Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Photo by: JC Ridley/Owlpix.com
Swimming & Diving Assistant Coach Alice McCall on Impact of Women in Sports
11/10/2019 10:10:00 PM | Swimming & Diving
In the sporting world, women are playing a bigger role. Season by season, we are seeing more women in roles throughout the NCAA and professional sports. Helping during this time of change is an organization by the name of WeCOACH, which has brought together women from every corner of sports and has allowed them to have a voice. WeCOACH also reflects sport in general as the topic of equality and self-identity in society is never far from the headlines. Being a WeCOACH Coaches Council Member, it is a priority for me to share what impact we are working toward.
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As a female who chose to enter the coaching profession, I have enjoyed many great experiences on this journey and have been fortunate to have benefited from advice, guidance and insights from some of the best coaches and administrators in the business. When going to conferences, sitting in on video calls, phone calls and endless email communications with colleagues and mentors, it is instilled into us that women need to help each other out when it comes to working in sports. Yes, I am a coach, but we are just one piece of the jigsaw that makes NCAA departments of athletics successful. There are endless opportunities to be a woman in sport in 2019.
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From a personal perspective, I have been involved with WeCOACH for the past year or so and this has had a positive impact on my outlook on how we as coaches go about our daily lives, both professionally and personally. As coaches, our goal is to make our swimmers faster and our divers better, with many of us having been athletes ourselves and wanting to compete. But our role encompasses so much more than that. It is our job to lead individuals and mentor them to understand the broader aspects of life. It is our job to reassure them when they're homesick, struggling with school or a family tragedy occurs. Educating our student-athletes on the social responsibility to recognize that everyone has the right to be treated equally, and to be given the same opportunity in life, is one of our most important contributions that we can make. It will allow them to enter the workforce as well rounded and confident individuals who know how to treat everyone with the same respect and poise, no matter how they identify.Â
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At FAU we have a non-familiar set-up in which two out of four coaches on staff, of a Co-ed team, are female. This puts our head coach, Lara Preacco, within the 16 percent of swimming & diving head coaches whom are female, in Division I athletics for the season of 2018-2019; and one of the 39.4 percent of female head coaches in Conference USA (in all sports) (Tucker Center Research, Dr. Lavoi).
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One particularly useful aspect of the WeCOACH mentoring program is a monthly conference call in which I am able to speak with other female coaches from different divisions and sports, where we discuss issues or hurdles which we may have experienced in our professional role. This helps all of us to boost our confidence and work toward forming a cohesion of talents and ideas in sports.
Â
As a member of the Coaches Council for WeCOACH, one of our major goals is to further develop and encourage women to play a full role in the coaching profession and to help and mentor our student-athlete to understand the importance of equality in the sporting world. As a female, it is important to have both male and female role models in my life, helping to build confidence and gain recognition that we are equally respected as we work alongside our male colleagues. Â It is our job to educate ourselves on how to do better, such as making 16 percent turn into 20 percent, and then 30 percent until we get to 50 percent.
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Be sure to tune into the first ever Breakthrough Summit provided by WeCOACH on December 16th where guest speakers include Jill Ellis, Kelly Inouye-Perez, LaChina Robinson and Dr. Jen Welter, to name a few. Register here.
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As a female who chose to enter the coaching profession, I have enjoyed many great experiences on this journey and have been fortunate to have benefited from advice, guidance and insights from some of the best coaches and administrators in the business. When going to conferences, sitting in on video calls, phone calls and endless email communications with colleagues and mentors, it is instilled into us that women need to help each other out when it comes to working in sports. Yes, I am a coach, but we are just one piece of the jigsaw that makes NCAA departments of athletics successful. There are endless opportunities to be a woman in sport in 2019.
Â
From a personal perspective, I have been involved with WeCOACH for the past year or so and this has had a positive impact on my outlook on how we as coaches go about our daily lives, both professionally and personally. As coaches, our goal is to make our swimmers faster and our divers better, with many of us having been athletes ourselves and wanting to compete. But our role encompasses so much more than that. It is our job to lead individuals and mentor them to understand the broader aspects of life. It is our job to reassure them when they're homesick, struggling with school or a family tragedy occurs. Educating our student-athletes on the social responsibility to recognize that everyone has the right to be treated equally, and to be given the same opportunity in life, is one of our most important contributions that we can make. It will allow them to enter the workforce as well rounded and confident individuals who know how to treat everyone with the same respect and poise, no matter how they identify.Â
Â
At FAU we have a non-familiar set-up in which two out of four coaches on staff, of a Co-ed team, are female. This puts our head coach, Lara Preacco, within the 16 percent of swimming & diving head coaches whom are female, in Division I athletics for the season of 2018-2019; and one of the 39.4 percent of female head coaches in Conference USA (in all sports) (Tucker Center Research, Dr. Lavoi).
Â
One particularly useful aspect of the WeCOACH mentoring program is a monthly conference call in which I am able to speak with other female coaches from different divisions and sports, where we discuss issues or hurdles which we may have experienced in our professional role. This helps all of us to boost our confidence and work toward forming a cohesion of talents and ideas in sports.
Â
As a member of the Coaches Council for WeCOACH, one of our major goals is to further develop and encourage women to play a full role in the coaching profession and to help and mentor our student-athlete to understand the importance of equality in the sporting world. As a female, it is important to have both male and female role models in my life, helping to build confidence and gain recognition that we are equally respected as we work alongside our male colleagues. Â It is our job to educate ourselves on how to do better, such as making 16 percent turn into 20 percent, and then 30 percent until we get to 50 percent.
Â
Be sure to tune into the first ever Breakthrough Summit provided by WeCOACH on December 16th where guest speakers include Jill Ellis, Kelly Inouye-Perez, LaChina Robinson and Dr. Jen Welter, to name a few. Register here.
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