Bio

Shawn Summe is beginning his eighth year in charge of the Avila athletics department and has more than 16 years of experience in intercollegiate athletics administration.

During his time as Avila’s Athletic Director, Summe has seen the implementation of eight new varsity sports: men’s and women’s bowling, tennis and wrestling as well as men’s volleyball and flag football.

At the end of the 2025-26 academic year and under Summe’s leadership, Avila athletics received a major facelift with the installation of four new videoboards – two each on the outdoor fields as well as two inside Mabee Fieldhouse – and a new track on the upper level of Mabee.

His administrative career has been highlighted by strong growth and transformation of departments at small colleges, and he has been a lifelong proponent of the NAIA model. In addition to his experience as a head coach and athletic administrator, he has also served on the NAIA-BCA executive committee and as a rater for the NAIA weekly coaches' poll.

He made his mark at Ave Maria University, where he served as the head baseball coach for three full seasons before being asked to add director of athletics responsibilities to his role with the Gyrenes. In addition to securing for tennis courts and athletic facility improvements, he revitalized the fundraising approach for the department to facilitate improved opportunities for individual teams. His head coaching stint with the Gyrenes was highlighted by a 2013 appearance in the NAIA World Series Opening Round. Summe's team compiled a 37-19 regular season record and earned an at-large selection to the Daytona Beach Bracket.

Summe saw two of his Ave Maria players play professionally in Justin James and Alex Sanchez Jr., who signed free agent contracts in 2013 and 2012, respectively.

At Judson (Ill.) College, Summe took on a team that had won just 37 games over a five-year span and led them to a school-record 21 wins and a Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference title game appearance in 2002. During his two-year tenure, he produced Judson's first ever NAIA All-American in Baseball while also serving as an admissions counselor for the school.

Following his tenure at Judson, he joined SCAD Savannah (Ga.), serving as assistant baseball coach and athletic fundraising coordinator for the Bees for seven years. During his time in Savannah, the Bees were consistently ranked in the NAIA Top 25, and three players (Ryan Pope-2007, Richard Sullivan-2008 and Stephen Shackleford-2010) were selected in the Major League Baseball draft.

Summe also served as director of athletics for St. Louis Community College, transforming the department vision following a consolidation of independent athletics teams across the schools three campuses. In addition to reviving the dormant fundraising programs at STLCC, he implemented new on-campus eligibility training and workshops to ensure compliance across the department.

Immediately prior to joining Avila, Summe served as the athletic director at Stratford University, in Newport News, Va., where he was responsible for a newly-formed intercollegiate athletic program. His responsibilities there included the creation of a student-athlete handbook, development of both a capital campaign for new facilities and an ongoing fundraising philosophy, as well as hiring a coaching staff and developing a training plan to ensure compliance with Title IX, organizational and association eligibility rules.