Colgate Head Swimming and Diving Coach Ed Pretre has announced the appointment of Jessica Kugelman as the program’s new diving coach in August 2021.
Kugelman spent the last year-plus serving as the diving coach for High Dive Champions, one of the leading U.S. diving teams for developing talent. She worked with athletes between the ages of 5-18, working toward building meet lists for either high school or USA Diving.
Prior to her development work with High Dive Champions, Kugelman served in the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) athletic department from 2016-20. She also held diving coach positions at Future Stars (2019) and Norwood Swim Club (2015-18).
A four-year student-athlete at RPI, Kugelman garnered the Liberty League’s Diver of the Year honor in 2019-20. She won 15 times as a senior, including a first-place finish at the Liberty League Championships to take home medalist honors. During her time at RPI, Kugelman broke six out of the eight possible records for diving, including three pool records and three school records. She was a four-time regional qualifier and a one-time national qualifier.
Kugelman graduated from RPI in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in psychological science.
