Halston Taylor’s tenure at MIT
began in 1982, as an assistant with the men’s track and field
squad. Taylor would take over as the head coach of the men in 1990
and has served as Director of MIT’s Track and Field programs
for the past four seasons. He has solidified MIT’s position
as one of the most dominant track and field programs in the region,
as he totaled his 12th NEWMAC Coach of the Year citation this past
season. Both teams earned New England Division III titles in recent
years, as the women’s last regional crown came at the 2011
outdoor championship and the men won this year’s outdoor
meet. His teams have combined to win 18 NEWMAC Championships,
including 13 of the league’s 14 men’s crowns.
The indoor and outdoor teams regularly
qualify individuals for the NCAA Championships, and under
Taylor’s guidance, MIT has elicited 188 All-Americans and 13
national champions, including a pair in 2010. Both teams had
tremendous showings at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Championships, as the
women finished third and the men placed fourth in the nation.
Taylor has collected accolades from the USTFCCCA in each of the
past four years, having been named the New England Women’s
Coach of the Year in 2009 and 2011 while receiving the same honor
on the men’s side in 2010 and 2012.
Before arriving at MIT, Taylor coached
the women’s track club at South Carolina and was the
boy’s track coach at both Granby and Mohawk Regional high
schools in Massachusetts.
A native of Columbia, S.C., Taylor is a graduate of the
University of South Carolina where he was a four-year letter winner
and a 4:05-miler. After receiving his undergraduate degree in
Physical Education, Taylor entered UMass-Amherst to study and
receive his Masters in Exercise Science.