Shadae Swan became the ninth head coach in Bowie State University women’s basketball program history on July 13, 2016, after serving as interim in 2015. She will enter her 11th season at the helm of the Bulldogs program in 2025-26.
During her tenure, Swan has brought stability and transformed the culture of Bowie State women’s basketball. Under her leadership, the program has shown continuous growth both on and off the court, with consistent increases in team GPA, retention, and graduation rates. Since the establishment of the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll in 2018, 12 student-athletes from her program have earned recognition, eight with GPAs between 3.2 and 3.9 and four with perfect 4.0 GPAs.
On the hardwood, Swan has led the Bulldogs to multiple historic milestones, including three consecutive 20-plus win seasons and two NCAA Tournament appearances (2016–2020), achievements that had not been reached in more than a decade. Her teams recorded 76 victories over four years, making her the second-winningest coach in program history.
In 2024-25, Swan guided Bowie State to a 19-10 overall record and 13-6 mark in the CIAA, highlighted by the breakout performance of Destiny Lyles, who earned All-CIAA honors, was named an HBCU All-Star, and selected to the 2025 D2CCA All-Atlantic Region Second Team after averaging 19.1 points per game and leading the Bulldogs with over 550 total points.
The 2023-24 season saw standout Anii Harris earn All-CIAA, Second Team D2CCA All-Atlantic Region, and CIAA Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors while becoming the program’s 11th 1,000-point scorer. In 2021-22, Katerra Myers represented the Bulldogs on the All-CIAA Team.
Swan’s earlier success includes a 22-6 record in 2018-19, where the Bulldogs ranked top-five nationally in scoring defense (49.5 ppg) and she was named CIAA Female Coach of the Year. The 2017-18 squad reached the CIAA Championship game and advanced to the NCAA Atlantic Region Final, earning multiple All-Conference and All-Tournament selections.
Before becoming head coach, Swan served as a Bowie State assistant from 2011 to 2015. She is a graduate of Goucher College, where she earned a bachelor’s in communication and media studies, an M.Ed. in athletic administration, and an M.A. in teaching. She is currently pursuing her Doctorate in Educational Leadership at Bowie State and was inducted into the Goucher College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2021.
During her free time, Swan enjoys spending quality time with her son, AJ.
