Wren Baker - Vice President and Director of Athletics - Staff Directory

Staff Directory

Wren Baker

Title:
Vice President and Director of Athletics

Personal Information
Hometown	Valliant, Oklahoma
Education	Southeastern Oklahoma State, 2001 (Bachelor's) Oklahoma State, 2003 (Master's)
Wife	Heather
Children	Addisyn and Reagan

Through the Years
2001-05	Oklahoma State University - Basketball Operations Assistant
2005-06	Valliant Public Schools - Director of Athletics/Principal
2006-10	Rogers State University - Director of Athletics
2010-13	Northwest Missouri State - Director of Athletics
2013-15	University of Memphis - Deputy Director of Athletics
2015-16	University of Missouri - Deputy Director of Athletics
2016-22	University of North Texas - Vice President and Director of Athletics
2022-	West Virginia University - Vice President and Director of Athletics

    Wren Baker has changed the face of West Virginia University Athletics. He has reenergized the department and set it up for long-term success in the ever-changing world of college athletics.

    Whether it’s coaching searches, facility master plans, revenue sharing or a modern, business-like approach to Name, Image and Likeness, Baker has faced every challenge head on and has never looked back. He has brought new thinking and confidence to WVU Athletics, and his reputation across the country is second-to-none.

    Baker is a high-energy leader, and Mountaineer success has been contagious in competition and in the classroom. Conference championships, NCAA appearances and a national championship have been followed by strong academic achievement for Mountaineer student-athletes, eclipsing previous department GPA highs. Under Baker, WVU has also turned in record fundraising numbers as his forward thinking and strategic planning are geared to bringing future success and revenue stability to the state’s Land-Grant Institution.

    Baker was an instant hit with WVU fans. In his first year in Morgantown, he traveled the state to learn its culture, geography, and history. He has met and listened to Mountaineer fans from all over the world and immersed himself on what it means to be a proud West Virginian. The results of his approach and work ethic speak volumes as the West Virginia Mountaineers continue to be a national brand.

    Despite accomplishing so much in a short period of time, Baker’s plate is still full. Continued revenue generation, launching an NIL full-service business agency for student-athlete advancement and premium seating options in his two major sports venues are still on his radar for the coming year. His endless energy never stops moving WVU forward.

    Then-WVU President E. Gordon Gee named Baker as WVU’s vice president and director of intercollegiate athletics on Nov. 30, 2022. He has oversight of 18 varsity sports, a department budget of more than $90 million, approximately 250 employees and nearly 500 student-athletes.

    Baker is WVU’s 13th director of athletics and came to Morgantown from the University of North Texas, where he had been the associate vice president and athletics director since 2016. With previous stops at Missouri, Memphis, Northwest Missouri and Rogers State, he brought more than 20 years of experience to WVU.

     At North Texas, seven Mean Green programs combined to win 17 conference or division championships during Baker’s tenure. UNT also reached new heights in the classroom under Baker’s leadership, posting its top APR scores and four consecutive department Graduation Success Rate (GSR) records. Baker led record fundraising years at North Texas, and the overall top five largest gifts ever at UNT came under Baker’s leadership.

    Prior to North Texas, Baker was the deputy director of athletics at Missouri from 2015 to 2016, serving as the top advisor and chief of staff.

    Before Missouri, he spent time at Memphis from 2013-15 as deputy athletics director. Wren Baker Family (11-25)

    From 2011-13, Baker was athletics director at NCAA Division II power Northwest Missouri State. From 2006-11, Baker served as the first athletics director at Rogers State in Claremore, Oklahoma, where he was also the school’s first men’s basketball coach. His team went 20-11 in his only season at the helm, and during his tenure, he developed a full-scale, competitive collegiate athletics program. In 2005, he was the principal and athletics director for Valliant Public Schools, and at age 26, was the youngest principal in Oklahoma history.

    Originally from Valliant, Oklahoma, Baker earned his bachelor’s degree in education from Southeastern Oklahoma State in 2001 where he was a member of the honors program. He went on to earn his master’s degree in education leadership from Oklahoma State in 2003.

    While at Oklahoma State, Baker was a graduate assistant and basketball operations assistant for the Cowboys’ men’s basketball
program under legendary head coach Eddie Sutton. During his time with OSU, the Cowboys posted a 102-30 record, reaching four
NCAA tournaments with trips to the 2004 Final Four and the 2005 Sweet 16.

    Baker and his wife, Heather, a Bokchito, Oklahoma, native, have two daughters, Addisyn and Reagan.