CNBNews

GLASSBORO, NJ (August 28, 2024)-- - After five years of leading the Profs, Dr. John Giannini has announced his retirement as director of athletics at Rowan University. The University will conduct a national search for his replacement. 

 

Giannini was named interim director of athletics in June 2019 and then took over as director of athletics in 2020, overseeing the Profs’ NCAA Division III athletics program with 18 varsity sports. During his five years, Rowan’s teams captured 26 New Jersey Athletic Conference team championships while the Profs’ teams made 19 appearances in the NCAA Championships. Rowan is ranked 21st nationally in the Learfield Division III Directors’ Cup and earned its fourth consecutive NJAC Cup in 2023-24, recognizing overall success for an institution’s athletic program during the year of conference competition. 

 

During this time, a total of 116 Rowan student-athletes received All-America honors, with five winning individual NCAA titles and one being recognized as the National Player of the Year. The Profs excelled in the classroom as well with numerous academic honors including 10 student-athletes being named to the prestigious Academic All-American Teams. 

 

“Dr. Giannini’s dynamic leadership has not only made our athletics program among the best in the nation, but more importantly he positively impacted the lives of the hundreds of Rowan student-athletes who have played for the Profs during his tenure,” said Ali A. Houshmand, PhD, president of Rowan University. “We are grateful for his vision, his accomplishments here as a coach and director of athletics, and for reinforcing the winning tradition we have enjoyed for so many years.” 

 

“Reflecting on the last 40 years, coaching was a passion and being the AD at Rowan was a privilege. The Rowan athletic administrative and support staff is highly experienced, runs great events and is very efficient. The Rowan coaches and student-athletes are annually the best in the NJAC and elite nationally. It has been a true pleasure to work with and get to know such amazing people,” said Giannini. 

 

A highly successful basketball coach at both the Division I and Division III levels, Giannini guided the Profs to the 1996 NCAA Championship, marking the school’s only national title in men’s basketball. He amassed 505 victories in his coaching career that spanned 29 years, including 14 years as head men’s basketball coach at La Salle University and eight seasons at the University of Maine. His 2013 La Salle team captured the nation’s attention with an NCAA Sweet 16 run while he was the winningest coach in school history at Maine. 

 

Giannini returned to the University in 2018 as the founding director of Rowan University’s Center for Sports Communication and Social Impact before taking over as interim athletic director. 

 

In 2004, Giannini was inducted into the Rowan University-Glassboro State College Hall of Fame while his 1996 national champion team was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019.
 
The native of Chicago received his bachelor’s degree from North Central College in Illinois and earned his master’s degree in physical education with a specialization in sports psychology from the University of North Texas. Giannini earned his doctorate in kinesiology with a specialization in sport psychology from the University of Illinois in 1992.