Soccer | 5/30/2023 3:02:00 PM

DENVER, Colorado (May 30, 2023) – "The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find your why." – Mark Twain

For Texas Woman's Assistant Soccer Coach Alyssa Taramona, her 'why' is the power to impact young lives, and she had the empowering opportunity to reflect on her 'why' surrounded by a community of female coaches at the 2023 NCAA Women Coaches Academy (WCA), hosted by WeCoach and the NCAA.

"It [WCA] was a great reminder to reflect on my 'why' and hear why other female coaches are coaching," Taramona said. "Coaching is not just a job, it is an opportunity to empower and make a positive impact on young women that they will remember and carry with them. That is why I coach."

Over the course of the three-day academy, May 22-24, 102 women coaches, representing different sports and divisions, listened to presentations and participated in workshops led by coaches, administrators, consultants and specialists in their field.

The keynote speaker for the event was South Carolina Women's Head Basketball Coach Dawn Staley.

Throughout all the presentations and learning experiences, Taramona said being surrounded by 100 other female coaches with the same underlying passion for sports and student-athlete development was life-changing. 

"It was empowering to be surrounded by such accomplished and driven women," Taramona said. "It was beautiful to see a genuine and supportive community grow in less than three days. Being a female in the sports world can have quite a few challenges and obstacles, but knowing that there is a community that is invested in you as a person and professional is so comforting. By the end of the academy, I didn't just leave with knowledge, but grew as an individual and formed connections with coaches throughout different sports and all over the country."

Taramona said the greatest lesson she learned was she is not alone, but surrounded by a supportive, encouraging and inspiring community.

"One of the greatest lessons I learned was there is an amazing community of female coaches out there, and I am not alone," Taramona said. "This lesson was not purely based on a lecture or a presenter, but was shown through the conversations I had with every coach or administrator I talked with. We, as female coaches, need to empower, encourage and support each other, so we can continue to do the important work of being role models and empowering our student-athletes to be powerful, successful and accomplished young women."

Most of all, Taramona felt she had the opportunity to grow in this powerful environment and left feeling emboldened to continue living out her 'why'.  

"I would describe the overall experience as a unique growing experience, both professionally and personally," Taramona said. "There was a sense of respect, understanding and vulnerability that allowed each of us to learn from each other and grow alongside each other. It was an honor to be surrounded by other women in the collegiate coaching profession."

The WCA began in 2013 and celebrated its 20th anniversary this year. The program has graduated over 2,100 participants in its mission to educate and equip female coaches with leadership skills and strategies to achieve personal and team success.

"I would definitely recommend applying and attending the NCAA Womens Coaches Academy," Taramona said. "It is empowering to connect with other female coaches at the collegiate level, to learn their 'why', and to know you're not alone in your experience. The community you enter when going to the WCA expands beyond the coaches in your class, but it reaches to hundreds of female coaches that were in your shoes in the past. The positivity, empowerment and support you receive is indescribable."