Four finalists named for Athletic Director

All four candidates will interview on campus and participate in open forums for community members and alumni. Palmer will interview Thursday, June 20, Coombs will interview Friday, June 21, Price will interview Monday, June 24, and Reinsch will interview Tuesday, June 25. Each open forum begins at noon and will be in the Scottsbluff Room of the Student Center.

“We are excited to have four great candidates to be the next Athletic Director at Chadron State College,” said President Ron K. Patterson. “The search committee, which includes community members, alumni, and employees of the college, collaborated in a wonderful fashion to get us to this point and I thank them for their wonderful efforts.”

Palmer has more than 20 years of athletic administration and coaching experience. He began his career as the head baseball coach at Salem Community College in 2003 and was quickly promoted to athletic director the following year. He moved on to become the head baseball coach at Davis and Elkins College in 2007 and was named the athletic director there in 2010. Following five years in that role, he took the athletic director position at Post University, a Division II college in Connecticut. Palmer, who has an associate’s degree in general studies from Hagerstown Community College, a bachelor’s degree in physical education and health from Davis and Elkins College, and a Master of Education degree from American InterContinental University, worked at Post University for eight years.

Coombs also has coaching and administrative experience. She began her career in 2007 as an assistant coach for the Iowa Rockets, an AAU club, and coached while she worked as an Admissions Counselor at Ashford University. Coombs eventually became the Rockets’ head coach and led the team to a national championship. In 2012, she was named the assistant volleyball coach at the Missouri University of Science and Technology. After helping lead the team to a division championship, she became the assistant volleyball coach at Missouri Western State in 2013. She helped the team claim back-to-back 20-win seasons and remained in the role until 2016 when she became the assistant athletic director for academics and the senior woman administrator at Missouri Western State. She remained in that role until 2018 when she was hired by Oklahoma Panhandle State as its head volleyball coach. After a year of coaching, Coombs moved to Georgia Southwestern State University to work as a development officer for the university’s foundation. However, after two years in that position, she returned to the athletic realm at GSSU as the Senior Associate Director of Athletics. She currently oversees the department’s internal operations, game day management, and event planning. She has been in her current role since 2021. Coombs, who was a student-athlete at the University of Iowa, received her bachelor’s degree in communication studies in 2011. She also has a masters of applied science in sports and fitness management.

Price has worked in athletics his entire professional career. He began as a graduate assistant in the sports information office at High Point University and after graduating, he was hired as an athletics marketing associate at James Madison University in 2007. In 2010, he was hired as the Director of Marketing and Promotions at New Mexico State University and remained there until 2013 when he became the Director of Corporate Partnerships and Marketing at the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. After a year in that position, he became the Director of Marketing and Promotions at Northern Arizona University. In 2017, he continued his work in athletic marketing at the University of Memphis as its Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing, Promotions, and Branding. He remained in that position until 2022 when he was hired as the Senior Associate Athletic Director responsible for revenue generation at the University of New Mexico. He has been in that role for nearly three years and leads a team 11 employees who oversee athletic communications, marketing, and creative endeavors. He has a bachelor of science from Radford University and a masters from High Point University.

Reinsch has familiarity with Chadron State College and the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference through his professional and academic pursuits. He earned a bachelors and masters degree at the University of Nebraska-Kearney and was involved with several campus and athletic functions. He worked in event and hospitality management and served as a graduate assistant at UNK. Following his graduation, he was named the Facility and Event Manager at UNK in 2016. His title was changed to the Assistant Athletic Director for Facilities and Events in 2018 and he remained in that role until 2020 when he was hired as the Associate Athletic Director for External Relations and Development at RMAC-member Colorado State University-Pueblo. He remained in that role until 2023 when he was named the Senior Associate Director of Athletics Championships Resources at Austin Peay University.

For more information, visit csc.edu/president/athletic-director.