Eastern Nazarene College announced the hiring of Bradford Zarges as its new athletic director. Zarges brings extensive experience in leading intercollegiate athletics at the institutional, conference, and national levels, including more than two decades as an assistant coach and head basketball coach. 

"Eastern Nazarene College is fortunate to have Brad Zarges assume leadership of our athletics programs," said Jeffrey Kirksey, vice president of Student Development. "His experience as a coach, educator, and national conference committee member make him uniquely well qualified to take ENC's athletics programs to the next level." 

 Zarges will also serve as a faculty member in ENC's Exercise and Sport Sciences Department. Since 2010, Zarges has served as assistant men's basketball coach and aquatics director at Taylor University in Upland, Indiana. 

"I am excited to join the Eastern Nazarene College community," Zarges said. "I want to thank (ENC President) Dr. (Corlis) McGee for the opportunity to partner with her and other administrators, faculty, and staff to provide an excellent educational experience for the students at ENC. I was particularly encouraged by the eagerness of the student-athletes and athletic department staff to aggressively improve on the foundation that has already been established. My wife and I clearly felt and witnessed a culture at ENC where a collaborative spirit and a pursuit of excellence are rooted in a commitment to Christ. I look forward to working together with the athletic department staff and coaches to help student-athletes at Eastern Nazarene realize their educational and athletic goals." 

In addition to serving as head men's basketball coach at Houghton College for 11 years, Zarges served as the college's assistant athletic director for six years. During that time, he was elected by conference coaches to represent the American Mideast Conference of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). He also served for five years on the NAIA Division II National Games Committee, including three years as chair. In 2006, Zarges was elected by his coaching peers to the NAIA's National Association of Basketball Coaches Executive Committee, serving as its president from 2009 to 2010. 

Zarges holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education from Houghton College and a master's degree in Sport Sciences from East Tennessee State University. He is currently a doctoral candidate in higher education leadership at Indiana State University. 

The most recent ENC athletic director, Nancy Detwiler, recently retired after leading the college's athletics programs for more than half a century. 

"Brad brings a breadth and depth of experience that will allow him to build on the strong foundation Nancy Detwiler built during her 52 years at ENC," McGee said. "We welcome his expertise, his leadership skills and his vision for our athletics programs."

--Eastern Nazarene College