Bio

Luke joined the athletics staff in January of 2023 from his previous position in the Student Success Center (SSC), located in the library on campus. The Student Success Center is an informal setting where students can study and have access to equipment and assistance when they need it. SSC staff have expertise in advising, teaching students study skills, identifying goals, and developing habits for college success.

As a coach, Samford has made a few stops at the high school and collegiate levels, coaching track and field. He began his coaching career in 2010 at Lake City High School in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. Two years later, Samford made his way to Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Ga. In 2013, he moved north to Sewanee, Tenn. to coach at Sewanee: The University of the South.

In 2014, Samford returned to Georgia to coach at Mercer University in Macon, Ga. A couple years later, Luke Samford found his way to Kansas to become the Head Coach of the Kansas Wesleyan University Track & Field Team from 2016 to 2019. His next stop led him to Coupeville, Wash., where Samford helped coach at Coupeville High School. His latest coaching stop was in 2021, back in Salina, Kan., where he was a district coach in pole vault for both Salina Central High School and Salina South High School.

Samford earned his Bachelor's Degree in general studies from the University of Idaho in 2011. He continued his education at Mercer University, where he received his Master's Degree in education in 2016