This week, I traveled to Philadelphia for the Philadelphia Coaches Conference at Temple University. I was excited for the opportunity to learn and present alongside so many passionate coaches. Most of the attendees were youth sports coaches from the Philadelphia area, along with a few local college coaches.
The keynote speaker was K.C. Keeler, Temple’s head football coach, who is known for building team cultures rooted in trust, accountability, and support. Coach Keeler emphasized that team culture is shaped by how we communicate and how we treat one another within the group. He explained that culture is constantly evolving, especially from season to season, but strong cultures endure when players become the foundation and take pride in holding each other accountable.
The keynote served as an unexpected but perfect segue into my two presentations, both centered on cultivating positive team cultures.
My first presentation, Coaching Beyond the Playbook: 3 Tools to Build Team Connection, was an interactive session focused on practical strategies coaches can use to strengthen trust, connection, and community within their teams. I shared three simple tools designed to help athletes feel safe, seen, and supported, because when athletes feel that sense of belonging, they are more willing to take risks, communicate openly, and grow. Coaches left with strategies they could implement immediately, including daily check-ins, community-building activities, and a co-created team agreement process that fosters accountability and buy-in.
The energy in the room was exactly what I had hoped for. Coaches were up, moving, connecting, and experiencing firsthand what it feels like to transform a group of strangers into a community, just as we strive to do with our teams each season.
My second presentation was one I had been thinking about for a long time and was grateful to finally share. Inspired by the research and the book Enough As She Is by Rachel Simmons, my presentation She Is Enough: Coaching Girls to Lead with Confidence and Courage combined my passion for empowering girls and women through sports with my commitment to creating emotionally safe learning environments.
In this session, I introduced a framework to help coaches support girls in building confidence, stepping into leadership roles, and believing in themselves both on and off the field. After the presentation, another woman coach thanked me for intentionally creating spaces where girls can thrive in sports. I deeply appreciated that conversation because it reflected a shared understanding of how important representation is in athletics and how vital it is for us to pay that forward to the next generation of players.
I left the conference feeling energized after meeting so many coaches who approach their role in shaping young athletes’ experiences with care and intentionality. In the final session, legendary NCAA basketball coach Fran Dunphy said that coaching is a critical profession. It was powerful to be surrounded by a room full of people who wholeheartedly agreed.
A special thank you to Hebert Lima and Amy Giddings for organizing such a meaningful event and for giving me the opportunity to present not just one, but two sessions. I hope to partner again at future conferences.
