Kyle Harris
Head Coach – kyleh@biparks.org
Coach Kyle Harris joins BISC from Boston, where he was the Head Age Group Coach at Crimson Aquatics. Before his time at Crimson, Kyle was Head Coach with the Bozeman Barracudas and previously led swim programs at various levels since he started his coaching career in 2015. He has experience developing swimmers of all abilities, from learn-to-swim to Future and Junior National level athletes. Kyle is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) and is an American Swim Coaches Associated (ASCA) Level 5 Educated Coach. Kyle takes an athlete-centered approach, creating an environment for athletes of all ages and abilities to learn and enjoy swimming. He is passionate about utilizing sports to grow confidence, discipline, and understanding of navigating life’s struggles, successes, and personal responsibilities. Coach Kyle’s coaching philosophy is about having fun and swimming fast! In his spare time, Kyle is focused on honing his skills in Brazilian Jiujitsu, getting back into swimming, reading, and being adventurous with his dog Brickson.
Leilani Tonsmann (Age Group Coach of the Year 2019)
Lead Age Group Coach — leilani@biparks.org
Leilani currently assists with our intermediate groups. Teaching children in and out of the pool is her passion. Along with coaching BISC swimmers (2009), she also works as a parks department swim instructor. She holds a BA in Education from Arizona State, where she swam competitively from 1984-87. After graduating, she taught elementary school for eight years and concurrently obtained her MA in Education from CWU. She has previously coached summer league swimmers in Arizona and Washington and has brought her ASCA Level 2 status as a coach. She is available for private lesson instruction through the Aquatic Center Parks program.
Katherine Fort
Age Group Assistant Coach – katherinef@biparks.org
Katherine is originally from Seattle and grew up swimming for Wedgwood Swim Club, Swim Seattle, and Roosevelt High School. She attended Scripps College in Claremont, CA, where she swam for CMS (Claremont-Mudd-Scripps). She has coached summer league, high school, and club teams have recently been back in the water, swimming with Bainbridge Aquatic Master’s (BAM). She is a licensed mental health counselor and counseling professor at Antioch University Seattle. She loves to help people of all ages connect to their authentic selves, build positive support communities, and harness inner strength and resilience, especially through swimming! She lives on Bainbridge Island with her husband and two boys, Jonathan and Lukas.
Kionna Clayton
Bronze and Copper Lead Coach – claytonkionna@gmail.com
Kionna grew up competing for PRO Swimming and Penn High School in Northern Indiana. She later attended the University of Hawai’i, where she was recognized as a Scholar All-American athlete. During her time at UH, Kionna was a six-time conference champion and a four-time conference record holder and aided her team in bringing home four conference championship titles. Shortly before graduating with a B.A. in Marketing, she qualified for Olympic Trials in the 100 breaststroke. Kionna enjoys helping athletes find joy and build confidence through their swimming journeys. Off the pool deck, she likes to travel, cook, and snowboard.