Rob has been a valuable part of COOL Swim Team for nine years, the last five as our Head Coach. He directly coaches our Lightning and High School groups, leads our coaching staff of 14 part-time coaches, and works with the Board of Directors to provide vision and direction for our team. In 2019, Rob was voted the Missouri Valley Senior Coach of the Year after also being nominated for the same award in 2017. He is ASCA Level 2 certified.

Rob's experience both in the water as a competitive swimmer and on deck as a coach is impressive. He began swimming competitively at age 12 and continued through high school, receiving several offers of full swimming scholarships. Rob has coached swimmers of all ages and abilities for the past 12 years. His roles have included head coach for the St. Charles Barracudas, novice and age group coach for the Warrensburg Pirahannas, and head senior coach for Team Dolphin. 

Rob's swimmers had a record year in the pool during the 2018-19 season. Two of his swimmers qualified for Speedo Winter Junior Nationals and Speedo Summer Junior Nationals, and one earned a U.S. Open cut. All of these were firsts in our team's history. Rob also had a record number of athletes qualify for NCSA Junior Nationals and Speedo Sectionals this year. From last year's graduating class, he has four swimmers and one rower on college scholarships. 

Rob also runs his own company, Aquatic Solutions, which operates in the Kansas City area. Contact Rob here.

Lauren was introduced to swimming through summer league at the age of 8, and fell in love with the sport. She decided to start swimming year round and joined the Team Dolphins in Kansas. She continued swimming as her primary sport throughout middle school, on the Wheaton Swim Club, competing in Illinois regional and state meets. In high school, she was a 4-year varsity swimmer at Blue Valley Northwest, competing and medaling at EKL and KSHSAA every year. She received the award of 2nd Team All-State her senior year.

Lauren swam on COOL Swim Team under Coach Rob year-round during high school. She is extremely excited to come back to the COOL family, working with both the swimmers and coaches!

In addition to the sport of swimming, she has had an extensive aquatic work history, working as both a lifeguard and swim instructor for over six years. Most recently, she was an Assistant Coach for the Nottingham Forest South Neptunes summer swim team for three years.

Lauren is a recent KU graduate, earning a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and a concentration in Business Analytics. Contact Lauren here.

This coach is awesome!

This coach is awesome!

This coach is awesome!

Ty has a well-rounded swim background, bringing over 16 years as an aquatic instructor and as a four-year letterman swimmer at Chaska HS (MN) and Blue Valley West. Ty was the Head Coach for the Olathe Cyclones last summer, a Johnson County summer league team. Still not finding that to be enough time around water, Ty is also the assistant swim coach for the Olathe Northwest boys' and girls' swim teams. He is overflowing with enthusiasm for the sport and a genuine love of teaching! Contact Ty here.

Mary Dunton-Simon is a lifelong swimmer who grew up just outside Chicago, competing for Wheaton Sport Center, the Wheaton Barracudas, and the Wheaton High School COOP Swim Team. She went on to attend Baylor University, earning a degree in advertising and journalism before building a career in marketing.

After moving to Kansas City in 2021, Mary launched her own marketing agency and returned to the pool as a coach, quickly finding her place in the Northland. She currently coaches the Lincoln Prep Girls Swim & Dive Team and COOL Swim Team, working with athletes across a wide range of ages and competitive levels.

In addition to coaching and running her business, Mary serves on the Board of Directors for the Kansas City Chapter of the American Red Cross and contributes to the USA Swimming Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee. She is passionate about building inclusive, empowering swim environments and helping athletes grow both in and out of the water.

This coach is awesome!

This coach is awesome!