By Pat Huggins

It's always nice to feel welcome when starting a new job.

Just ask John Haus, the man charged with overseeing the return of men's and women's lacrosse to Lebanon Valley College after the sport's nearly 25-year absence from the school's intercollegiate athletic program.

“It's a wonderful campus with tremendous facilities, and the people here are unbelievable,” says Haus. “It's such a family atmosphere. It just makes you feel good.”

A 1983 graduate of the University of North Carolina (UNC), Haus was hired as head men's lacrosse coach and director of lacrosse back in December and began work in both positions on Jan. 5. He comes to LVC after highly successful coaching stints at alma mater North Carolina, where he spent the past eight lacrosse seasons, perennial power Johns Hopkins, and Washington College, where he led the team to the NCAA Division III National Championship in 1998.

Haus was a standout on the playing field during his undergraduate days at UNC, helping the Tar Heels to a pair of NCAA titles while earning All-America honors as a defenseman.

In short, it's been a career that has seen Haus take on challenges with great zeal, and then thrive in those situations.

In re-starting lacrosse at LVC—the sport was dropped by the college in 1985 and is set to return in earnest in the spring of 2010—Haus sees another welcome challenge.

“I've looked at it as coming full circle,” notes Haus, whose family includes wife, Lisa, and four sons, John, Will, Luke, and Grant. “Professionally, it's another piece to the puzzle.”

Haus is realistic in his expectations for the fledgling program, knowing that it will take some time for on-field success to develop. But he's still hoping to hit the ground running next spring.

“We'll have numbers (players) next year and be competitive in the spring,” says Haus. “Right now, we're going to play a 15–game schedule and be as well prepared as possible in order to be competitive within the Middle Atlantic conference.”

For now, Haus spends his days alternating between living on campus working tirelessly at building the lacrosse program, and commuting back home to spend time with his family, who will join him up north after oldest son John graduates from Chapel Hill High School in the spring.

And when they arrive, Haus knows that, if their initial experience with the College is any indication, his family will feel right at home.