NEW YORK -- Titan head women's basketball coach Autumn Rademacher was in the Big Apple last week - and it wasn't for a summer vacation - as the fourth-year coach attended The Center for Coaching Excellence (CCE) at Columbia University.
“The Center for Coaching Excellence seminar in New York was extremely beneficial because it provided tremendous insight to many different areas of our profession and gave us the necessary tools to help develop us into better leaders,” said Rademacher. “The intent was that if we grow as individuals, implement these strategies and techniques into our own programs, the future of women's basketball will be enhanced greatly as a whole.”
The invite-only leadership program saw 30 college women's basketball coaches complete the June session, which is a joint project of Columbia and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). The inaugural session was held in May and to date, 115 college women's basketball coaches have completed the two-and-a-half-day curriculum.
"The Center for Coaching Excellence gets better every session," said WBCA CEO Beth Bass. "The Center for Coaching Excellence was outstanding to begin with, and program facilitators Dr. M. Dianne Murphy and Dr. Cathie T. Siders fine-tune the curriculum to pointedly address the hot topics facing college women's basketball today. The result is a two-and-a-half-day program that leaves our coaches educated, motivated and rejuvenated."
Capitalizing on the resources of Columbia University, one of the world's leading research universities, and the WBCA, the CCE provides an unparalleled, exclusive learning experience. Utilizing collaborative and interactive learning sessions along with lectures and panel discussions featuring experts in college athletics and women's basketball, the CCE provides college women's basketball coaches valuable networking opportunities with their peers and top industry leaders.
Siders, a clinical psychologist, organizational consultant and executive coach, facilitated group-learning sessions. Other sessions featured panel discussions from a wide variety of leaders from both the college athletics industry and other sectors of industry.
“The event featured the Vice President for NCAA Enforcement who spoke about ethical behavior and integrity which unfortunately is a critical topic in women's basketball today. There was an Executive Coach/Psychologist presiding, a panel of Division I athletic directors, conference commissioners, high profile women's basketball coaches, such as Sherri Coale from the University of Oklahoma, that shared intimate details of their success stories, and ended with a very colorful Geno Auriemma as our Featured Speaker,” said Rademacher. “I am very thankful for Keri Gaither and the Horizon League for allowing me to participate in this prestigious program and I am looking forward to using the tools that I have acquired at this conference with our own Detroit Titan women's basketball team.”
"Our nation's college women's basketball head coaches are wonderful teachers and mentors," said Siders. "The men and women who are stewarding this game are wholly committed to the young women who play for them. For the second straight year, I am thrilled to have worked with these exceptional men and women. They were so hungry for knowledge and insight -- and greatly appreciate having extra tools in their leadership toolbox."
The faculty for the June 11-13 session included Julie Roe Lach, vice president of enforcement, NCAA; Kevin Anderson, athletics director, Maryland; Marilyn McNeil, athletics director, Monmouth; Greg Christopher, athletics director, Bowling Green; Sherri Coale, head women's basketball coach, Oklahoma; Erik Johnson, head women's basketball coach, Boston College; Geno Auriemma, head women's basketball coach, Connecticut, and head coach, USA Women's Basketball; Robin Green Harris, executive director, Ivy League; Carolyn Schlie Femovich, executive director, Patriot League; Beth DeBauche, commissioner, Ohio Valley Conference; and Noreen Morris; commissioner, Northeast Conference.
About the WBCA:
Founded in 1981, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association promotes women's basketball by unifying coaches at all levels to develop a reputable identity for the sport and to foster and promote the development of the game as a sport for women and girls. The WBCA is pleased to join the women's sports community in commemorating the 40th anniversary of Title IX, which was passed by Congress on June 23, 1972, and provides females with equal opportunities in athletics in the U.S. For more information on the WBCA, please visit wbca.org.
