Jim Henry was named Yale women’s swimming head coach prior to the 2012-13 season and took over the men’s program beginning with the 2017-18 season. He enters his 15th year at Yale in 2026-27.
Henry, the 2017 Ivy League Coach of the Year, has enjoyed remarkable success at Yale. He has led the Bulldogs to a 113–17 overall record and a 74–16 Ivy League mark. Yale captured the 2017 Ivy League Championship, the school’s first since 1997, and won 41 consecutive dual meets from midway through the 2015–16 season until late in the 2019–20 season. During the 2017 season, Yale was ranked in the CSCAA National Top 25 poll during the regular season and received votes in the final poll. In both the 2021–22 and 2022–23 seasons, the women were undefeated in dual meets.
Henry, the leader of the 2026 Ivy League Coaching Staff of the Year, has also had a big impact in nine years leading the men’s program as well. He has posted a 44–24 overall record and a 33–23 Ivy League mark during his tenure. Yale has finished in the top three at the Ivy League Championships in six of his eight seasons, highlighted by a second-place finish in 2026—the program’s highest result since winning the meet in 1972.
During Henry’s tenure, individual NCAA Championship qualifiers have included women’s swimmers Caroline Riggs (2026), Iszac Henig (2022), Bella Hindley (2019), Heidi Vander Wel (2018), Evan Fabian (2016, 2014, 2013), Maddy Zimmerman (2015), and Alexandra Forrester (2013), as well as men’s swimmers Nick Finch (2026, 2025), Noah Millard (2026, 2025, 2023, 2022), Connor Lee (2023), Kei Hyogo (2018), and Adrian Lin (2018).
Additionally, Yale relays earning NCAA Championship berths have included:
- 2026: 200, 400, and 800 freestyle relays; 200 and 400 medley relays
- 2025: 200, 400, and 800 freestyle relays; 400 medley relay
- 2020: 200 freestyle relay
Under his guidance, Yale has also earned national accolades. In a strong 2025–26 season, Noah Millard earned Honorable Mention All-American honors in the 1650 and 500 freestyle, while Nick Finch added another in the 100 butterfly.
Concluding a successful 2024–25 season, Millard and Finch each earned All-American honors at the NCAA Championship. Millard earned Honorable Mention All-American recognition after securing a top-10 finish in the 500 free, and then delivered an impressive swim in the 1650 free, where he placed fourth and received First Team All-American honors. Finch wrapped up an impressive first season as a Bulldog with an 11th-place finish in the 100 fly, earning Honorable Mention All-American honors. He also became the first Yale first-year since 2015 to earn the honor.
In addition, Bulldog swimmers have earned recognition at the Ivy League Championship. Noah Millard (2026), Alex Massey (2025), Ashley Loomis (2022), Bella Hindley (2019), Cailley Silbert (2018), Kei Hyogo (2018), Kina Zhou (2017) and Eva Fabian (2016) have all earned Career High Point Swimmer honors under Henry. In addition, Noah Millard shared the Phil Moriarty High Point Swimmer of the Meet Award at the 2023 Ivy League Men's Championship.
Henry’s teams also have excelled in the classroom, earning Scholar All-America honors in each of his 14 years at Yale.
Prior to Yale, Henry helped guide the University of Texas women’s swimming program to four top-10 NCAA team finishes. He spent six years at Texas, the first five as an assistant coach before being promoted to associate head coach following the 2010-11 season. During his tenure, the Longhorns won three Big 12 Conference championships, produced 44 All-Americans and set 19 school records. In addition, Texas received a CSCAA Team Academic Excellence Award all six years.
Henry, a former Texas swimming captain and All-American, returned to his alma mater after leading the University of Denver swimming programs from 2004-06. He guided Denver to back-to-back runner-up honors at the Sun Belt Conference Championships in 2005 and 2006 and was named Sun Belt Female Head Coach of the Year in 2005 and Male Head Coach of the Year in 2006. He coached two Pioneers to Sun Belt Swimmer of the Year honors. During his coaching tenure at Denver, the Pioneers set 66 school records and had 16 “B” qualifiers for the NCAA Championships. Both the Denver men's and women's teams registered team grade-point averages which ranked among the nation's top 10 swimming programs in 2004, 2005 and 2006.
Henry was part of three NCAA Championships at Texas as he swam for current UT mentor and Olympic coach Eddie Reese from 1987-90. Henry was a team captain and All-American in the 400 individual medley his senior year. The Longhorns won the Southwest Conference Championship in each of Henry's four years and were NCAA champions in 1988, 1989 and 1990.
A nine-time SWC finalist, Henry also was a U.S. Olympic Trials participant in 1988. He was a three-year recipient of UT's Bob Cone Spirit Award from 1988-90. Henry received his bachelor's degree in 1990 in speech communications at UT.
Prior to his three-year tenure at Denver, Henry served as assistant men's swimming coach and recruiting coordinator at SMU from 1999-2003 when he coached 12 NCAA All-Americans and helped lead SMU to the Western Athletic Conference title each year. Henry enjoyed his finest season at SMU in 2001-02, when he helped the Mustangs finish 12th at the NCAA Championships.
Prior to getting into collegiate coaching, Henry was the aquatics director and head swimming coach for the Allen (Texas) Independent School District in 1998-99 and the aquatics director and head swim coach at The Peddie School in Hightstown, N.J. (from 1995-98). Peddie finished fourth at the 1997 U.S. Nationals and was second at the U.S. Open that year. Henry led Peddie to the 1998 Junior National Team Championship and developed 31 high school All-Americans as well.
Henry and his wife, Heather, have three sons, Aidan, Finn, and Hugh.
