WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue Track & Field/Cross Country head coach Norbert Elliot announced three staff additions on Thursday as Miles Smith, Pristina Jones and Latrese Moffitt join the track & field program. Smith was appointed as Assistant Coach, overseeing long sprints, Jones as Supervisor of Track & Field/Cross Country Operations and Moffitt as Volunteer Coach specializing in high jumps.
"I am thrilled announce Miles Smith, Latrese Moffitt and Pristina Jones as the newest members of our staff," Elliott said. "Each brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Purdue program and a leadership that will help us compete, both on the track and on the road recruiting. We are ready to grow as a program and excel in every field."
Smith, a former world champion and professional sprinter, owns six years of coaching experience at the Division I level.
Smith comes to Purdue from Memphis, where he helped the Tigers sprint program to its finest performance in decades. In his two years as Assistant Track & Field Coach, he oversaw the men's team to a 20th place finish at the NCAA Championships. Additionally, Smith coached four NCAA National Championship Qualifiers, four NCAA All-America Honorable Mentions, a program-high two American Athletic Conference (AAC) Team Championship Runner-Up finishes, 25 All-AAC performers and 10 program records.
"I am very excited to add Miles Smith to our coaching staff. He brings a lot of energy, leadership and is known for his great recruiting of national and regional talent," Elliott said. "Purdue has established a great tradition in the 400 and particularly the 4x400. Miles will definitely allow us to continue to excel in those areas and more."
Smith moved to the coaching ranks after a stellar professional track and field career. In 2005, Smith was a member of the gold-medal winning 4x40-meter relay at the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. Additionally, he was a United States Olympic Trials semifinalist in the 400-meters in both 2008 and 2012, and also a 400-meter finalist at the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2005 (sixth place), 2009 (eighth) and 2011 (sixth).
As a student-athlete at Southeast Missouri, Smith earned All-America honors five times in the 400-meters (indoor/outdoor combined). A 15-time OVC champion, Smith was named the OVC Athlete of the Year three times in 2005, 2006 and 2008. He stills holds five school records in the 400-meters (indoor/outdoor), 200-meters (indoor) and 4x400-meter relay (indoor/outdoor).
Smith is a 2008 Southeast Missouri graduate with a degree in mass communication. He was inducted into the Southeast Missouri Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014 before earning his place in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.
Jones comes from Notre Dame, where she worked with the sprint, hurdle and horizontal jump student-athletes as an assistant coach. While in South Bend, Jones helped the Irish women to a fifth place finish in the 2016 NCAA Indoors Championship, a third place finish at the women's indoor Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Championship in 2015 and 2016, as well as a fifth place finish in 2015 and 2016 for the women's Outdoor ACC Championship.
Jones also had a large hand in scheduling Notre Dame's team travel and events, overseeing student managers, serving as the compliance liaison and recruiting prestigious student-athletes throughout the nation.
Prior to Notre Dame, she served as head track & field/cross country coach at Jackson State University, where she helped to develop the programs both academically and athletically. Additionally, Jones has experience at Warren Central High School as an assistant girls track & field coach and Chicago State University as head women's cross country and track & field coach.
"Pristina [Jones], having been a track and field coach at Notre Dame, understands all of the nuances that we go through," Elliott commented. "Her experience, detail-oriented and high-energy nature will definitely prove to be a valuable asset to the program."
Jones received a degree in B.A. in Marketing from North Central College in 1999 and owns two Masters Degrees: a Masters of Business Administration with a concentration on Applied Management and a Masters of Arts with a concentration on Organizational Leadership.
Moffitt coached at the collegiate, high school and junior high levels for the past 27 years. She coached student-athletes to 13 individual national championships, seven individual conference champions -including a Big Ten Conference Champion, four high school state champions and two state runner ups. Internationally, she has coached a world silver medalist, was appointed to the 2014 USA Track & Field Youth Olympic Games team coaching staff in Nanjing, China as well as the coaching staff for the International Children's Games in South Korea.
From 1995-2001, Moffitt served at Bethel College (Ind.) as the Assistant to the V.P. for Student Development where she also established both the men and women's track and field programs as the head track coach. She was then recruited by Indiana Wesleyan University where she worked as assistant jumps coach from 2001-2017, as a certified life coach and chaplain.
Moffitt owns the national high school high jump record at 6'2 ¾" and was the California state high school high jump champion. The six-time NAIA High Jump National Champion competed internationally for several years and was the Junior Pan America Games silver medalist, two-time Japanese International Champion and the two-time Olympic Sports Festival high jump champion as well as an alternate for the United States Olympic teams in 1984 and 1988.
"We are fortunate to have someone like Coach Moffitt join us. She brings tremendous experience, not only as a high jump coach, but also as a character builder for our student-athletes," Elliott said.
In addition to her duties as volunteer assistant coach, Moffitt is the Interim Headmaster at The Kings Academy. Moffitt is married to former Green Bay Packer Dr. Michael J. Moffitt, Sr. and has two children: Michael J. Moffitt, Jr., who was a two-time national high jump champion, and a daughter, Janae' Nicole Moffitt who competes in the high jump event for Purdue track & field.
"I am thrilled announce Miles Smith, Latrese Moffitt and Pristina Jones as the newest members of our staff," Elliott said. "Each brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Purdue program and a leadership that will help us compete, both on the track and on the road recruiting. We are ready to grow as a program and excel in every field."
Smith, a former world champion and professional sprinter, owns six years of coaching experience at the Division I level.
Smith comes to Purdue from Memphis, where he helped the Tigers sprint program to its finest performance in decades. In his two years as Assistant Track & Field Coach, he oversaw the men's team to a 20th place finish at the NCAA Championships. Additionally, Smith coached four NCAA National Championship Qualifiers, four NCAA All-America Honorable Mentions, a program-high two American Athletic Conference (AAC) Team Championship Runner-Up finishes, 25 All-AAC performers and 10 program records.
"I am very excited to add Miles Smith to our coaching staff. He brings a lot of energy, leadership and is known for his great recruiting of national and regional talent," Elliott said. "Purdue has established a great tradition in the 400 and particularly the 4x400. Miles will definitely allow us to continue to excel in those areas and more."
Smith moved to the coaching ranks after a stellar professional track and field career. In 2005, Smith was a member of the gold-medal winning 4x40-meter relay at the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. Additionally, he was a United States Olympic Trials semifinalist in the 400-meters in both 2008 and 2012, and also a 400-meter finalist at the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2005 (sixth place), 2009 (eighth) and 2011 (sixth).
As a student-athlete at Southeast Missouri, Smith earned All-America honors five times in the 400-meters (indoor/outdoor combined). A 15-time OVC champion, Smith was named the OVC Athlete of the Year three times in 2005, 2006 and 2008. He stills holds five school records in the 400-meters (indoor/outdoor), 200-meters (indoor) and 4x400-meter relay (indoor/outdoor).
Smith is a 2008 Southeast Missouri graduate with a degree in mass communication. He was inducted into the Southeast Missouri Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014 before earning his place in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2016.
Jones comes from Notre Dame, where she worked with the sprint, hurdle and horizontal jump student-athletes as an assistant coach. While in South Bend, Jones helped the Irish women to a fifth place finish in the 2016 NCAA Indoors Championship, a third place finish at the women's indoor Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Championship in 2015 and 2016, as well as a fifth place finish in 2015 and 2016 for the women's Outdoor ACC Championship.
Jones also had a large hand in scheduling Notre Dame's team travel and events, overseeing student managers, serving as the compliance liaison and recruiting prestigious student-athletes throughout the nation.
Prior to Notre Dame, she served as head track & field/cross country coach at Jackson State University, where she helped to develop the programs both academically and athletically. Additionally, Jones has experience at Warren Central High School as an assistant girls track & field coach and Chicago State University as head women's cross country and track & field coach.
"Pristina [Jones], having been a track and field coach at Notre Dame, understands all of the nuances that we go through," Elliott commented. "Her experience, detail-oriented and high-energy nature will definitely prove to be a valuable asset to the program."
Jones received a degree in B.A. in Marketing from North Central College in 1999 and owns two Masters Degrees: a Masters of Business Administration with a concentration on Applied Management and a Masters of Arts with a concentration on Organizational Leadership.
Moffitt coached at the collegiate, high school and junior high levels for the past 27 years. She coached student-athletes to 13 individual national championships, seven individual conference champions -including a Big Ten Conference Champion, four high school state champions and two state runner ups. Internationally, she has coached a world silver medalist, was appointed to the 2014 USA Track & Field Youth Olympic Games team coaching staff in Nanjing, China as well as the coaching staff for the International Children's Games in South Korea.
From 1995-2001, Moffitt served at Bethel College (Ind.) as the Assistant to the V.P. for Student Development where she also established both the men and women's track and field programs as the head track coach. She was then recruited by Indiana Wesleyan University where she worked as assistant jumps coach from 2001-2017, as a certified life coach and chaplain.
Moffitt owns the national high school high jump record at 6'2 ¾" and was the California state high school high jump champion. The six-time NAIA High Jump National Champion competed internationally for several years and was the Junior Pan America Games silver medalist, two-time Japanese International Champion and the two-time Olympic Sports Festival high jump champion as well as an alternate for the United States Olympic teams in 1984 and 1988.
"We are fortunate to have someone like Coach Moffitt join us. She brings tremendous experience, not only as a high jump coach, but also as a character builder for our student-athletes," Elliott said.
In addition to her duties as volunteer assistant coach, Moffitt is the Interim Headmaster at The Kings Academy. Moffitt is married to former Green Bay Packer Dr. Michael J. Moffitt, Sr. and has two children: Michael J. Moffitt, Jr., who was a two-time national high jump champion, and a daughter, Janae' Nicole Moffitt who competes in the high jump event for Purdue track & field.