Kevin Van Duyn has been named head baseball coach at Calvin College, his alma mater. A two-time Division III All-American second baseman at Calvin, Van Duyn becomes the 13th head baseball coach in school history, including the ninth since Calvin joined the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) in 1953.
Calvin director of athletics Dr. Jim Timmer said Van Duyn's Christian faith, passion for baseball and ability to lead student-athletes made him a great fit for the job and the Calvin athletic department. "Kevin's career in coaching and athletic administration is a testament to his servant-leadership," said Timmer, "and I am thrilled to welcome him back home to the Calvin family."
Van Duyn is equally thrilled. "It's a dream to come back to Calvin to serve as head baseball coach," he said. "It is not often that you get an opportunity in life to serve at your alma mater, and I will have been blessed to do it twice, first at the high school and now at the college level. I am grateful to be back in an intentional Christian community, and I look forward to a new chapter in my life. I am also eager to meet the young men on our team individually. That excites me. I look forward to daily interaction with them and building a culture and a team."
A native of Jenison, Michigan, VanDuyn joins Calvin after almost 20 years in the Jenison schools system. He returned to his high school alma mater, Jenison High School, in 1999 and served as high school director of athletics from 1999-2004 and then again from 2013 to the present. In between he was the Jenison Middle School director of athletics and served five years as the Jenison varsity girls basketball coach. In 2017, he was honored as the High School Athletic Director of the Year by the West Michigan Officials Association.
The 1987 Calvin graduate was both a standout point guard on the men's basketball team and a four-year starter on the baseball team. In baseball, he helped Calvin win one league crown and gain its first-ever NCAA III Tournament appearance. He was All-MIAA three times in baseball and hit .426 in conference play, including .500 his senior year. He also was an All-American in both 1985 and 1987. A three-year starter at point guard, Van Duyn led the Calvin men's basketball team to an MIAA title in 1986 and a pair of NCAA III Tournament appearances and also was a first team All-MIAA selection in both 1986 and 1987.
As a senior, he was named the recipient of Calvin's Bere' Memorial Award (given to the top senior male scholar-athlete) and graduated from Calvin with a bachelor's degree in education.
Van Duyn began his teaching and coaching career at Westminster Christian in Huntsville, Alabama, where he served as a faculty member and head baseball coach. He then moved to Valley Christian High School in Cerritos, California, where he taught and coached varsity baseball and freshmen boys basketball coach, leading Valley Christian to five consecutive conference championships in baseball and the 1992 California State championship. He also was named the California Interscholastic Federation Baseball Coach of the Year.
Van Duyn then moved to Chicago Christian High School in Palos Heights, Illinois, where he served as Dean of students from 1994-to-1999. At Chicago Christian he also served as head varsity boys basketball coach and as an assistant varsity baseball coach.
In addition to his undergraduate degree from Calvin College, Van Duyn holds a master's degree in athletic administration from Azusa-Pacific University and a master's degree in education from Grand Valley State University.
He takes over a Calvin baseball program that was 16-25 in 2018 and reached the MIAA Tournament with a 14-14 conference record that was good for fourth place in the league race.
Van Duyn and his wife Kim reside in Jenison and are the parents of two sons and three daughters.
Story provided by Calvin College Athletics
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