Former ICHS Basketball Coach and Athletic Director Finds New Home at Oswego High

The board of Oswego High School District 308 hired former Immaculate Conception High School athletic director and basketball coach Darren Howard as its new athletic director Monday.

In a statement released by District 308, Howard, 47, said he is "honored and humbled " to be named to the position.

“I look forward to working with the students and staff at OHS to add to the tremendous tradition of this excellent high school," he said.

Howard, who served as athletic director at ICHS since June 2003, was also the school's head varsity basketball coach since 2000, leading his team to five consecutive regional titles, including two regional championships.

In an interview with the Beacon News, Howard, who has five children ranging in age from 12 to 24, said the benefits offered in a public school district were a factor in accepting the job.

He said he will miss coaching, but was pleased with the record of the ICHS Varsity Basketball Team at the end of his career there. Last year's 24-4 record was the best in the school's 45-year history, he told the Beacon News.

Howard was named the Division 3 Athletic Director of the Year for 1A/2A schools in 2010 and was inducted into the Immaculate Conception Athletic Hall of Fame the same year.

Oswego Principal Mike Wayne said the district is looking forward to Howard's expertise to "move Oswego High School's athletic programs forward."

"His focus on expanding opportunities for student athletes and mentoring young coaches will be much needed as OHS grows to over 3,000 students in the near future," he said in the statement.

ICHS as head boys basketball coach and as athletic director last month. ICHS's football coach Chris VanDyke was in January.