#1 Eric Lyons
Eric Lyons is a husband, father, teacher and coach. He teaches and coaches at Heritage Hall in Oklahoma City. Eric is got his Bachelor’s in Art Education from Oklahoma State University. Also, he got his Master’s in Art Education from Southwestern Oklahoma State University.
It’s also safe to say that Eric is an entrepreneur. Eric is just an all around good guy.
Our host for We Love Educators Podcast is Donnita Rogers.
Donnita is married to Eric Rogers. She graduated from Northwestern Oklahoma State University in December of 1990 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Health and Physical Education and an endorsement in Biology. She obtained her Master’s degree in Education Administration at Texas A&M University of Commerce, Texas. While attending Northwestern, she obtained such honors as NAIA National Player of the Week, OIC Scholar Athlete, OIC and District IX All-Conference Teams and Northwestern Ranger Queen in 1988. Rogers was inducted into Northwestern Oklahoma State University’s Athletic Hall of Fame in January of 1998. Rogers served four years as Athletic Director for Women’s Sports and was selected as Athletic Director of the Year for Region VI in 2003.
While at Langston, Coach Rogers led the Lady Lions to six NAIA Division I National Tournament appearances. The 2007 season also marked Coach Rogers’s first trip to the Elite Eight of the NAIA Division I National Tournament. Rogers has more wins than any other Langston University women’s basketball coach and had nine consecutive winning seasons prior to leaving Langston University. Rogers’ teams went undefeated in conference their last two seasons and won 34 consecutive conference games. Her 2008 team had a 27-game winning streak and consisted of the RRAC Player of the Year, First Team All-American and State Farm All-American, Jamie Skinner as well as the RRAC Defensive Player of the Year, Dominique Thomas. Rogers’ 2007-2008 team finished with a No. 6 national ranking, a record of 31-2 and a berth to the Sweet Sixteen Round of the NAIA Division I National Tournament.
While at Grambling, Rogers, finished her fourth year at the helm of the Lady Tigers program in 2012 and led Grambling to two consecutive SWAC Tournament Semi-Final rounds. Rogers was named the Southwestern Athletic Conference Coach of the Year during the 2010 season and had the ninth-ranked recruiting class among NCAA Division I mid-major colleges her last season. Her program also had the highest APR rating in the state of Louisiana in women’s basketball in 2012.
Coach Rogers most recently served as the head boys basketball coach at Booker T. Washington High School and is the first female to coach a varsity boys’ basketball team in Caddo Parish. Coach Rogers picked up her 300th career win during her first season and finished 22-9 and ranked No. 13 in 3A boys’ basketball this year. Rogers’ Lions made it to the LHSAA quarterfinals this year. This season was BTW’s best overall finish since the mid-eighties. Rogers’ team finished with four players averaging double-figures and garnering such honors as KSLA Athlete of the Week, All-District First and Second Team; two I-20 All-Star Selections; All-State Honorable Mention, and All-City honors.