Career Coach For Women
Career Coach is a new programme offered by Rowing NZ to develop coaches with ambitions to progress in their coaching. The programme will evolve depending on an identified gap in our coaching system. Currently Rowing NZ has identified the need to have more women coaching in Rowing NZ teams and to provide support and skills for more women to be head coaches.
Rowing NZ is missing out on the values and skills that women bring – and we know that environments flourish with diversity. We know that increasing the number of women in leadership positions such as head coaches, Rowing NZ coach/selector and RPC roles will demonstrate the pathways and opportunities for females beyond being an athlete or assistant coach.
To drive change and create a more inclusive environment, Rowing NZ launched a forum to develop leadership, confidence and capability in female coaches. This programme began in July 2019 and will continue through to July 2021 and consists of residential workshops, one on one development and online group forums.
There are currently ten participants on the Career Coach For Women programme; Kim Dowden, Kylee Corboy, Robin Clarke, Hannah Starnes, Megan Glenn, Rachel Gamble- Flint, Kaye Surgenor, Sarah Lindley, Shawn McManus and Sophie Strachan.
Over the past 12 months, the group has completed three residential workshops (in Auckland, Lake Karapiro and online) and are now undertaking three research projects covering a range of enquiries in women’s sport and coaching.
A fourth workshop will be held at Lakeview Lodge in Lake Karapiro in September 2020, with the fifth and final workshop schedule to be held in July 2021.
Pending Prime Minister Scholarship funding, Rowing NZ will again host the programme 2021-2023, with expressions of interest being invited in early 2021. It is intended that the July 2021 workshop will be joined by both existing participants and participants selected into the second programme launching mid-2021, allowing for an exchange of information between a broader pool of coaching talent and providing a networking opportunity.
Interested applicants are recommended to key an eye on both the Rowing NZ website and the New Zealand Rowing Coaches Facebook page, or to contact coachdevelopment@rowingnz.kiwi