For many Dartmouth students, coming to Dartmouth meant an end to stellar high school athletic careers. A few students, however, have managed, through coaching, to transfer their passion for sports into winning records for their younger disciples.
Last month, 12-year-old Caroline Callaghan raced to a first place finish in the New Hampshire Hershey 200-meter dash, earning a spot to compete at the National Hershey Track and Field meet.
Behind her success stands Mattie Chatterton-Richmond '06, who, along with her sister Jadah '07, coached the Rochester Hershey track team for the past six years.
"My favorite part about coaching is knowing that my sisters and I have been positive role models to a child," Chatterton-Richmond said. "I can remember local athletes who inspired me and I only wish that I can do the same for my athletes."
Hershey Track is a youth summer program in track and field that introduces kids aged nine through 14 to a more competitive track and field environment.
"My sisters and I actually competed in the Hershey meets back in the day, and when we were old enough, the coach asked us if we would be interested in taking over for her," Chatterton-Richmond said. "We plan on staying the coaches for as long as possible, even with future careers. By making a long-term commitment to the program, we have been able to have a stronger positive effect on our athletes.
"We not only help them develop athletic skills but we have been able to prove to them that hard work and dedication produce results," Chatterton-Richmond continued. Helping children to develop healthy habits in life and finding drive and ambition for something you love is by far the most rewarding thing about coaching."
Chatterton-Richmond plans on pursuing coaching at the college level in the future in addition to her work with younger children.'
"College athletes are a bit different from nine-year-olds, but not in all ways. It's about helping athletes to see their potential and go for it. It's never easy and is one of the most difficult part about coaching," Chatterton-Richmond said. "I have definitely experienced being a college athlete. We whine and complain and have listening skills that are inferior to those of a nine-year-old."
Some former Dartmouth athletes eventually choose coaching at the college level as their careers after leaving Dartmouth.
Kisa Brannen '03, a four-year member of the Dartmouth softball team, was recently named an assistant softball coach at Bucknell College. Before landing a job at Bucknell, Brannen was an assistant coach at Canisius College for the past two years.
Courtney Banghart '00, former Dartmouth basketball star and two-time MVP, is currently an assistant coach to the Dartmouth women's basketball team. She has been with the coaching staff for the past two seasons.
Students who don't see coaching as a future career nevertheless continue their participation by coaching local Hanover community students.
Debora Lehrer '05 became involved with the Hanover Recreation Department through her love of sports in middle and high school. Having played softball and volleyball before coming to Dartmouth, she was able to find two coaching opportunities with middle school teams.
"The most rewarding thing by far was watching my players improve throughout the season and know that I played a big part in that," Lehrer said. "I also had girls tell me at the end of a season how much they loved the sport even though they didn't think they would like it at first."
In the fall, Lehrer coached a 19-girl volleyball squad with Jessica Chen '07, who is also a member of The Dartmouth staff.
"A lot of the girls had never played before and it was challenging getting all of them playing time each match since only six girls play at a time," Lehrer said. "It is probably the most difficult part, trying to deal with so many girls that have a wide range of skill levels and trying to have everyone play."
Lehrer felt that since her athletes were middle school students, she should allow equal playing time for all of them.
"I would try to give equal playing time to everyone, but then that meant we did not win all the time," Lehrer said. "It also sometimes made practices difficult since there were some girls learning the skills for the first time and others who were already at a fairly high level."
In the following spring, Lehrer acted as the pitching coach for a seventh and eighth-grade softball team. Another Dartmouth student, Susan Wise '05, was also involved with the team.
Lehrer said she mostly worked with three or four girls at a time on pitching and went to almost all of the games.
"I really loved all the coaching experiences because having been an athlete for so long, it was an interesting experience to be the coach for once and I saw things from a whole different perspective," Lehrer said. "I think I got more nervous at games as a coach then I ever was as an athlete."
In addition to coaching softball, Lehrer also ran a five-week volleyball clinic in the spring. She taught girls in middle school basic skills in volleyball and ran it independently at the request of the recreation department.
Richard Tsen '08, who captained his high-school lacrosse team and played lacrosse for six years prior to Dartmouth, decided to row crew when he arrived on campus last fall instead of trying out for the varsity lacrosse team.
However, when Tsen quit the crew team this past winter, he decided to become involved in lacrosse again. He quickly obtained a job coaching the Hanover High School junior varsity lacrosse team.
"I just wanted to teach some guys what I know about lacrosse since it's not a sport that is as big here as it is back at home for me," Tsen said.
No matter how far coaching takes Dartmouth students, these student coaches remain close to their goal of sharing their enthusiasm for sports with the children they coach.
"My favorite part about coaching was probably the interaction with the girls I coached," Lehrer said. "It was great watching them improve and really grow to love the sport."
