Mike Palm ’00 Hired as Next Athletic Director

February 10, 2026

Lutheran West is pleased to share that Mike Palm has been hired as its next Athletic Director and will begin in the role this July. 

Palm has served as the Middle School Athletic Director for Vermilion Local Schools since 2018. His day-to-day duties included budgeting, transportation, scheduling, communication with athletes and families, management of officials and game supervisory staff, and overseeing of conference and eligibility requirements. In Vermilion, he has also worked with the high school football program as an assistant, and the middle school track & field program as Throws Coach.

“We’re very much looking forward to Mike coming on board here at Lutheran West – his expertise in athletic administration and his vision for the future of Longhorn Athletics are sure to be assets to our school and our student-athletes,” says Joel Bahr, Head of School. 

A 2000 graduate of Lutheran West, he earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Cleveland State University and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from Concordia University Portland. He is currently completing a master’s degree in educational leadership at Concordia University Chicago.

Palm says, “I am incredibly excited and deeply humbled to return to Lutheran West in this new role. As an alumnus, returning to the school that helped develop my faith, character, and leadership is incredibly meaningful to me. This school played a significant part in shaping who I am today, and I carry a great reverence for my time here as a student. It is an honor to serve a community that gave me so much, and I look forward to working alongside our coaches, students, and families to continue building programs that reflect the values and traditions of Lutheran West.”

Mike and his family are members of Ascension Lutheran Church in North Olmsted.