Krista Gray joined Coastal Carolina University as the Associate Athletic Director of Student-Athlete Academic Services in January of 2025. In her role, Gray oversees the Student-Athlete Academic Services department where she and her staff work with Coastal Carolina University’s more than 450 student-athletes, setting them up for success through advising, mentoring and skill building. Aside from her daily tasks, Gray is also involved with planning and executing graduation events and academic excellence celebrations for the student-athletes each semester. Gray also serves as the sport administrator for the Men’s and Women’s soccer teams.
Prior to arriving in Conway, Gray spent the last 2 years as the Assistant Director of Student-Athlete Academic Services at North Carolina Central University where she oversaw the academic support for the men’s and women’s basketball and women’s volleyball teams as well as the internship program. During her time at NCCU the men’s basketball team posted 3 consecutive record-breaking semesters in the classroom, earning the NABC Academic Excellence award twice.
From September 2018 until August of 2022, Gray served as a member of the Senior Leadership team in her role as the Senior Woman Administrator (SWA)/Associate Athletic Director of Student-Athlete Support Services at the University of Idaho. The department flourished during Gray’s time in Moscow, posting record grade-point averages (GPA) for 5 consecutive semesters. She served on multiple Big Sky Conference committees and worked as an advocate for Idaho Athletics at the conference and national level.
Before her time in Moscow, Gray worked at the University of Illinois for a year as the Assistant Director of Academic Support after spending the previous five years with the University of Missouri as an Athletic Academic Advisor working primarily with the men’s basketball team as well as other sports during her tenure. Gray earned her undergraduate degree in Communication from Defiance College in 2006. She earned her master’s degree in education, with an emphasis in Sports Leadership, Coaching and Teaching, from Southwest Minnesota State in 2008. She started her professional career as an assistant soccer coach at Southwest Minnesota State. A former student-athlete herself, she was a 4-year starter and 3-year captain for the Lady Jackets soccer team and left the program with the third most assists in team history.
