TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - WeCOACH is proud to announce 40 Division II & III conferences, including the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, have committed to participate in our inaugural Women Coaches Development Program. Initially launched by WeCOACH in August 2022, this professional growth and leadership development program supports D-II & D-III women coaches across all sports by offering year-round events focused on timely issues impacting the coaching profession. In addition to the conferences, any Division II or III women coaches with a current WeCOACH membership are eligible to participate.
The GLIAC's involvement in WeCOACH is a professional development opportunity timed perfectly with the 50th anniversary of Title IX.
“The response to this program has been remarkable, and we are grateful for the leadership in each of the 40 conferences for investing in the growth and development of their women coaches. Our goal is for this program to have transformational impact on thousands of women coaches in Divisions II and III for many years to come.”
The program offers a number of different opportunities for participants to engage throughout the year, highlighted by three 90-minute Development Sessions (fall, winter, & spring). The Fall Development Session begins today featuring Lisa Auld, LPC, NCC, and founder of Connection Counseling and Coaching,
who will lead a conversation around “Mental Health Matters: How to Support Your Student-Athletes, Your Staff, and Yourself.” This Fall Development Session is being offered on three different dates (October 21, October 24, & November 9) to accommodate the schedules of as many participants as possible.
An additional element of the program includes efforts to actively build the pipeline of Division II & III women coaches through “Catch a Vision” workshops designed for aspiring women coaches—the first will be held Sunday, December 11, 2022 and will be open to any women aspiring to coach at any level of sport (youth, club, high school, college, professional, etc.). These workshops will provide best practices for securing coaching opportunities, networking, and career strategy.
MOVE the NUMBERS
2022-23 Divisions II & III Development Program Conferences (bold font represents conferences that have
joined since the initial August 15, 2022 press release):
NCAA Division II Conferences:
• California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA)
• Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC)
• Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA)
• Conference Carolinas
• East Coast Conference (ECC)
• Great American Conference (GAC)
• Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC)
• Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC)
• Gulf South Conference (GSC)
• Lone Star Conference (LSC)
• Mountain East Conference
• Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10)
• Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC)
• South Atlantic Conference (SAC)
• Sunshine State Conference (SSC)
• The PacWest Conference
NCAA Division III Conferences:
• Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC)
• College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW)
• Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC)
• Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC)
• Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC)
• Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC)
• Landmark Conference
• Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC)
• Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA)
• Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC)
• Midwest Conference (MWC)
• Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC)
• New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC)
• New England Women’s & Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC)
• Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC)
• North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC)
• Northwest Conference (NWC)
• Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC)
• Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC)
• Southern Athletic Association (SAA)
MOVE the NUMBERS
• Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC)
• United East Conference
• University Athletic Association (UAA)
• Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC)
To learn more and sign up, visit: wecoachsports.org/development-program or
contact: admin@wecoachsports.org.
About WeCOACH
Founded in 2011, WeCOACH is a one-of-a-kind nonprofit dedicated to recruiting, advancing, and retaining women coaches in all sports and levels through year-round professional growth & leadership development programs. Prior to Title IX, over 90% of women’s collegiate sports teams were coached by women. Today, 50 years later, data indicates that number has decreased to a stagnant 43% in Division I (41% in all three NCAA Divisions), with only 7.3% women coaches of color. A dearth 5% women coach men's teams, and at the youth level, the data is hard to estimate (approx. <20% of teams are coached by women). As part of its year-long Title IX 50th Anniversary campaign, WeCOACH launched MOVE the NUMBERS to help change the landscape for women coaches and to impact history for the next 50 years. For more information visit wecoachsports.org/50th.
