Charlotte, NC - The Central Intercollegiate Athletics (CIAA) is proud to announce its participation in the inaugural WeCOACH NCAA Divisions II and III Women Coaches Development Program. This all-new, year-round professional growth and leadership development program is designed specifically for Division II and Division III women coaches in all sports and will feature nationally renowned experts addressing timely topics impacting the coaching profession. WeCOACH will also partner to actively identify and build the pipeline of women on Division II and III campuses who aspire to enter the coaching profession by hosting “Catch a Vision” sessions that will provide best practices for securing coaching opportunities, networking, and career-strategy. The CIAA is one of 18 conferences that have already committed to participate in the 2022-23 inaugural program.
As a one-of-a-kind nonprofit organization with a mission to recruit, advance and retain women coaches in all sports and levels, the Development Program offers strategies to help navigate the challenges and obstacles women coaches face to stay in, feel supported, and advance in the coaching profession. Throughout the 2022-23 academic year, the inaugural program participants will be offered three virtual sessions led by nationally renowned experts (fall, winter & spring), as well as have access to participate in the WeCOACH Mentor Program, WeAMPLIFY for women coaches of color, live video chats and more.
“The partnership with WeCOACH aligns with our strategic efforts to provide leadership opportunities for our coaches and administrators," said CIAA Commissioner Jacqie McWilliams. "Anytime we can position the CIAA to be in a space of advocacy and change, provide opportunities for growth and gain from an organization like WeCOACH, it is a win for our conference. The statistics reveal the direct need to identify more female coaches at all levels and the CIAA is always on board to help move the needle in shaping and preparing the women of our conference to take the helm when the opportunity avails,” added McWilliams.
WeCOACH CEO Vanessa Fuchs states, “As our nation celebrates Title IX at 50, the data demonstrates greater investment in women coaches is necessary to support their advancement and retention in the coaching profession. WeCOACH is excited to offer this year-round Development Program for women coaches in Divisions II and III. One of our organization’s goals is to make our transformational programming accessible and affordable for women coaches working in every level of sport. This new Development Program does just that for Division II and III coaches.”
Championing this initiative is Sunshine State Conference Commissioner and WeCOACH Board member, Ed Pasque, and Jay Jones, Commissioner of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference. Both played invaluable leadership roles and committed significant time to provide guidance and insights to help establish the new initiative for Divisions II and III. And they were amongst the first to commit to having their league’s women coaches participate.
“This Development Program has a chance to be impactful and inspirational for women coaches in NCAA Division II and III. I applaud WeCOACH CEO Vanessa Fuchs for launching this initiative, and for her commitment to serving women coaches at all levels of intercollegiate athletics. The future is bright for WeCOACH.” says Sunshine State Conference Commissioner Ed Pasque.
Jay Jones, Commissioner of Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference states, “I am really excited for this partnership, especially in light of recently celebrating the 50th anniversary of Title IX and the importance of what that legislation has meant for women in education. Being able to partner on a sports based educational initiative seemed idealic in that way, but more importantly this relationship helps us work towards our strategic vision of better serving underrepresented individuals across our conference and helping those individuals grow as professionals.”
“WeCOACH is grateful to Commissioners Pasque and Jones, as well as the D-II and D-III conference-wide members who have supported our organization for many years. We salute the leadership in the 18 conferences that have committed to participate in the first year of the Development Program and certainly anticipate additional conferences committing in the coming months as we continue the rollout,” Fuchs added.
In addition to the 18 conferences, all Division II and Division III WeCOACH individual members as well as institutional group members are eligible to participate. To learn more and sign up, visit: wecoachsports.org/development-program/ or contact: admin@wecoachsports.org.