photo by: Conner Becker

New Free State High Athletic Director Jered Shaw is shown in his new office at FSHS.

Newly hired Free State High athletic director Jered Shaw is Nebraska through and through.

Despite being raised in Little River, Kansas, Shaw considers himself a Husker fan from birth and enrolled at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to study education upon finishing his service in the Navy.

After graduating, he immersed himself in several positions with Lincoln Public Schools, including assistant principal and assistant football coach at Lincoln High School. But Lawrence called to him, and one year ago, Shaw packed up his family and came to Kansas.

“When my wife and I decided to move to Lincoln, it was not something we did on a whim,” Shaw said. “We were very happy in Lincoln, and we would not have left unless it was somewhere we were going to stay forever.”

An opportunity to become the assistant principal at Leavenworth High School prompted Shaw’s interest in finding a permanent residence in the Lawrence area and enrolling his children in the Lawrence school district.

Even while commuting 45 minutes each day to Leavenworth, Shaw had his eye on Lawrence Public Schools.

“I followed the district from afar for a very, very long time,” Shaw said. “I strongly believe in the mission of the district. I wanted to be a part of this community.”

While making the transition, Shaw recognized the housing market was quite unwavering and decided to rent for a year before building a house of his own within the Free State school district lines.

Shortly after – toward the end of his first academic calendar year at Leavenworth – Shaw saw an opportunity to join the Lawrence Public Schools at Free State.

“This is where my kids will go to school,” Shaw said. “So, I care a great deal about the school itself and supporting the school by doing whatever I can to serve the community. I didn’t have that opportunity before since I didn’t live in Leavenworth.”

Shaw officially started at Free State on July 1, replacing Amanda Faunce, who led Free State’s athletic department since 2018 before transitioning to an associate principal role upon Shaw’s arrival.

Guided by Faunce during the transitionary period, Shaw commended his predecessor’s support during the summer.

“I’ve learned a ton from Amanda,” Shaw said. “She’s been an AD for a good amount of time. She knows a lot about the organization and where I need to be thinking and where my brain needs to be regarding the next season.”

The 2022-23 school year includes the debut of new coaches for the boys’ and girls’ basketball programs. Shaw’s voice was present in both hiring decisions, including the search committee that welcomed former Kansas men’s basketball player Sherron Collins back to Lawrence’s basketball scene.

Settling into his post after both hires, Shaw made it his first action to sit down with each coach from every program offered at Free State. He’d even dug into the contact list before it was required.

“I think it’s really important for each coach to get a face-to-face with me so that we can learn about each other and build some camaraderie,” Shaw said. “A lot of it is learning, so I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s like an orientation, but I was lucky enough to get some of that taken care of before I officially started.”

With school now in session, Shaw is aiming to translate what he feels is one of his biggest strengths — building relationships — to the hallways.

“I would argue it’s the most important part,” Shaw said. “Getting to know the kids, getting to know the needs of the community. After that, you start thinking about the logistical aspects of the fall. It’s a busy time. Football and volleyball are big time sports that need support. Getting all our ducks in a row and supporting this school so they can function successfully is my job.”