Journal Entries
Entry #1
At the beginning of my internship it was mainly behind the scene work. Organizing the locker room and clean up the each players locker. In addition, organizing the players new equipment for the upcoming year and making sure each player got the right sizes had to be done. If players did not receive the right equipment or sizes new orders had to be made. Entry #2 Along with recruiting new players and collecting information I was introduced to the scouting software used by the team and coaches. It was difficult at the time getting used to the software; however, the coaches slowed the process down so I can get to see how they recruit players and what they look for in potential recruits. With a couple camps being held in the summer certain projects came about. Making fliers, team schedules, and registration files had to be produced before the camps. Entry #3 Every summer the volleyball team hosts camps and they invite local high schools to come and participate in a tournament. However, the winner of the tournament did not receive a trophy, shirts were given to all the participants. Furthermore, I was in charge of calling each school to make sure they sent in all needed information in order to participate for the camp. The registration forms had to be turned in, a list of the roster, and the money for each player to participate in the competition. Now with this being a full weekend event the teams needed a place to stay; whether it be on-campus or off-campus in a nearby hotel, I determined which teams were staying in select dorms on-campus or at nearby hotels. Entry #4 With camp coming up pretty soon the schedule for each high schools game had to be created and finalized. I had to input teams in slots and finalize who would play who. In addition, with this being a weekend long event the players and coaches needed to be fed. Therefore, I was in charge of making order forms for Chipotle and Subway so everyone was able to get exactly what they wanted for each order. Along with the food order forms, I contacted each coach to receive each participating players shirt size so they would be ready when the camp started. Entry #5 With the volleyball camp right around the corner it was time to set up the courts in Heminger Center, Gilmore Center, and St. Joe's. I had to set up nets, scoreboards, seating, and the referees stand for each court. We were in need of another referee stand so Coach Cheri and I went to Calvert High School to borrow the one they had for the courts in the Gilmore center. Next to each scoreboard there were scoring brackets for each game so that every game was recorded and documented to keep up with their record. At each site where games were played there were concessions run by either myself or the Tiffin University Volleyball players. Before the tournament started I had to record each item being sold: candy, chips, soda, water, granola bars, and even volleyball t-shirts. Also, I had to make, create, and help organize dinner for the players and coach at the end of the day. Which was pizza the first night and pasta the second night. Right before the start of the camp I had to finalize that the t-shirt sizes were correct, organize the inventory, and clean the locker. Entry #6 Now with all the work for the camp coming to an end I started to create the Tiffin University's Volleyball roster. The roster had to consist of the players name, NCAA ID, race, student ID, and where they transferred from if they transferred at all. This roster was strictly for the coaching staff and it was to ensure that everything was up-to-date with information and NCAA clearing house. Other paper work I had to attend to were the player's binder. Which consisted of the teams: game schedule, practice times, the student's schedule, study table hours, contact sheets, teams philosophy, policy and rules, teams full calendar, offensive plays, defensive plays, and workout sheets. In addition, it had a list of travel gear, game gear, and what was aloud and not aloud for practice attire. The binders were made for both returning athletes and new transfers or freshman. The number of athletes Coach Dana had for this upcoming season were twenty-nine returning and/or new. Entry #7 Now that it is time to start the camp high school teams are showing up and as they are I am able to hand them their meal cards, tournament schedules, and dorm keys if they are staying on-campus. As I give them their dorm keys I show them to where they will be living for the duration of the camp. In addition, I also helped them find the locations where all the games would be held. Now with the games being played, I had my post at the Heminger Center. After every game or every other hour I would change duties. A few duties I had were the concession, score keeper, and patrolling the courts and track area to make sure no teams or parents were taking food or drinks onto the floor. After the tournament, breaking down the camp was easier setting up. Most, if not all, the food, drinks, and t-shirts were all sold. Putting away the nets and scoreboards were quick and easy. The last part that took the most time was cleaning the stands and courts for all the trash. Final Reflections The certain aspect of the internship experience that added to my personal development was to look at the bigger picture than just the sport itself. Not necessarily from a coaching standpoint, but from the outside in. There is more than just playing or coaching a sport. There is a lot of desk work and behind the scenes work that play into effect. To say that and it only be the summer time, I can only imagine the hard work each coach and player must put in during the season. Some experiences on the job that have related to my academic studies were the projects that needed to be done on the computer. I have enhanced my skills in Microsoft Office programs drastically. Also, setting my schedule to another sports team schedule has helped me improve my time management skills and complete my big priorities first. The quality of supervision and communication with my supervisor was more than I could ask for. Both Coach Dana and Coach Cheri had their door open for me at all times. If need be, I had their personal phone number if a question or dilemma had arrived throughout the internship. If Coach Dana was not around Coach Cheri was to make sure I was comfortable with what I had to do for the camp and internship hours. Not that any personal information was asked; however, stories and situations arrived that many other people outside the coaching staff would not regularly hear about. So I would like to think I have made a good friendship and bond with both coaches throughout my internship experience. The internship influenced my career objectives by finding out a lot of the behind the scenes work coaches have to go through even out of season. I would love to, one day, be a head coach of a football team at the high school or collegiate level and Coach Dana has shown me that there is more than just coaching. Some information I would pass on to other students considering this internship is to not take this team lightly. I came in thinking it would be a fairly light internship at the simple fact that our volleyball team was an above-average team. I did not think much needed to be done over the summer as far as inventory, camps, and recruiting. Furthermore, if sports are something you really love no matter what the sport you will like this internship. |
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