Mike Leeder begins his ninth year as the Director of Athletics at Georgia Southwestern State University in 2022-2023 and 20th year overall at the institution. Prior to his appointment as the full-time director of athletics, Leeder guided the men's basketball team at GSW for 10 seasons, and led the transition from NAIA affiliation to NCAA Division II.

Leeder has spearheaded changes in the department that have greatly improved the student-athlete experience since transitioning to director of athletics in June of 2014. Under his direction, Leeder has brokered several corporate partnerships, including an all-school apparel contract with adidas, concessions beverage service through Coca-Cola, and premium athletic sponsorship agreements with Magnolia Manor, Inc., Phoebe Sumter Medical Center and Citizens Bank of Americus.

The introduction of the Canes 360 booster organization has targeted both private and corporate donations to provide scholarship funding for all 10 of the Hurricanes varsity sports. Contributions have risen in excess of 200% during Leeder’s tenure, and the re-introduction of the President’s Golf Classic and creation of the "Hail Storm" event have provided an additional revenue stream targeted specifically to increase the competitive success of GSW Athletics.  

Academically, the athletics department continues to shine and reach historic levels for the university, as GSW's 185 student-athletes combined to have an overall GPA of 3.02 in 2021-22, marking the 16th consecutive semester of a GPA of 3.00 or higher. GSW has produced two Peach Belt Conference Male Scholar Athletes of the Year during Leeder's tenure and has also captured its second PBC Presidents' Academic Award. The Presidents' Academic Award is the highest award a conference member can receive not related to competitive success. It is awarded to the institution that has the largest separation between student athlete GPA and the overall student population GPA in an academic year. 

GSW student-athletes have ranked amongst the nation's best in regards to community service during Leeder's tenure. With a department-wide emphasis on community engagement, GSW led the country in the Team Works/Community Service NCAA DII Competition during the 2021-22 academic year. Every GSW team completed more than 100 volunteer hours with a 95 percent participation rate from athletes across the department. In all, more than 4,112 hours were served by Hurricane athletes in 2021-22.

Capital improvements are also a priority for Leeder, and the department has developed an aggressive campaign to secure funding for athletic facility upgrades and expansion. Completed projects include new scoreboards at baseball and softball, resurfacing of the tennis courts, the purchase of a Mercedes-Benz van for the golf team's travel, refurbishing of the playing surface for men's and women's basketball and stadium lighting at the soccer field which culminated with the first home night match in school history on Sept. 5, 2018. In the fall of 2021, two new Daktronics video boards and a digital scorers table, as well as a lighting and sound system upgrade were completed in the Storm Dome to enhance the fan experience at home basketball games. Additionally, construction was completed on a 7,500-square foot, state-of-the-art indoor hitting facility for baseball and softball, as well as renovated locker rooms for the baseball and softball programs. A 500-seat permanent structure in addition to dedicated locker space for the men's and women's soccer programs will be completed in the fall of 2022. The final piece of this round of enhancements includes a complete renovation of the Athletics weight room that will included new flooring, new equipment, Athletics branding and an enhanced sound system. All projects mentioned were funded through private contributions. 

Several programs have experienced unprecedented success during the University's NCAA Division II era under Leeder's watch. Men's golf is consistently ranked in the Top 25 and the program reached the Final Four in back-to-back seasons, including a national runner-up finish in 2021. Women's basketball made their first trip to the NCAA National Tournament during the 2021-22 season while capturing a school record 23 wins. The 2022 softball team had their most successful season during the NCAA Division II era winning more than 30 games for the first time in school history. The baseball program had their highest regular season finish and won the most Peach Belt Conference games in school history. Men's basketball made a return appearance to the NCAA National Tournament in the 2020-21 season. Record win totals were also achieved by the men's and women's soccer teams during the 2021 season. The 2019 women's cross country team turned in its best finish at the Peach Belt Conference Championship.

An accomplished coaching and leadership career facilitated Leeder's successful transition to administration. Under his guidance on the hardwood, the Hurricanes spent 13 weeks ranked in the NABC National NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll. Leeder steered the program to a pair of NCAA National Tournament appearances with the first coming in the school's second year of NCAA postseason eligibility. This earned him the 2010-11 Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year award. GSW placed 12 players on the Peach Belt All-Conference men’s basketball team during Leeder's tenure, and he coached two PBC Freshmen of the Year, one PBC Player of the Year, 10 PBC Players of the Week, and GSW’s first All-American in any sport during the department’s NCAA era. 

Previously, Leeder served as head men’s basketball coach at Longwood University (1999-2003) where he inherited a struggling program and within two years delivered the only CVAC men's basketball championship in school history. That team advanced to the 2001 NCAA Tournament East Regional semifinals, peaked at No. 9 in the national poll and established 41 school records. Leeder's first recruiting class at Longwood produced the 2001 NABC National Player of the Year, Colin Ducharme.

As associate men’s basketball coach at Kentucky Wesleyan College (1998-99), Leeder helped the Panthers capture the 1999 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship. He also served as director of athletics and head men's basketball coach at Thomas University (1994-98), where he started the program from scratch, and assistant men’s basketball coach at Tallahassee Community College (1990-94).

Leeder holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Florida State University and a Master of Science degree in sports management from Nova Southeastern University. He and his wife, Jodie, have two children, Michael and Alyssa.