John Baxter

Lecturer

Education: BS - Loras College (1985); MS - Iowa State (1987)

As part of the STEAM grant initiative, the animal science and agricultural education department welcomed Baxter in the fall of 2021 to teach a class entitled 'Career Readiness and Financial Literacy.'

Known nationally as a educator, speaker, leader and author, Baxter has served as a collegiate football coach for the past 40 years.

In his career he has coached in all of the power 5 conferences (ACC, SEC, Big 12, Big 10, Pac-12) with stints at Iowa State, The University of Arizona, The University of Maryland, Tulane University, Fresno State, The University of Michigan and USC. 

He was the 2011 Special Teams Coach of the Year, an award he has been a candidate for five other times. In 2017 he was named to Sports Illustrated’s Dream Team College Coaching Staff as the best Special Teams Coach in America.

He is also the founder of the education company Academic Gameplan, and author of the 2013 book "I Hate School: How a College Football Coach Has Inspired Students to Value Education and Become Lifelong Learners."