Daron Montgomery was named the Lenoir-Rhyne Vice President for Athletics on December 17, 2024.
Prior to Lenoir-Rhyne Montgomery served as the Athletic Director at NCAA DII Saint Anselm for nine years, overseeing 23 varsity teams and more than 600 student-athletes. During his final five academic years, the Hawks made 21 NCAA Division II post-season team appearances and earned three NCAA Division II individual selections.
Across that span, Saint Anselm reached the Elite Eight (women’s basketball), Final Four (men’s basketball), and two teams advanced the NCAA Division II national championship game (softball, field hockey). The Hawks collectively achieved their highest-ever finish in the NCAA Division II Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup standings in 2019.
Saint Anselm recently expanded its varsity sports offerings under Montgomery’s leadership. Women’s golf and women’s bowling were both launched in 2021, with women’s and men’s track & field (indoor and outdoor) announced in 2022.
During Montgomery’s time on the Hilltop, which officially began in January 2016, he also helped transition the women’s ice hockey program into its new league, the New England Women’s Hockey Alliance (NEWHA). He served as the NEWHA’s executive director in 2017-18 before the conference tabbed a permanent commissioner. The NEWHA was officially recognized for Division I membership effective with the 2019-20 academic year.
The Hawks set all-time records for athletics fundraising under Montgomery’s direction, including three separate $100,000+ philanthropic gift commitments earmarked specifically for athletics.
The athletics department also successfully implemented two-day giving challenge campaigns (annually) since 2019, with record marks of 2,679 donations and $230,700 raised in 2023.
Montgomery spearheaded several major facility improvements during his time on the Hilltop, including the completion of $2.5 million in new locker room construction/renovation (2022, 2023).
Additionally, Stoutenburgh Gymnasium was renovated (2019) with new upper and lower level bleacher seating, protective railings, lighting and a gymnasium floor re-design.
Athletics unveiled a state-of-the-art Student-Athlete Academic Success Center (2018), an academic study space dedicated to varsity teams and also completed the addition of a 50-seat varsity team film room (2017).
The department reinstated the Athletics Hall of Fame after a 10-year hiatus in 2017 and dedicated the Salamone Family Athletics Hall of Fame Project in 2020.
Montgomery has navigated the additions of 11 new head coaches and transitioned all team sport head coaching positions to full-time, while also adding positions in sports medicine, strength and conditioning, game management, recreation/intramurals, sports information, and NCAA compliance.
Montgomery negotiated the athletic department’s transition from Nike to Under Armour in 2018, when the Hawks entered a multi-year agreement with BSN Sports. The department also entered into a formal licensing agreement (Exemplar Associates) in 2018 on behalf of the entire College and launched its first e-commerce platform. These partnerships have resulted in significant revenue streams which enhance the student-athlete experience.
Montgomery holds more than 25 years of experience in the field of intercollegiate athletics at the Division I, Division II and Division III levels.
Prior to Saint Anselm, Montgomery served as the Director of Athletics at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point for four and a half years. At UW-Stevens Point, he oversaw 20 NCAA Division III teams which competed in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC). Under his leadership, the university earned 14 conference championships, 30 NCAA appearances and numerous All-American recognitions, with eight teams nationally-ranked during his tenure.
Montgomery established philanthropic records for both donors (a 70% increase in number from 2011 to 2014), and funds raised (more than $2.2 million in external revenue through new athletic corporate sponsorships over four years).
Before his stint at UWSP, Montgomery spent 13 years at the University of Detroit Mercy, a Division I private, Catholic institution in the Horizon League. He held several administrative positions, including Senior Associate Athletic Director, during his final five years. As Senior Associate AD, he served as second in command and provided daily oversight for a 19-sport Division I program ($10 million budget).
He was Chief Athletics Development Officer with an emphasis on major gift fundraising and coordinated capital campaigns that culminated in facilities construction and renovation projects on campus, including locker rooms, office suites, an outdoor track and synthetic turf multi-purpose playing field and a brand-new tennis complex.
He also served as head women’s tennis coach from 2000 until 2009, when he set a new record for wins in his final season, and took the team to the Horizon League Championship match for the first time in the history of the program. Montgomery holds more wins than any other coach in Titan tennis history and was tabbed as the league’s Coach of the Year in 2002.
Montgomery served as Tournament Manager for the 2008 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship – Midwest Regional and 2009 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship – Final Four held at Ford Field in Detroit. He worked extensively with the Division I Men’s Basketball Committee and played a key role in all facets of the events, while also working as host institutional chair for the Detroit Local Organizing Committee (2003-2009).
The Florida native holds a Bachelor of Arts in sports management from Lenoir-Rhyne University (1995) and a Master of Arts in athletic administration from Ball State University (1998). He and his wife Karen reside in Hickory and have three children, Bailey (19), Izzy (17), and Jack (12).
