Albany State University to partner with Coaching Corps

Oakland, CA and Albany, GA — Albany State University has announced that it will begin a partnership with Coaching Corps, a leading youth development and sports non-profit organization. Coaching Corps' mission is to ensure that all kids, regardless of where they grow up, have the chance to benefit from the lessons of playing sports. This partnership will provide opportunities for low-income youth in the Albany community to play sports with trained volunteer coaches from Albany State University.

"We're excited to bring this program to the Albany community", Karen Baynes-Dunning, who is the wife of ASU president Dr. Arthur Dunning, said. "It gets our University students directly involved by making an investment in our local youth. Coaching Corps' deep experience and expertise in youth development will set the foundation for our involvement in coaching and provide our students an excellent opportunity to increase their civic involvement."

Coaching Corps is a national non-profit that recruits college students and community volunteers to become sports coaches for kids in low-income communities. Volunteers are trained in youth development principles and use seasoned coaching to teach kids invaluable life lessons that build traits critical to success on the field, in the classroom and in the community through self- confidence, persistence, empathy, teamwork, and self-regulation.

The Coaching Corps model includes partnerships between universities, communities, and local after-school programs. They help college students establish Coaching Corps chapters on campuses where students are recruited to coach and then supported throughout their sports season. Students are trained and placed at local after-school programs to enable the program to use sports as a youth development tool.

Albany State will become the first HBCU to incorporate Coaching Corps on its campus.

"We couldn't have found a more enthusiastic University partner in Albany State," Janet Carter, Executive Director of Coaching Corps, said. "ASU recognizes the need in its community and has demonstrated a commitment to using community resources, allowing its students to become a part of the solution".

Albany State Athletics Director Dr. Richard H. Williams, who will serve as the Coaching Corps campus advisor, believes the new partnership will create positive results for ASU and the community.

"We are very excited to add this initiative at our university," Williams said. "Our student-athletes have been continuously recognized for their community service with the youth in the Albany and Dougherty County areas. Coaching Corps will provide us with opportunities that will broaden our service by partnering with other University students to produce even more service for the Dougherty County students."

In August, Baynes-Dunning, ASU student-athletes Morgane Rainwater and Durriyyah Drummond, and ASU Athletics Academic Advisor Geraldine Winns attended the Coaching Corps National Campus Leaders Retreat in San Francisco, California. Winns stated Rainwater and Drummond were chosen to attend the retreat because of their proven organizational skill sets.

"The experience was riveting, and I felt privileged to be a part of it," Rainwater said. "Not only was I able to network with different collegiate students, but I was also able to share my passion for helping youth through sports, which made the experience even more worthwhile. I'm ready for the youth of Albany to experience what Coaching Corps has to offer them."

Drummond agreed with Rainwater's assessment about the retreat.

"The Coaching Corps retreat was totally awesome," Drummond said. "I had the opportunity to expand my network with other students throughout the United States. Now that we have had this experience, I'm ready to get started with starting our chapter at the University."

Not only does Baynes-Dunning believe in the bright future the partnership will create, but she was highly impressed with how Rainwater and Drummond represented Albany State at the retreat.

"Coaching Corps will be a tremendous addition to the array of services that Albany State University provides for children, youth and families in the Albany community", Baynes-Dunning continued. "During our time in California, our student-athletes had the opportunity to network and work with students from Harvard, Stanford and other top-rated Universities from across the country.

"They represented Albany State University with great professionalism, poise, and intellect.
Although I did not think it was possible, they made me even prouder to be a member of the Golden Ram family."

For more information about Coaching Corps at Albany State University, contact Dr. Richard H. Williams at (229) 430-4754 or richard.williams@asurams.edu.

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