Mark Johnston enters his fifth season as Illinois Institute of Technology head women's volleyball coach in 2022-23. 

Over four active seasons (excluding the 2020 pandemic season), the women's volleyball team has achieved a 30-54 record overall, including an 18-12 record in the 2021 season and a post-season berth in the NACC post-season tournament, where the team advanced to the second round.

Mark also served as the head men's volleyball coach for the prior four seasons before focusing his head coaching efforts on the women's program solely starting in 2022.

The Scarlet Hawks men have accumulated 26 NACC Scholar Athletes, while the women have registered 24 over Johnston's three seasons as head coach. On the men's side, Johnston has coached one NACC Honorable Mention selection. 

He spent the prior three seasons as assistant coach on both volleyball staffs at Illinois Tech, where he helped lead the women to two USCAA Tournament bids and large improvements on the men's side each year.

He served as Moraine Valley Community College head women’s volleyball coach in 2014, where he posted a 20-15 overall record and took second place in the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference and NJCAA Region IV. Johnston coached four all-conference, two conference all-tournament team, three all-region and one All-American selection throughout his tenure at Moraine Valley Community College.

He also served as head boy's volleyball coach at Saint Ignatius College Prep, and held multiple positions with their girl’s volleyball team since 2005. While at Saint Ignatius, his team amassed a 157-135 overall record en route to five regional championships and three sweet 16 appearances. This includes wins over heavy-hitters in Brother Rice, Loyola, Providence, St. Rita, and Mt. Carmel High Schools in the Chicago Catholic League.

Prior to his coaching days, Johnston played four years of volleyball as a setter/libero at Lakeland University in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. The Muskies went 160-60 during his time on the roster. This included a fifth (2002) and third-place (2005) finish, as well as a national championship (2003) at the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) Tournament. He won Most Valuable Bench (2002), Most Improved (2005), Conference MVP (2003), and all-conference (2003 and 2005) as a setter.

Johnston graduated from Eisenhower High School in Blue Island, Illinois, where he played volleyball and ran cross country. He was an all-conference setter as a junior (1999) and senior (2000). In 2000, he was named team MVP and won the school’s sportsmanship award.

Johnston has a sports management degree with an emphasis on multi-use facility management from Lakeland University. During college, he interned with Badger Region Volleyball, assisted with Milwaukee Sting Volleyball Club as well as with USA Volleyball High Performance camps. After college, he coached a year for Celtic Force Volleyball Club.

He grew up in Blue Island, Illinois where he still resides.

*Season Shortened Due to COVID-19 Pandemic

+No Season Due to COVID-19 Pandemic