Over the last 33 seasons Dave Heiss has built the Chiefs’ into a perennial top-20 program. Not surprisingly the accolades and numbers have piled up over the years. In February of 2016 Heiss was on the sidelines for the 1,000^th game leading the Chiefs, and two weeks later joined a select group when he became just the 11th active NJCAA basketball coach to reach the 600-win plateau. Heiss has led the Chiefs to the Region IV crown and a berth into the NJCAA Division II National Tournament six times. He has guided the Chiefs to a dozen Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference titles, and 17 of his squads have won 20 or more games in a season. Under his direction the Chiefs have won 628 games entering this season, an average of 19 wins a season. 

Accordingly, off the court recognition has followed Heiss’ on court success. He has been inducted into the NJCAA Region IV Hall of Fame (2006), the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) Hall of Fame (2009), the Aurora West High School Athletic Hall of Fame (2010), the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference Hall of Fame (2010) and the NJCAA Hall of Fame (2013). Heiss has been selected as the IBCA and the Region IV Basketball Coach of the Year six times, while the ISCC has tabbed him with that honor ten times. In 2008 he became the ISCC’s all-time record holder for career wins with his 191^st victory, and currently has 284 wins heading into the 2019 league schedule. During his tenure 73 of his players have been named All-ISCC First Team, including eight league MVP Awards.   

In 1980, Heiss was an All-Upstate Eight performer at Aurora West High School when his team finished third in the state. He went on to play at Eastern Wyoming Junior College where he led the NJCAA Region IX in scoring as a sophomore. Heiss then transferred to Bemidji State University in Minnesota where he was All-Northern Sun Conference his final two years. Heiss was invited to the Utah Jazz rookie and free agent camp in 1986 and played for the Jazz’ rookie team in the Pro-Am League that summer.

Heiss earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education at Bemidji State and his master’s degree from Chicago State University in 1992. He is a full-time faculty member in Waubonsee’s physical education department and in 1996 was an instrumental player in the establishment of the school’s S.T.A.R. program, a ground-breaking student/athlete academic assistance and monitoring system. Heiss has also been Waubonsee’s head golf coach the last 25 years, leading his golfers to five ISCC titles and a pair of Region IV Division II titles. A life-long resident of Aurora, Heiss has three children, D.J., Danielle and Demi.