Vice President of Athletics

John Thompson

John Thompson wears many hats at Wesleyan and in the community.  In addition to serving as Vice President for Athletics, he has served as the Battling Bishops' Director of Athletics since 1998 and the 2012-2013 season marks his 18th at the helm of the men’s basketball program.  

Among his many responsibilities at Wesleyan, Thompson has assisted the Advisory Board of the Internship and Career Center and has served on the Staff Council, the Institutional Effectiveness Committee, the Matriculation Committee, the Homecoming Committee, the Enrollment Management Committee, the SACS Self-Study Education Sub-Committee, the 50th Anniversary Committee, and as a College 101 professor.  Most recently, he was appointed to the First Year Experience Committee and the Campus Security Committee.  He coordinates the annual Shelton Leadership Challenge, a summer program named for General Hugh Shelton, former Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Thompson is listed as the all-time winningest coach in Wesleyan men's basketball history, having compiled a 253-198 record and five regular season and/or tournament championships during his tenure.  Respected among his coaching peers, Thompson is considered to be a true teacher of the game of basketball… and of life.

He held the position of President of the USA South from 2001-2005 and has been chairman of the USA South Basketball Coaches Committee.  He has served on the NABC Legislation Committee, the NABC Congress and completed a four-year appointment to the NCAA Basketball Rules Committee.

In the summer of 2012, Thompson was selected to be a court coach for USA Basketball's Junior National Team. He joined an elite group of collegiate coaches at the U18 training camp held at the U.S. Olympic Training Center (USOTC) in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Originally from Durham, North Carolina, Thompson played collegiately at St. Andrews Presbyterian College and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. The captain of his team as a senior, Thompson graduated from UNC-G in 1984 with a degree in communications.

After graduation, he was invited to try out with the Florida Suncoast Stingers of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA).  Prior to arriving at Wesleyan, Thompson worked as an assistant at St. Andrews, St. Lawrence University, and Guilford College. 

John Thompson and his wife, Laura, live in Rocky Mount. They have three sons: Andrew and twins, Jackson and Walker.

John Thompson
Vice President for Athletics

Telephone: 252-985-5218
Email:  jthompson@ncwc.edu