Michael Prout, Jr. enters his third season as the Head Swimming and Diving Coach and Aquatics Director. 

Since taking over as head coach of the swimming and diving program, Prout guided Simmons to a pair of GNAC runner-up finishes in each of his first two seasons. Additionally, under his tutelage two Simmons first-years have received the GNAC Rookie of the Year: Ella Harmon (2022) and Carli Quinlan (2023). 

At the 2023 GNAC Swimming and Diving Championships, Prout helped the Sharks secure a total 12 individual event championships - including a trio of individual titles from Meg Driscoll ‘23 (100 Breast, 200 Breast, 200 IM). 

In his first season at the helm in 2021-22, Prout guided the Sharks to second place at the GNAC Championship meet. Simmons captured first place in the 800 freestyle relay with a time of 8:20.03 to edge out the University of New England for second place in the meet. 

Prout comes to Simmons with a plethora of experience coaching swimming in the Greater Boston area. He spent the last six years as the Head Swim Coach and Program Coordinator with Adaptive Sports New England, as well as an assistant coach for the premier Commonwealth Swim Club for the last five years. 

Additionally, Prout has coached numerous paraolympic athletes who have gone on to excel at the collegiate level, including Harvard men’s swimming and diving senior David Abrahams. A member of the 2023 U.S. World Para Swimming team, Abrahams helped Harvard to three Ivy League championships during his time in Cambridge, while also earning a silver medal in he 100-meter breaststroke at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. 

A former Division I swimmer at the University of Massachusetts, Prout also competed on the national and international stage. In 2004, he won a gold medal in the 400-meter freestyle and a bronze medal in the 100-meter freestyle race at the Paralympics in Athens at the age of 18.  He also competed in Beijing in 2008 and was a team captain in the London Games in 2012 In addition, he coached the USA Team in the 2019 Parapan American Games and 2019 Para Swimming World Championships and most recently in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.

The western Massachusetts native graduated from Massachusetts in 2009 with a degree in social thought and political economy.