Ryan Raposo was promoted to become Florida National University’s third Athletic Director on March 27th, 2020. Administratively in his first year as athletic director, he helped elevate the FNU Athletic Department to active member status in the NAIA with immediate post-season eligibility. FNU previously served as an associate member in the NAIA for three years. FNU Athletics is a member the NAIA Continental Athletic Conference (CAC), has dual membership with the USCAA, and also competes in Playfly Sports for Esports. In March 2023, Raposo was was selected to be a member of the CAC Executive Committee, and in June 2023 was invited to be a member of the USCAA Division I Committee.
In his four years as AD, Raposo has overseen a student-athlete population cumulative GPA of no less than 3.12, 279 USCAA National All-Academic Awards recipients, and 43 NAIA Scholar-Team Awards earned. Athletically, he has overseen nine NAIA CAC Runner-ups: Men’s Cross Country (2021-22), Women’s Cross Country (2021-22, 2022-23), Men’s Soccer (2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24), Women’s Volleyball (2022-23), Women’s Basketball (2023-24), and Softball (2023-24); one NAIA CAC Championship: Women’s Volleyball (2021-22); and two USCAA Small Schools National Championships in Softball (2020-21, 2021-22). In 2021-22 he oversaw the start of a new Men’s & Women’s Outdoor Track & Field program, and in 2023-24 the start of a new Esports Competitive Online Gaming program.
Raposo previously served as FNU’s inaugural men’s and women’s cross country head coach for two seasons, and for the past two seasons has served as the acting cross country head coach / track & field assistant coach. As a coach, Raposo has seen six NAIA individual national qualifiers and one conference runner-up in cross country; two NAIA individual national qualifiers in track & field (800m, 400h), one conference champion (TJ), one conference runner-up (DT), and five USCAA national invitational champions (2x1500m, 2x800m, 4x400m); and had one USCAA cross country student-athlete of the year.
Raposo also previously served as FNU’s initial NAIA campus character liaison. As liaison for the 2019-20 school year, Raposo helped FNU earn its first NAIA Champions of Character Five-Star Award becoming a Bronze Level institution. Overseeing the department as AD over the following years, he oversaw FNU elevate to Silver Level status for 2020-21 (the highest possible award for associate members), followed by Gold Level status in 2021-22, 2022-23, and 2023-24, earning a perfect 100-point score each year. FNU is one of only 12 schools in the NAIA to achieve a perfect score for the last three consecutive years.
Prior to joining FNU, Raposo served for two years at St. Thomas University where he assisted with cross country and helped develop a brand new track & field program. In that time, he helped contribute to multiple Sun Conference team runner-ups, multiple NAIA national qualifiers, and the track team’s first individual Sun Conference champion. Raposo is United States Track & Field (USATF) Level 2 certified in Endurance events, Sprints / Hurdles / Relays, and Jumping events.
Administratively, since 2006, he has worked with Miami-Dade County Public Schools’ Greater Miami Athletic Conference (GMAC) and Midde School Athletics Program (MSAP), as well as the Florida Athletic Coaches Association (FACA) where he served on their FACA Board of Directors from 2013-16. And since 2009-10, Raposo has been on the Junior Orange Bowl Committee and the Dade County Fair & Expo Committee helping coordinate their annual youth athletic events.
Prior to collegiate coaching, Raposo served for over a dozen years as an educator, and high school track & field and cross country program director. Over the years as an event coordinator and meet director he helped host more than 200 track & field meets, cross country meets, and road races for local middle schools, high schools, colleges, and the South Florida running community.
Raposo has a Master’s degree in Sport Management from the University of Florida with a specialization in Athlete Performance and Development, and is a certified Athlete Development Specialist (PAADS). His Bachelor’s degree is in Psychology from Florida International University. He resides in Miami (Kendall) with his wife.
