Abilene ISD has selected Jim Garfield to serve as the district’s next Executive Director of Athletics. Garfield joins AISD after holding the position of Assistant Director of Athletics for Lubbock ISD since 2017. He replaces Phil Blue, the 2021 Region 2 Athletics Director of the Year, who will retire in June after directing the AISD athletics program since 2015.
“I’m excited to join a district with strong leadership and a vision for the athletes within AISD,” Garfield said. “The significant facility renovations and program investments made on behalf of our kids says a lot about what our school board and community thinks of our athletes. Following Phil Blue is a tough job, but I look forward to working hand in hand with the great corps of administrators and coaches in place to help AISD students get to the next level in athletics and academics. Our team will provide every opportunity for our students to advance to college, trade school, or a career.”
Garfield brings 35 years of coaching experience across four Texas high school football programs and two universities to Abilene ISD, including head coaching positions at Elgin ISD, Wichita Falls ISD, and Flour Bluff ISD, and coordinator roles at Midwestern State University and Eastern New Mexico University. He has twice been named the Red River Coach of the Year and secured 11 playoff victories while helping 63 football players receive scholarships as a head football coach.
Superintendent Dr. David Young expressed his gratitude for the vision Blue brought to AISD athletics for the past seven years while looking ahead to what Garfield will accomplish in Abilene.
“Phil Blue has brought a systematic level of focus to athletics in AISD and has put supports in place that have helped our programs throughout the district compete at a high level. Our district is grateful for his leadership,” said Young. “Jim Garfield’s years of experience and his deep knowledge of West Texas positions him to take our athletics program to another level. We look forward to his leadership in Abilene ISD.”
Beyond his success in football programs, Garfield has also coached men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s powerlifting, and led men’s and women’s strength and conditioning programs. He graduated from Eastern New Mexico University with his bachelor’s degree in education in 1987. He earned his master’s degree in sport science from ENMU in 1991.
