Empowered Coaching Manual
for EVA Hiring & Onboarding Process

Hiring Process & IMPORTANT New Coach Infomation

  • Fill out Online “Become A Coach” Application:
  • Fill out Employment & Direct Deposit Paperwork - From Hiring Director
  • Based on Coaching Position, professional coaching membership is required (AAU and/or USAV Membership and Background Screen - depending on the team) More info below. 
    • Employee Parking - Park behind the building in the “Employee Parking Lot,” in order for more parking for our families and athletes, and to ensure you have one.
      • Keyfob - Get keyfob from Sharon at front desk, for back door.   
    • Payroll - every two weeks:
      • Head of Volleyball Payroll: Ashlee Robbins
      • Tracking of Hours & Pay: 
        • Josh Kriener & Janelle Didion: EVA Girls
        • Dom NaThalang:  EVA Boys
        • Ryan Cronin:  EVA Beach
      • Pay Range - Dependent on experience, and resume. 
        • College Prep Head Coaches: $20-25/hr and $75-100/day of tournaments
        • College Prep Assistant Coaches: $15-20/hr and $60-80/day of tournament
        • High School Prep Head Coaches: $15-20/hr and $60-80/day for  tournaments (No Assistants for HS Prep)
  • Tournament Pay & Compensation Explained
          • We always pay for 4 hours each tournament day, even though most events you will only coach 2-3 hours per day.  This extra is to cover extras like gas, food, etc.
            • Most events over 4 hours will be paid Mileage
              *For those Driving a Vehicle or Booking a Flight
            • A Receipt must be emailed to sharon@empoweredsportsclub.com as proof of travel
        • Event Parking:  Empowered will reimburse for hotel, garage, and street parking, but not valet.  Receipts must be emailed to sharon@empoweredsportsclub.com 
  • Absences
        • Tournaments & Practices: Please report all absences to Josh - girls or Dom - boys
  • Tournament absences also need to be reported to Janelle for hotel purposes.
      • If you have to miss a tournament, please try to find a replacement prior to reporting the absence to Janelle. 

 

Preseason/Season Communication Checklist:

  • Coach Communication - PRIORITY
    • Preseason: Introduction email to parents and athletes (See below)
      • Share with parents and athletes who you are and why you are excited to coach their son/daughter.
      • The more you communicate with your parents and athletes, the less likely parents will misinterpret your intentions when problems arise.
    • During Season: Tournament Weekend Email
      • Sending parents and athletes information and what you expect during tournaments prior to the tournament can help set the tone.
        • If your team is reffing first, athletes must arrive 45 mins prior to the match. Athletes should get shoes on and prepare for their match while completing their reffing assignment. 
        • If your team is playing first, athletes should arrive 1 hour prior to game time. If attending somewhere where there might be traffic, allotting for the traffic is the athlete/parent’s responsibility. Athlete needs to be on court 1 hour prior to game time. 
        • While reffing matches, all athletes should be present for the entire match. No one leaves until the match is complete and the coach dismisses the team. 
        • It may be necessary to assign reffing jobs to athletes who do not volunteer to take a turn at down reffing and/or book. 
        • Remind athletes to bring extra socks, spandex, kneepads, all uniforms etc. 
        • Remind athletes to pack healthy food options.
      • Team Managers should assist coaches in getting information out to parents and athletes each tournament, however, it’s important to get the information to the Team Managers as soon as the schedules are posted. Watch the coaches groupme, as we often will tell you when the schedules is up. 

 

Empowered Model & Practice Checklist: 

  • Watch our Empowered Skills Videos “Coaching Development (Mandatory):
      • It’s extremely important to Empowered that all athletes are being taught skills the same way. Watching our videos included in Empowered’s onboarding series are just the beginning. Look for continuing educational videos coming soon!
      • If you have questions or need clarification regarding a skill or video, don’t hesitate to contact Will@empoweredsportsclub.com. We are always open to explanations, as well as, having open conversations about how to improve our process and the way we teach skills and techniques. If you have a better way or suggestion, please share. 
  • Empowered Practice Expectations:
      • Practices will be 100% planned at the beginning of the season. 
      • Josh/Mike/Will/Ashlee and other directors will lead the gym during the planned practice sessions.
        • Head and Assistant coaches will be asked to assist lead coach in drills, as well as, coach their teams during planned practices.
      • As the season progresses, coaches will have an opportunity to share in the practice planning not only for the whole group but also for their individual teams.
  • Practice Plan
  • EOVC Girls: Coming Soon
  • Skills & Drills Video Resources

 

Tourney Resources and Checklist:

  • What is USAV?
  • USA Volleyball is the National Governing Body for the sport of volleyball in the United States. 
  • College Prep Team coaches and athletes need a current USAV Membership, and must select Empowered from the Club Affiliation drop down menu at the link below:
  • What is AAU?
    • AAU Amateur Athletic Union
    • All coaches and athletes need to hold a current AAU Membership and be linked to Empowered by using the link and code below:
  • What does it mean to NIKE Elite Club?
  • Empowered is privileged to be a Nike Elite Sponsored Club. This means we have a strategic partnership with Nike where we will represent their brand in the items we wear and they will provide us with top tier discounts and additional proceeds to assist with our athletic programing and coaches gear. 
  • Due to our partnership with Nike we encourage our coaches and athletes to wear Nike apparel at our tournaments.
    • All athletes MUST wear Empowered Nike spandex during tournaments as our spandex have our logo on them. 
    • All athletes are required to wear their warmups during tournaments. 
    • All athletes are required to wear Nike shoes unless Ashlee has made an exception due to medical reasons.
    • AES Schedule 
      • What is AES? 
        • AES - Advanced Event Systems
        • AES is the website where you will access all of your tournament schedules
        • It is important to send schedules (as soon as they are posted) to the Team Manager in order to get information out to families.
          • Watch the groupme, as we typically notify the coaches when schedules are posted.
        • https://advancedeventsystems.com
          • Type tournament location or name of tournament into the search bar to locate the tournament.
          • Click on the tournament name.
          • If schedule is posted, there will be a yellow bar next to the name
            • Click on the yellow bar.
            • Click on club
            • Choose Empowered
            • All Empowered teams that are playing in the tournament will be listed.
            • Choose your team.
            • Schedule will generate.
            • Refer back to the schedule often to view results, reffing assignments, and further playing schedule.
            • During reffing obligations, no athletes are allowed to leave. All athletes stay on court until the match is complete. 
        • NEVER allow athletes to leave the court if a tie occurs. 
          • Check with a Director to be sure that a playoff game will not occur before dismissing athletes. 
    • Hotel Expectations
      • All hotel communication will go through Janelle Didion
        • She will email you hotel accommodations midway through the tournament weeks.
        • She will communicate with families regarding hotel accommodations including “Stay and Play” tournaments, but she will ask for assistance if requirements are not met with the time frame required. 
        • If you do not plan to attend a tournament, let Janelle know ASAP
        • If you choose to have your own room, you will be responsible for 50% of the cost as all rooms are budgeted for 2 people each. Janelle must know ahead of time that you are requesting your own room. 
        • If there are issues at your hotel, please let Janelle know so we do not stay there again.
        • You must check in on the night your reservation is for or you will lose your room for the entire weekend. 
    • Before game day pickup balls
      • Sign in and out 6 balls the day before games.  (Balls will be provided at all Midwest Power Series sites)
        • Clipboard is hanging on cage.
          • Sign balls out when taking balls.
          • Sign balls in when returning balls. 
        • Ball bags are in blue bin in cage
        • Return balls as soon as possible following tournament due to practices.
        • If a ball is lost, notify Ashlee immediately (athletes will be responsible for replacing the ball, so encourage them to find the ball if lost.)
    • Check In at tourney site
      • Directors will check teams in and communicate with those teams that play, to coordinate passing out credentials. 
    • Game Day pictures
      • Encourage parents to send pictures to ashlee@empoweredsportsclub.com during tournaments in order for us to get them up on social media.
      • Encourage parents and athletes to tag us in their posts so we can share their pictures.
    • Send MVT/ MVP to Janelle Monday/Tuesday following tournament weekend.
  • What is MVT / MVP?
  • MVT - Most Valuable Teammate
    • This vote will be taken by the team and they will vote based on who was the most encouraging, positive and team player. This can be a player that showed mental strength, team unity and unique resilience! This is not based on how they PLAY. This is based on how they LEAD! They can be sitting on the bench or star player. It has fully to do with how they motivated the team!
    • Girls Vote for MVT
  • MVP - Most Valuable Player
    • This person is selected by the Coach. The coach will make this selection by observing the whole team to utilize statistics, overall performance and chemistry of the player who showed remarkable excellence in the tournament.

 

OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS TO KNOW:

 

Empowered Mental Health Team

    • Our Mental Health Team is led by our Director of Mental Health Kelsey Herber. It consists of a group of coaches who are passionate about supporting athletes both on and off the floor. 
    • Here is this year’s Mental Health Team: 
      • Abbie Boyer 
      • Karsen Brandt 
      • Amanda Craig 
      • Kennedy Kintz 
      • Hollee Kubiszak 
      • Madi McClees 
      • Tayana Rollins 
      • Sarah Wheeler 
    • We offer in-person mentorship sessions with a Mental Health Team Member to our athletes! 
  • If you have any questions or would like to be a member of the Mental Health Team, please reach out to Kelsey Herber at kherber@huntington.edu

 

How is Empowered “DIFFERENT” than other clubs?

  • Empowered Motto: “EMPOWERING the Mind, Body and Soul of C.H.A.M.P.I.O.N.S.!”
    • EMPOWER - We seek to empower our coaches and athletes to own their own personal growth and development. We also know that we are limited in our own strength and will encourage our coaches, athletes and families to be Empowered by a force greater than themselves (2 Peter 1:3-4) that will lead them in all aspects of their life!
    • BODY - It is a given that all coaches will coach the body, physical skills, techniques, and mechanics. However, Empowered seeks to do this with excellence by the high level master coaches we hire, our sports performance programs, our beach strength and agility training, weight training, nutritional advice, Parkview trainers, and much more.
    • MIND - Empowered seeks to be intentional in how we coach the MIND of our coaches, athletes and families. We do this by giving our coaches and athletes scientific knowledge, motivational skills, team cohesion opportunities, emotional management strategies, leadership development, and many other tangible tools that will assist them in developing the important mental aspects of the game. The mental performance of an athlete will guide them in aspects well beyond the sport of Volleyball.
    • SOUL - We know that every person was made by God and has an intangible soul that drives everything we think and do. It is essential to give our athletes a space to develop their personal purpose in life and to connect it with their Creator. We desire for our students to figure out the very things that drive them to be their very best self, on and off the court!
    • C.H.A.M.P.I.O.N.S. - While we are pursuing excellence and developing the best physical athletes we can, we know that you can be a great athlete and still be a terrible human being. Therefore C.H.A.M.P.I.O.N.S are defined by how you win ON and OFF the court:

C - Character

H - Honor

A - Attitude

M - Motivation

P - Persistence

I - Integrity

O - Optimism

N - Nobility

S - Sportsmanship

 

What is PSM?

  • Parkview Sports Medicine - Empowered has a strategic partnership with Parkview Hospital.  Parkview has invested heavily in our athletes and community, and is a co-owner with Empowered, Gym Rats, and ONE (Orthopedics Northeast) in Excel Sports Group, which owns and operates all regional sports programming, including EVA.
  • PSM trains our athletes in sports performance, mental performance, and nutrition. This sports performance and nutritional knowledge and practice, assists our athletes in their overall athletic development.
  • Due to our partnership with PSM and Parkview Health, we discourage our athletes/coaches from promoting other Sports Performance programs
    (ex. Wearing OPS t-shirts.)

 

What is Elite Training?

  • Girls who are unable to play on a team but are still wanting high level training with an Empowered Master Coach can come to ELITE Training.
  • Ideal candidates for this are those who:
    • Are Multisport Athletes with travel limitations
    • Don’t make an Empowered Team
    • Those who want extra practice and skill development from another club
    • Those who cannot commit to the time of a travel Volleyball team
    • Those who feel they cannot fiscally afford a club team (there is always EGA to assist with financial assistance)

 

What is EGA?

    • Empowered Growth Academy - is the non-profit entity of Empowered Sports.
  • Motto: “Empowering Champions for Life!”
  • What does EGA do?
    • EGA provides opportunities for helping families to raise funds through group and individual fundraisers.
    • EGA provides opportunities to work off fees, “Work for Credit Program.”
    • EGA has a Financial Aid Program to help our athletes afford any and all expenses incurred for Empowered programming opportunities.
    • EGA assists in providing all of our girls with leadership education and opportunities
    • EGA trains athletes in areas of leadership development, mental conditioning and heart/soul training, through it’s various resources, programs, guest speakers, and outreach opportunities..

 

What is VolleyTots?

    • VolleyTots is basic volleyball skills training for 5-12 year boys and girls
    • VolleyTots is hosted every month on Sundays from 1-3pm, except December
    • 1-2pm is 5-8 year olds
    • 2-3pm is 9-12 year olds
  • Being Revamped into 3 levels and higher level programming for 2024!

 

Club Directors: Roles, Responsibilities and Contact Information

William Robbins CEO of Empowered 260.267.1808

Ashlee Robbins Director of Volleyball Operations & Apparel 260.615.6785

Mike Howard Director of Satellites & Memberships 574.551.7165

Janelle Didion Director of Communications & Quality Control 260-602-7145

Josh Kriener Director of Youth Programming 630-797-0984

Jeff Mahoney Director of Technology & Video 260.416.2476

Ryan Cronin Beach Director 310-809-1824

Sharon Denham Facility Manager 810.262.0726

Kelsey Herber Director of Mental Health    260.415.2307

  • All Emails are all firstname@empoweredsportsclub.com