Sheila Wooten, appointed Director of Athletics at Bloomfield College in 1999, has had an immeasurable impact on Bloomfield's athletic program as an athlete, coach and administrator. She was elevated to the Dean of Students in 2020 and now has been named the Senior Associate Dean of Students and Athletic Director as the school continues on as, Bloomfield College of Montclair State University.
A 1985 Bloomfield College graduate, Wooten is regarded as one of the premier athletes in school history, excelling as a three-sport athlete in basketball, softball and volleyball. A two-time All-American, Wooten was also the first Bloomfield College female athlete to score 1,000 career points and grab 1,000 career rebounds. In 1990, she was honored for her incredible athletic achievements with an induction into the Bloomfield College Hall of Fame.
As a coach of Bloomfield College Women's Volleyball program, Wooten guided the then 'Lady Deacons' to their best season ever in 1998, as the team posted a 26-6 record and a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) Tournament championship, as well as a second place finish in the Northeast Regional Tournament. Wooten was also named CACC Coach of the year in 1998.
As an administrator, Wooten has had a major influence on both the success and direction of Bloomfield Athletics. As an Assistant Director of Athletics, she was selected as the 'Female Athletics Administrator of the Year' by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) in 1996. In 2019-2020 Wooten was named the CACC Athletic Director of the Year for the 2nd time, the 1st coming in 2012-2013.
A trailblazer for Deacons’ Athletics, Wooten was also instrumental in Bloomfield College's decision to apply for membership to the NCAA. Under her guidance Bloomfield was granted provisional membership as an NCAA Division II institution in 1998, and her leadership paved the way for the school to achieve full NCAA membership in 2002.
Now in its twenty-first year of NCAA membership, Wooten leads an athletic department that competes in 11 CACC and Division II sports, including Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Men's and Women's Soccer, Men's and Women's Track & Field, Women's Volleyball, Women's Softball and Men's Baseball. She began a NCAA Division I Women's Bowling program in 2018 and saw the team compete in the East Coast Conference (ECC) Championship Tournament in their inaugural season. In 2019, Wooten continued her trailblazing direction by introducing E-Sports to the Bloomfield College community as she recognized the landscape of athletics would be changing and evolving in the years to come.
An active member of the CACC, Wooten has also served numerous terms as Treasurer of the conference during her tenure at Bloomfield.
Wooten served as the President of the CACC, and has sat on both the Finance Committee and Membership & Ethics Committees. She currently serves as the CACC 1st Vice President. Wooten also served on the NCAA Regional Volleyball and Basketball RACS as well as currently Chairing The Strategic Alliance Matching Grant Committee. She is an active board member of the Division II Athletic Directors Association (ADA).
Wooten’s administrative duties extend beyond Bloomfield College as she served as a board member of the IExcel AAU girls basketball organization and the Newark West Side Boys Club Board.
Married to Vince Wooten for 33 years, Mrs. Wooten has two daughters, Leila and Nadia with the whole family of four having the unique distinction of being Bloomfield College graduates.
