WINDSOR, Ont. - St. Clair College and the Department of Athletics and Recreation is proud to announce that it will be taking part in the CCAA Female Apprentice Coach Program (FACP) for the upcoming season.
Women's volleyball head coach Jimmy El-Turk will be mentoring apprentice coach Julie Ann Milling throughout the 2021-22 season. Julie Ann is a former member of the volleyball program who graduated in 2020 after playing four successful seasons as a Saint including winning two OCAA bronze medals. Julie Ann is a graduate of the Fitness & Health Promotion and Event Management Programs at St. Clair. Julie Ann took part in this same program in 2020-21 as well and has been selected as a second year coach. She is only one of nine second-year coaches selected across Canada.
"New to the program this season is the opportunity for previous year apprentices to receive continued support for training and education," said Sandra Murray-MacDonell, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the CCAA. "This serves to build on an Apprentice's confidence and skill acquisition and translates into the retention of women' in Canada's coaching ranks."
The women's volleyball program will receive additional financial assistance through the program to aid in Julie Ann's development and progress.
Julie Ann is excited to continue her coaching career as a part of this program. "I am excited to be going into a second year with the CCAA women's apprentice coaching program. I knew when this was a possibility it was something I wanted to continue. Last year all the female apprentices would get together for online weekly sessions. These sessions really helped me learned more about myself as a coach. Each week I enjoyed talking and learning with other female coaches around the country and also how they adapted to changing restrictions in their sports. I know there are tools I have learned that I can't wait to bring to the team this year surrounding culture and competitiveness. This year I hope to bring more opportunities to the team through the program and implement them with a game atmosphere."
Coach El-Turk is looking forward to being involved with the FACP once again. Taylor Fitzgerald took part in the FACP during the 2018-19 season and is currently a member of the Saints coaching staff. "It's always a honour to be able to give back to the coaching community in general but an even better feeling when it's a coach from within your program. Julie Ann and I spent a lot of last year meeting regularly via Zoom but the mentor-mentee relationship is certainly better suited in a practical manner. I'm really excited to be able to apply the theoretical concepts that Jules and I talked about, as well as the lessons she learned during Year 1 of the FACP in order to better our program. I believe that Jules will be able to have a tremendous impact on our program's culture, technical development and tactical teachings this year and I can't wait to get back in the gym so we can continue to grow together."
The goal of the FACP is to increase access for young women to coach at a post-secondary competitive level, provide high level quality coaching mentorship, and support their professional development to facilitate their continued pursuit of coaching.
In the program's 16-year history, 252 female apprentices have been supported.
For the complete CCAA Press Release click on the following link:
https://ccaa.ca/general/2021-22/releases/2022_facp
Source: St. Clair Saints