YORK, Neb. — York University continues to expand its athletic opportunities with the addition of powerlifting, as President Westbrook announced that the Board of Trustees has officially approved the new program. The plan for powerlifting is to start as a club sport and grow into a full collegiate program.

Leading the new program will be head coach Jeff Shabram, a highly respected name in Nebraska's powerlifting community. Shabram brings more than 25 years of experience in education and over two decades of coaching competitive powerlifting.

Shabram built a powerhouse at Orchard High School, where he founded the program and led it to 12 Class D State Championships. He later continued that success at Niobrara-Verdigre, starting another program and guiding it to 5 Class D State Championships.

Beyond the high school level, Shabram has played a key role in organizing the Orchard Powerlifting Meet for the past 20 years. The meet is a national Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) competition that attracts lifters from across the Midwest, further highlighting his deep involvement in the sport.

"This is an exciting chapter at York University where we can bring students to campus who desire to continue their competitive powerlifting careers after high school, while at the same time, receive a college degree from a top-notch, Christian university," said Shabram. "The sky's the limit for this powerlifting program and the entire York University community."

Brian Walth, York University's Director of Athletics, also expressed enthusiasm about the addition of the program and its leadership.

"We are excited to add powerlifting to our offerings and continue expanding opportunities for student-athletes at York University," said Walth. "This program will help us attract high-caliber students who are committed both in competition and in the classroom. Just as important, we are thrilled to have Coach Shabram leading the way. He is a person of high character with a proven track record of success, and we believe he is the perfect fit to build this program the right way."

Coach Shabram will be teaching science at York Middle School in addition to his coaching duties at the college. He and his wife, Amanda, have two sons. Gunnar is a junior at Wayne State College, and Wyatt is a freshman at York University and a member of the baseball team.

For more information about York University Athletics and the new powerlifting program, please contact Coach Shabram at jrshabram@york.edu or visit www.yorkpanthers.com