Featured Image: Todd Brickson. Provided by Rowmark Ski Academy.
SALT LAKE CITY—After 23 years of exceptional leadership, Rowmark Ski Academy Director Todd Brickson is retiring.
Todd joined Rowmark, an elite alpine ski racing academy founded as a division of Rowland Hall, in 2002. In his more than two decades at Rowmark’s helm, Todd has continued to raise the bar for the program, cementing its status as one of the country’s top ski-racing academies.
Founded in 1982, Rowmark offers a unique blend of academic and athletic excellence. Both areas were furthered by Todd’s coaching and mentoring style, which has inspired generations of students by developing them not only as athletes but also as well-rounded people.
Many of Todd’s athletes have gone on to ski in college or professionally; this list includes 13 US Ski Team members since 2003. Today, four Rowmarkers are on the US Ski Team: Olympians Breezy Johnson and Katie Hensien, and sisters Mary Bocock and Elisabeth Bocock, who made their World Cup debuts together in October 2023.
Rowmark has also continued to have a strong Olympic presence since Todd became director. The program has had at least one representative at each Winter Olympics since 1988, and it was recently named one of 12 schools grooming future Olympians by SKI Magazine.
Todd’s mentorship hasn’t been limited to athletes. He’s well known for developing strong coaches (three of his staff members went on to join the US Ski Team coaching staff between 2021 and 2023) and for serving alongside other coaching professionals on US Ski & Snowboard committees.
“Todd has had a tremendous impact on ski racing in America while also developing some of our nation’s best athletes. His leadership will be missed,” said Anouk Patty, chief of sport for US Ski & Snowboard.
Under Todd’s leadership, Rowmark was one of the first clubs to be awarded US Ski & Snowboard’s Gold Certification in 2014, an honor for clubs considered to be the best in the world organizationally and athletically. He led Rowmark through two accreditation processes considered models for other academies. And, focusing on the future of the program, he also led Rowmark as one of three founding clubs behind the Spencer F. Eccles Olympic Mountain Center at Utah Olympic Park, an Olympic-level training and competition facility.
Troy Price, executive director of the Snowbasin Ski Team and a former Rowmark Junior Program director, summed up Todd’s career and influence when he said, “Todd Brickson is a mentor and friend to so many, embodying the ideal balance of professional excellence and competitive drive needed to inspire athletes to reach their full potential.”
Todd Brickson’s Career at a Glance
Todd Brickson has over three decades of alpine ski coaching experience at all levels, including World Cup and World Junior Championships, and is a certified International Level 500 Coach. He earned a bachelor of science in zoology from the University of New Hampshire, where he was a member of the school’s ski team (as well as team captain during his senior year). After graduation, Todd coached FIS-level athletes and taught biology and chemistry at Squaw Valley Academy (1987–1989) and Green Mountain Valley School (1989–1997). He then served as head coach of the US Ski Team’s Women’s Development Team (1997–2002) before becoming Rowmark Ski Academy director in 2002.
Rowmark Ski Academy Director Posting
Following Todd’s retirement announcement, Rowmark is accepting applications for the program director position.
About Rowland Hall and Rowmark Ski Academy
Founded in 1867, Rowland Hall is Utah’s oldest independent coeducational college-preparatory day school, serving students in 3PreK through 12th grade. Driven by our vision of developing people the world needs, we believe in a transformational education that gives students agency and purpose, connects them to their global community, and empowers them to make the world a better place for all.
Rowmark Ski Academy was founded as a division of Rowland Hall in 1982. Just over three decades later, in 2014, Rowmark proudly became one of the first clubs designated for US Ski and Snowboard’s highest Gold Certification level. Rowmark skiers are full-time ninth through twelfth graders at Rowland Hall. Here you find a rigorous, year-round racing program coupled with an extraordinary academic high school. There’s nothing quite like it in North America.
Contact
Stephanie Orfanakis, Director of Marketing and Communications
stephanieorfanakis@rowlandhall.org
801-924-2960
Ashley Atwood, Marketing Content Associate
801-924-5964
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