Jeff Riden returns to Penn State after spending five years as the Associate Director of Track & Field and Assistant to the Athletic Director at North Carolina, overseeing the day-to-day operations of the Tar Heels’ track and field and cross country programs.
Prior to North Carolina, Riden spent four seasons at Stanford, serving as the Director of Operations from 2016-18 before being promoted to Assistant Athletics Director in May 2018. During her time with the Cardinal, Riden played an integral role in managing all aspects of the day-to-day operations of the track and field and cross country programs, including team travel, meet management and social media content.
Riden also directed several high-profile meets during her tenure at Stanford, including the 2018 Pac-12 Track and Field Championships and Combined Events, the 2018 Pac-12 Cross Country Championships and the Payton Jordan Invitational, one of the nation’s premier distance meets. She also served as Stanford’s point of contact for the 2019 Prefontaine Classic, the IAAF Diamond League’s only meet held in the United States.
Additionally, Riden organized and managed the Stanford Invitational track and cross country meets, each of which drew more than 3,000 athletes. The track meet featured 29 hours of competition across two days, while the cross country meet consisted of 14 races and ranked among California’s premier high school competitions.
Riden has also worked extensively with USA Track & Field. She served as head manager for the U.S. U20 team at the 2024 World Athletics U20 Championships in Lima, Peru, and previously assisted USATF with travel and logistics for international team members at the 2015 USATF Outdoor Championships, 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials and 2017 USATF Outdoor Championships.
Before joining Stanford, Riden spent nine years on the track and field staff at Washington and Penn State.
A former Penn State distance runner and native of Reedsville, Pa., Riden is a USATF Level I certified coach and has presented on meet management and team operations at several USTFCCCA conventions.