Vashti Thomas is currently as a volunteer after having previously served as director of operations for Academy of Art University track & field in January 2022.
In her first season with ART U, Thomas would make an immediate impact, setting numerous records and even competing in the
2012 U.S. Olympic Trials against future Olympic Gold Medalists such as Brittney Reese. Blazing the trail in ART U's historic 2012-13 campaign, Thomas guided the team to back-to-back NCAA DII National Championships (
indoor,
outdoor), a feat never before done by a program in its first year of eligibility. In addition to claiming four individual national titles (indoor long jump, 200m, outdoor long jump, 100mH), she scored 35 of the team's 59 points in indoor and 36.25 points of the team's 60 points in outdoor. Following her final NCAA Nationals appearance, Thomas competed in the 2013 World University Games and collected a
gold medal for her new WUG record (12.61) in the 100m hurdles.
An 11-time NCAA DII All-American combining indoor and outdoor, Thomas' resume was truly extensive. Over the course of her two-year ART U career, Thomas was
2012-13 PacWest Women's Athlete of the Year,
2013 PacWest Women's Track & Field co-Track Athlete of the Year,
2013 USTFCCCA High Point Athlete of the Meet (outdoor),
2013 USTFCCCA NCAA Outdoor West Region Field Athlete of the Year,
2013 USTFCCCA NCAA DII Outdoor All-Region Team (100mH, 200m, 4x100m, 4x400m, LJ, TJ),
2013 USTFCCCA NCAA DII Indoor Track Athlete of the Year,
2013 USTFCCCA High Point Athlete of the Meet (indoor),
2013 USTFCCCA NCAA DII Indoor West Region Track Athlete of the Year,
2013 USTFCCCA NCAA DII Indoor All-Region Team (60m, 60mH, 200m, LJ, TJ, 4x400m), and a three-time USTFCCCA National Athlete of the Week (
Indoor - Week 3,
Outdoor - Week 2 &
Week 7).
At the conclusion of her collegiate career, Thomas owned or contributed to 12 ART U records (five indoor, seven outdoor) and 11 of those still remain today. Beyond the program, Thomas is the
NCAA DII record holder in the 100mH at 12.70, part of the
collegiate record 4x100m shuttle hurdles relay team (52.50), second all-time in the
indoor and
outdoor long jump, tied for second in the
outdoor 200m while third in the
indoor 200m, and fourth in the
60mH, among other marks. Thomas is also the first Academy of Art student-athlete to earn a place in the
USTFCCCA NCAA DII Athlete Hall of Fame.
After her graduation from the School of Illustration in 2016, Thomas became a member of the San Francisco Police Department, working at Bayview Station as a school resource officer.
