Commencement 2007 - Villanova University

AthleticsCoaches Team up toTalk About TeachingBY ANTHONY MAALOUF ’08 G.S.JOHN WELSH (ALL)Head Coach Andy Talley uses variousassessments in encouraging football teammembers to set goals.all-day workshop for facultyon May 17, WildcatAtancoaches discussed their ideasfor motivation, mentoring and teachingstudents. Titled “Winning Approaches:Villanova University Athletic CoachesShare Successful Teaching Strategies,”the panel was sponsored by the VillanovaInstitute for Teaching and Learning(VITAL).Dr. Carol A. Weiss, director of VITAL,introduced the panel. The moderator wasDr. Ray Heitzmann ’64 A&S, professor ofeducation and human services. The panelistswere coaches from various teams:Joanie Milhous, head coach for fieldhockey; Shanette Lee ’95 A&S, assistantcoach of women’s basketball; Andy Talley,head coach of football; and Jay Wright,head coach of men’s basketball.Now in her 13th year of coaching fieldhockey at Villanova, Milhous told theaudience that attitude mattered.“Students will watch everything youdo, from the moment you walk into yourclassroom up to the last minute,” Milhoussaid. She recalled a time when she waskicking around a water bottle during apractice, simply for exercise. When theteam members saw that, it affected theirplay, according to the coach. “Theythought that I was mad at the players,” sherecalled, “and when I asked them wherethey got that idea, they said it was mykicking the bottle.”Milhous emphasized the importance ofprojecting a positive attitude. “Your attitudeis contagious,” she concluded. “Itneeds to be positive; otherwise studentswill not do their best.” She has a policy ofnot recruiting field hockey players withbad attitudes, no matter how talented orskillful they are, because bad attitudes arejust as contagious as good ones.Mentorship was the focus of Lee’s talk.She recalled a time when one of the women’sbasketball student-athletes did not showup for some of her classes, prompting herprofessor to call the coach’s office. HeadCoach Harry Perretta ’95 G.S. referredAssistant Coach Shanette Lee ’95 A&S recalls a time when she mentored a member of thewomen’s basketball team. Joanie Milhous, head coach of field hockey, and Dr. Ray Heitzmann,the moderator, also took part in the panel.the situation toLee, whoapproached thestudent. “Shewas not feelinggood aboutherself, so IFor faculty and coaches,sharing ideas is the key tosuccess, said Jay Wright,head coach of men’sbasketballgave her some positive reinforcement.Sometimes, we need to do that as teachersand coaches for our students,” Lee told thefaculty. Giving students a motivational pushwith comments like “We want you to behere” are a must, Lee said.“Sure, college students are adults, butlet’s not forget that they are young adultsand need good mentorship from their rolemodels, like you,” Lee reminded the audience.Sometimes, coaches and facultyshould step out of their professional rolesand offer to sit down with a student anddiscuss his or her feelings, she suggested.As for the team member Lee mentored,she got back on track in both her classesand her play. “In fact, she helped us win aBig East championship that year,” Lee saidwith a smile.Talley in his remarks said he starts thefootball team off with a self-assessment testright at the beginning of training. It isimportant to get to know the students aspeople, not just as athletes, he told the faculty,adding that as a coach, he especiallywants to know with whom he is working.“We look at many things about our players,like their personality and how theylearn, either by audio, visually or kinesthetically”[hands-on experience], Talley said.The football coach also gives the student-athletesa chance to do an assessmentof their team and of themselves as individuals.“We ask them to set goals and list them,giving them something to aim for duringthe season,” he explained. Coaches, accordingto Talley, have a responsibility to helpstudents see their goals fulfilled and shouldguide them accordingly. Everyone, he said,“needs this guidance.”However, there are some exceptions,Talley added. A student-athlete like BrianWestbrook ’00 VSB had no problem66 Villanova Magazine