High school notebook: Mark Bowlan named Shawnee athletic director

Now he's taking the next step on that path. Last week, Bowlan was named Shawnee's athletic director, filling the void left by Steve Fluke.

Fluke was hired as an assistant athletic director at Oklahoma Baptist in May.

“I'm real excited,” Bowlan said. “It's been pretty crazy the last couple weeks trying to get caught up, because we went two months without an athletic director. But we're about to get caught up now.”

Bowlan has been coaching a variety of sports at Shawnee over the last 12 years, starting with four years as an adjunct assistant coach immediately after he finished high school.

After graduating from Oklahoma Baptist eight years ago, he was hired as a math teacher and has been an assistant coach for the Wolves' football, basketball and golf teams.

Bowlan will relinquish his coaching and teaching roles to focus full-time on the athletic director's job. He will hold the position on an interim basis for the 2011-12 school year, with the potential to become permanent next summer.

Bowlan says he has relied on Fluke and Mike Sperry, Shawnee's last two ADs, for advice in his new job.

“I go to church with both of those guys,” he said. “Those are two good resources to have in your back pocket to bounce ideas off of, or to talk to just for encouragement, really.”

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