TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — WeCOACH announced its roster of women coaches who will take part in its NCAA Women Coaches Academy (WCA) on Nov. 16-18 in Indianapolis, Indiana, and Knox College Volleyball Head Coach Maliah Blakemore is among the 78 coaches from across the country who will attend the conference.
Hosted in collaboration with the NCAA, this impactful academy offers a multi-day transformational experience focused on leadership development and personal growth for women coaches from all sports and collegiate levels, including both two-year and four-year institutions. Since its inception, more than 2,400 coaches have graduated from the NCAA WCA.
"I look forward to the opportunity to build bridges across conferences and divisions to increase the visibility of Division III volleyball and athletics," Blakemore said. "I am really excited for the opportunity to learn and be a part of a community that fosters strong women leaders in athletics."
The 78 coaches represent 18 different sports and 679 total years of coaching experience. Participants come from a diverse collection of institutions across NCAA Divisions I, II, and III, as well as the NAIA and NJCAA.
"The NCAA is proud to continue its partnership with WeCOACH as we welcome the 55th class of the NCAA Women Coaches Academy to our national office in Indianapolis," said DeeDee Merritt Guster, NCAA Managing Director of Leadership Development. "We are especially excited to help host this year's class in our home city, where our mission to educate and empower student-athletes, coaches, and athletics administrators comes to life every day through our operations and leadership programming. This academy continues to deliver transformative learning experiences that strengthen leadership and support the advancement and retention of women coaches in collegiate athletics. WeCOACH remains an invaluable partner in this work, and through collaborations like this, we are able to broaden our reach and deepen our impact across the coaching community."
A highlight of this year's academy will be the presentation of the 2024-25 WeCOACH Lifetime Achievement Award to Tara VanDerveer for her lasting impact on the coaching profession. Attendees will have the opportunity to gain insights and inspiration through a keynote conversation with Coach VanDerveer.
"The academy experience is nothing short of transformational," said Vanessa Fuchs, CEO of WeCOACH. "Bringing this program to the NCAA National Office further elevates the impact, immersing women coaches in an environment committed to advancing leadership and strengthening the future of college sports. Our participants leave feeling renewed and equipped with tools, strategies and a powerful sisterhood of support that extends far beyond the academy. Data continues to show that our graduates remain in the coaching profession at rates well above the national average, and that retention is exactly the kind of change we are dedicated to scaling alongside the NCAA. We're also incredibly proud to expand access by awarding more than $38,000 in scholarship funding for Indianapolis participants, thanks to the generosity of our donors and partners."
The Academy will also feature a powerhouse panel of distinguished women — Raquel Atawo (WCA #52), Sharon Clark (WCA #4), Lin Dunn, Deanna Gumpf (WCA #25), Britt Harvey (WCA #42/A2.0 #2), Carol "Hutch" Hutchins, Lori Kerans (WCA #33), Muffet McGraw, Shonda Stanton (WCA #36), and moderated by DeeDee Merritt Guster, Managing Director of NCAA Leadership Development. The panel titled, "Coaches Unfiltered: The Ask Anything Panel," will allow WCA participants to engage authentically with these trailblazers to share experiences, insights and advice.
