegiate victory.
From 1990-1999 Olson served as head coach at Black Hills State University. A “character first” recruiting philosophy helped propel the Yellow Jackets to eight consecutive winning seasons and an overall record of 179-90. During his tenure at BHSU, his teams won four South Dakota-Iowa Conference titles and advanced to the NAIA National Championships four times. The Yellow Jackets best showing at nationals came during the 1997 and 1999 seasons when the team advanced to the Elite Eight. Olson was honored as SDIC coach of the year following the ’93, ’97,’98 and ’99 seasons. Later, BHSU would name him their “coach of the century” commemorating 100 years of basketball on the Spearfish, SD campus.
Prior to accepting the BHSU position Olson coached at Gustavus Adolphus College and Mount Senario College. He compiled an overall mark of 90-56 over five consecutive winning seasons and was named Upper Midwest Collegiate Conference coach of the year after the 1988 and 1989 seasons. MSC climbed to a national #1 ranking in 1989 when the team posted an overall 23-10.
Olson began his professional career at the high school level where he taught physical education and served as head baseball and basketball coach at Lake Geneva (WI) Northwestern Military Academy and Green Bay (WI) Bay Port High School.
A Tomahawk, WI native, he has compiled an overall record of 361-219 in 21 years as a head coach. He holds a bachelor’s degree from St. Norbert College, De Pere, WI (1981) and a master’s degree in education from Norwich University, Northfield, VT (1982). Recently he completed an advanced study program in educational leadership from Upper Valley Educators Institute, Lebanon, NH.
Mike and his wife Colleen, a nurse practitioner at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Hospital, have been married 27 years and reside in South Strafford, VT. They are the parents of two adult children, Katy and Erik.
