b'Maus has taken advantage of professional development opportunitiesIts that balance of business acumen and relationship building where and encourages them among his staff. He has earned Level IIMaus shines. Certification in distance and throws, regularly attends regional andI dont think you realize the importance and influence of the national conferences, and served two seasons as Division III president ofrelationships you develop in college until you get older, he said. My the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.professors and coaches were always approachable and available and I This sport changes, he said. From evolving training philosophies totry to be that way for my athletes. advances in nutrition and exercise science, theres always somethingThose Heidelberg connections remain strong to this day. Maus has else I can learn. remained in contact with coaches Larry Brown and Brent Kimple as well That appreciation for life-long learning came from his liberal artsas many of his teammates. He credits business professors Gary Keener education at Heidelberg.and Jim Chudzinski for his academic success, but was also greatly You had your major, but you had to take other classes, and studyingimpacted by professors from all around campus, including Dave Hogan, different disciplines required you to learn in different ways, Maus said.Skip Oliver and Rita Barga. That foundation has helped me throughout my career.Coaching is not just writing workouts; its about building relationships Its a career filled with accolades. Among other things, he has beenwith your athletes and providing them experiences to grow. I learned named regional coach of the year five times, led the womens trackthat at Heidelberg.and field program to a third-place finish at the Indoor National Championships in 2018, and guided 13 OAC Championship teams as well as five All-Americans.Through all his success, he hasnt become complacent.My professors and coaches Even when you have a solid training philosophy and program, you cantwere always approachable and coast because every athlete has a different personality. Last year, I had two of the best half-milers in the country, and I didnt train them theavailable, and I try to be that same way, Maus said.way for my athletes.Maus challenges his athletes every day to continue to learn and strive to be better. Jason Maus, 02Kids have to buy-in to the program, he said. If they have the belief and trust in the process, theyll improve. That belief and buy-in comes from having strong relationships with both coaches and teammates, something Maus fosters through individual goal meetings, team-building activities, and the ability to balance serious work and light-hearted fun. Coaching at a Division III institution means hes coaching athletes with a wide variety of talent, but who all put in the work because they love the sport. The best part of this sport is that athletes can improve at any level, Maus said. Im happy when any athlete accomplishes an achievement, no matter where they fall on the depth chart. In his 10th season as head coach, Maus oversees 40-50 cross county athletes and around 100 track and field athletes every year plus directing and leading his assistant coaches. Hes seen a lot of cross-over from his business educationfrom budgeting operations to organizational management and event planning.Im managing people and basically running a business, he said. Its like Im a CEO of track and field. Summer 2019|7'