ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. — Theo Laport '16 has been named Interim Head Men's and Women's Tennis Coach, as announced by the Bard College Department of Athletics and Recreation on Tuesday. The Bard alum returns to the program after two years coaching and teaching tennis in Western NY.
"Theo has a keen understanding of what it means to be a student athlete at Bard which is incredibly valuable as our programs navigate a mid-year coaching change," said Stefanie Carrington, Bard's Associate Director of Athletics. "His focus on providing a fun and inclusive environment, coupled with his experience as a mentor and an educator, will serve our student athletes well and help provide them with a positive and well-rounded athletics experience."
"I am honored to return to Bard in the capacity of head coach and excited to draw on my own experience to foster a rewarding team environment where student athletes can develop their skills on and off the court," said Theo Laport. "I am happy to be part of an athletics program that is inclusive and encourages students of different backgrounds and skill levels to participate. I'm confident that this foundation will promote continual, sustainable growth and lead to the further success of both teams."
Laport comes to Bard from South Towns Tennis Club located in the greater Buffalo area, where he coached players of all ages and levels. In addition to teaching, he helped develop lesson plans, instructional videos, and innovative drills for a local youth tennis organization (ROGace) to enable new tennis coaches to run effective classes for beginner, intermediate, and advanced players. Laport was also involved in multiple outreach programs, going into local schools and organizing an inter-club summer tournament.
Prior to his time at South Towns, he also taught private lessons in the Hudson Valley and at Rhinebeck Tennis Club, where he assisted with adult clinics, co-ran a summer camp, and served as the groundskeeper, taking care of things from court maintenance to racquet stringing and re-gripping.
A 2016 graduate of Bard with a B.A. in Philosophy, Laport was a captain of the Bard men's tennis team for three seasons and won the coaches' award three years in a row. Laport was also a three-time Liberty League All-Academic honoree. He graduated with a Ph.D. in German Literature and Critical Thought from Northwestern University in 2023.
