Marian University Ind.

BIO

• With 35+ years of cycling experience and 30+ years of teaching/education experience, Dean Peterson enters his 14th season at the helm of the most successful program in collegiate cycling history.
• Peterson’s educational background includes a BS in Organizational Leadership from Purdue University (1988) and an MA in Educational Leadership from Butler University (1997).
• Peterson’s coaching philosophy is school first: keeping student-cyclists focused on the fact that they are students first, and that being a responsible citizen and community member is just as important as being a top-notch cyclist. This philosophy has contributed to the team’s success in earning nine USA Cycling Club of the Year awards as well as 14 consecutive Collegiate Track National Championships, ten Collegiate Road Championships, seven Cyclocross championships, seven BMX Championships, and seven D1 Team Omnium awards.
• Under Peterson, the cycling staff has committed to developing riders as complete athletes, regardless of their focus discipline(s), which has paid dividends in creating a well-rounded, successful, and cohesive team. Peterson has worked both on and off the bike with Olympians, World Champions, and riders that have competed at the highest level of the sport, as well as with those who are new to cycling. 
• Coach Peterson has also served in a variety of roles to help advance the greater collegiate cycling mission in America, including as an elected member of the USA Cycling Collegiate Sport Committee, the USA Cycling Board of Directors, and as a liaison for many local, regional, and national cycling initiatives. He also oversaw the development of the Paul J. Norman Cycling Center on campus in 2007 and developed the indoor training series known as Power Booster™.
• Peterson is also the Executive Director of the Indy Cycloplex, where he leads a small staff and community volunteers dedicated to advancing the mission of cycling in central Indiana, restoring and developing the venues of the Cycloplex and creating programming, and events in five cycling disciplines. The Cycloplex, which Marian operates in partnership with Indy Parks and Recreation, has served as a platform to advance the team’s performance but also provide a community outreach opportunities for the athletes in the program.
• Peterson continues to lead the cycling program while also undertaking new duties with the university, including serving as the Program Manager for City Connects in the Klipsch Educators College and pursue a Ph.D. in American Studies with a focus on Education in America at IUPUI.