Nicole Farr joined the Aurora University staff as the Head Coach of the Spartan Men's and Women's Cross Country program in the summer of 2016. She also serves as an assistant coach of the AU men's and women's track and field programs.
In 2016-17, Farr led both men’s and women’s cross country programs to Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Championships. At the NCAA Regional in Oshkosh, Wis., the men finished a best-ever 11th place, while the women placed 8th of all DIII Midwest programs. As a sophomore, Jackie Schane qualified individually for the National XC Championships in Louisville, Ky., where she placed a program-best 40th in the country with a school record in the 6k (21:20.2). On the track, the women’s team earned both indoor and outdoor NACC titles, a “triple crown” in the three seasons. For the men, Jimmy Baeskens highlighted the indoor NACC Championships with his win in the 5000m run and 3rd-place finish and career PR in the 3000m hours later. In the outdoor season, Anthony Barrios broke the school record in the 1500m run, the first athlete to break the 4:00 barrier in program history.
In 2017-18, the men earned their third-consecutive NACC XC title, led by runner-up David Galvan, and the women finished runners-up. Schane earned her third-straight All-Region honor, while nine other Spartans added their names to the top-25 all-time list for their career PRs at the NCAA Midwest Regional in Rock Island, Ill. The success continued on the track, where the women continued their dominance of NACC Championships for both the indoor and outdoor season. Schane was named Track Athlete of the Meet for her indoor titles in the mile, 3k and runner-up finish in the 5k. The men won the NACC Outdoor Championships by a slim 17.5 points over conference rival Benedictine. Carl Way won the NACC title in the steeplechase, scored in both the 1500m and 400m hurdles, and was a member of the 4x400m championship relay.
Farr arrived at AU from Olivet Nazarene University (NAIA), where she served as the assistant coach for distance, recruiting coordinator and home meet director from 2014-16. The Tigers won five of a possible six Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference team titles while Farr was at ONU. She assisted with the 2014 men’s cross country team that earned a 3rd place podium finish at the NAIA National Championships in Lawrence, Kan. In the spring of 2016, Farr coached a redshirt freshman to an All-American 4th place finish at NAIA Championships in the 3,000m steeplechase. She had previous coaching stops at DIII Frostburg State (2012-2013) and DI Xavier University (2013-14), where she assisted in coaching the first-ever NCAA DI Championships qualifier for the cross country program.
As a collegiate runner at Calvin, Farr received All-Region honors with her team that took second place at the National XC Championships in 2008. Farr became an All-American in the Distance Medley Relay in 2009, and was a two-time NCAA provisional qualifier in the steeplechase.
Farr grew up in Warrenville, Illinois and attended nearby Wheaton-Warrenville South High School. She was a five-time state qualifier and four-time all-conference selection for the DuPage Valley Conference as a three-sport athlete (cross country, basketball, track). Farr holds a master's degree in sports administration from Bowling Green State University, where she pursued research comparing DI and DIII student-athlete experiences. At Bowling Green, Farr used remaining eligibility to compete in the 2011 season and significantly cut down her previous PRs (mile: 4:59, 3000m: 10:07, Steeplechase: 10:33, 1500m: 4:33). She has continued to train and compete in road races, including three marathons, and most recently triathlons.
Farr has specialist certifications from the USTFCCCA in Endurance and Strength and Conditioning, and is a USATF Level I Coach. In December of 2017, Farr began serving as the NCAA DIII Midwest region representative for women’s cross country.
