Mark Heard began working with Oklahoma Baptist University Track and Field program directing the pole vault in 2007-08 and has since added to his responsibilities.
Heard took over the men's cross country program in 2014, leading the Bison to a win at the Gerald Richey Invitational in the first meet for Heard at the helm. OBU finished third at the Sooner Athletic Conference Championships and sent two runners to the NAIA National Championship.
OBU joined the Great American Conference in 2015, but the Bison were unable to score at the GAC Championship due to OBU's provisional status in the league. Heard led the Bison to a fifth place finish at the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Championship.
2016 saw the Bison cross country team win the SWOSU Open and finish fourth at the NCCAA National Championship. The Bison also placed an athlete on the First Team All-GAC squad and produced an NCCAA All-American for the first time in school history.
In Heard's first five years at the helm, his pole vaulters have earned 25 NAIA All-American honors including three National Championships and 10 National Runner-Up titles.
The 2012 season saw one the best by Oklahoma Baptist's pole vault corps as the group earned nine All-America honors, including a national champion and three runner-up performances. Indoors the Lady Bison finished with a dominating 1-2 sweep, and the men crowded the podium with four of the eight spots being Bison. Outdoor Nationals saw a continued Bison presence with a runner-up performance on the women's side and a 3-4 finish for the men.
The OBU vault crew of 2011 brought back to Shawnee four All-America spots that included one runner-up performance, a school record 5.20 meters (17-00.75).
The Bison vault crew dominated the competition at the 2010 National Championships. The male vaulters had an extraordinary performance at the 2010 NAIA Outdoor National Championships. With four qualifiers, more than any other school in the nation, Heard's men combined their efforts to produced 20.5 points for the Bison. The Bison vaulters dominated with a 2nd (tie), 2nd (tie), 4th, and 7th place finish earning three All-America honors.
Not to be outdone, Heard's top female vaulter took home top honors, winning the 2010 NAIA Outdoor National Championship. The winning vault of 4.03 meters set a new OBU school record and was the second highest jump in NAIA Championship history.
Heard came to OBU in 2007 with 23 years of coaching experience at the high school level. As the head coach in Elk City, Oklahoma, his teams won nine State Championships and eight State Runner-Up titles in cross country and track & field, as his athletes produced 85 All-State honors.
With the best pole vault coaching record in Oklahoma high school history, Heard's vaulters won 17 state titles and 11 runner-up performances from 1989 to 2010, including nine straight championships from 1995 to 2003. With a 1-2-3 sweep in 2001 (Elk City boys) and again in 2008 with the Shawnee girls.
Coach Heard's honors include three-time Oklahoma Track Coaches "Coach of the Year", 1995 Oklahoma All-Star Jump Coach and 1996 Oklahoma All-Star Boys Team Head Coach.
Heard has lectured multiple times at the Oklahoma Coaches Clinic and has directed Pole Vault Academy for the past 26 years.
Mark and his wife Betty have two children, Jarrod and Sean.
