Courtesy of Jen Dobias, Northern Michigan Sport Information Director
MARQUETTE, Mich. — Rashinda Reed was announced as the 13th head coach of the Northern Michigan volleyball program Friday afternoon.
Reed, who just finished her seventh season as an assistant coach, was involved with highly successful NCAA Division I and Division II teams and also had a strong collegiate and professional career as a middle blocker.
"Throughout the search process, Rashinda demonstrated the value she places on serving as a mentor and an educator," said Director of Athletics Forrest Karr. "She emphasized how important it is to prioritize student-athlete well-being and to instill that the standard on the court and in the classroom is to work hard and have a winning mentality."
Reed spent the 2016 campaign as an assistant coach at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where she guided a Conference USA all-conference honoree and helped manage year-round recruiting. In the summer, she directed the Blazers' highly successful summer camp, which involved 40 coaches and over 800 campers.
"This is an incredible opportunity to be a part of the Wildcat team," Reed said. "As soon as I stepped on campus, I knew it was special place. I was impressed by everyone I met at Northern Michigan, and I could feel the strong sense of pride and community. I look forward to meeting the team, getting in the gym and working and growing with these talented young women."
The season before, Reed served as an assistant coach at Northeastern University. From 2011 to 2014, she held the same position at Binghamton University. In 2012, she helped the Bearcats capture the American East Conference championship and secure an NCAA Division I Tournament berth.
While on the Binghamton University staff, Reed coached seven all-conference selections, including the conference's 2014 Rookie of the Year and 2012 Setter of the Year. She was also responsible for coordinating the Bearcats' summer camp. She led a staff of 12 coaches, managed the budget and designed on- and off-court activities for over 200 campers.
During her time in Binghamton, N.Y., Reed also served as the club director of the Whirlwind Volleyball Club, where she managed 14 coaches and 140 athletes.
Reed secured her first coaching position at the University of Southern Indiana, where she stayed from 2009 to 2011 and mentored one All-American, two all-Midwest Region performers and two all-Great Lakes Valley Conference honorees. In 2010, the Screaming Eagles reached the NCAA Division II Tournament.
"The administrators and coaches we spoke with highlighted that Rashinda is a straightforward and genuine communicator with substantial volleyball knowledge," Karr said. "They said that she is strong, positive, high energy, passionate and great at building relationships. The main thing we heard over and over is that she is ready to be a high level head coach."
After graduating in 2005 from the University of Georgia with a bachelor's degree in Psychology, Reed spent five seasons playing professional volleyball overseas. During that time, she competed for Austria's VC Tirol Volleyball Club (2005-06), Spain's El Algar Volleyball Club (2006-07), Holland's Plantina Longa Volleyball Club (2007-08) and Finland's PislaPloki Volleyball Club (2008-09). She also continued her education, studying Anthropology and Hungarian at the Central European University in Budapest, Hungary in 2005 and German at Innsbruck University in Innsbruck, Austria in 2006.
Reed played for the University of Georgia from 2002 to 2004. She spent two seasons at Southwestern Oregon Community College, where she garnered all-Northwest Athletic Conference second team honors in 2002, before she transferred to the University of Georgia.
A native of Fairbanks, Alaska, Reed has been a member of the American Volleyball Coaches Association Assistant Coaches Committee since 2011. She is also a member of the Alliance of Women Coaches.
