Amy Fowler, Dartmouth field hockey's head coach, was elected president of the National Field Hockey Coaches Association at this year's NFHCA conference, held in Providence, R.I., on Jan. 7-9.
"It's quite an honor," Fowler said. "My predecessor, [Bucknell Head Coach] Heather Lewis, has done a tremendous job with our organization."
Fowler plans to continue promoting the sport of field hockey and the coaching profession in a very positive way through this opportunity. The NFHCA already sponsors some programs that include the collegiate and high school All-America Programs and the National Academic Squads annually.
Fowler said she will look to improve "involvement in several areas: coaching education in conjunction with our US program; grass roots field hockey for junior level players; promotion of the sport in the collegiate and scholastic forum -- looking to increase the number of sponsored division one, two, three and high school programs across the country."
Fowler's duties as president will include acting as the spokesperson for the NFHCA, presiding over various meetings and the annual convention, and attending a number of events that include the Field Hockey National Championships. Fowler will also continue to fundraise and gain sponsorship in junction with NFHCA Executive Director Jennifer Goodrich.
The presidency will stretch over a two-year span before Fowler becomes eligible for an additional two-year term. Fowler will act as past-president for a two-year period following the end of her presidency.
Fowler was nominated in the fall of 2003 before elected at the NFHCA convention this past fall. Fowler beat out a number of formidable opponents to win the presidency. "I knew I had a formidable opponent who coached at a Div. III school," Fowler said. "Knowing that our current Div. III membership outnumbers Div. I, I did think that my chances were slim. In the end, I was happy to win it!"
Fowler has served as the Dartmouth head coach for five years since 1999 and worked as an assistant coach from 1994-1996. Fowler also acted as the assistant coach on the James Madison squad from 1996-1999. Aside from coaching on the collegiate level, Fowler traveled to Holland in the spring of 2003 and worked as an assistant with the U-19 Futures Elite Selection team.
In her five years as head coach, Fowler has compiled an overall record of 51-39. She also led the Big Green to the ECAC Tournament for her first three seasons and brought home the ECAC title in 2001. In the 2004 season, Dartmouth went 8-9 and defeated Princeton for the first time in 15 years.
Fowler believes "in the College's philosophy to teach the students in all facets of life -- both inside and outside the classroom. I am honored that President Wright views the Big Green coaching staff as teachers."
She views her time at Dartmouth as "a great experience, which by no means is over the program here is one that gives me great pride to present."
