On
Saturday, January 28, the Northland Sports Ministry Department organized a trip
to attend the Inside Out Coaching Seminar hosted by the Wisconsin Fellowship of
Christian Athletes (FCA). Coach Dennis Scott and three of Northland’s Sports
Ministry majors attended the one-day clinic.
The
speaker for the clinic was former Baltimore Colts defensive lineman Joe
Ehrmann, who has been described by Parade Magazine as “The Most Important Coach
in America” for the transformational coaching message he shares. Workshop topics
included: “Why do I coach?” “Am I a Transactional Coach or a Transformational
Coach?” “Why do I coach the way that I do?” and “The Transformational Coach’s
Toolbox.” His message of using sports to transform lives was challenging and
inspiring. Those who attended the seminar shared their thoughts on the event:
“The FCA Coaching Seminar was compelling due to Joe
Ehrmann's unique view on coaching. I learned the importance of facing up to
hurts in the past in order to move on and become an impactful coach. I was also
was greatly challenged by what he said about being a "transforming"
instead of a "transacting" coach. I truly believe that this seminar
has changed my view on coaching to the point that it will impact me for the
rest of my life.”—Raymond
Reagan
“The biggest thing I was impacted by was when he
discussed how our past experiences affect how we coach in the future—how our
childhood, teenage years, adulthood, successes, failures, and regrets mold our
coaching philosophy.”—Andy
Rote
“Going to this conference, I learned that getting to
know your players more and teaching them some aspects of life helps the players
and the coach create a bond that can last for a long, long time. When I coach,
I want to make an impact, and I want to have a great bond with my players.”—Tim Fetteroff
“One of the goals of our Sports Ministry program is
to expose our students to how ministry can be accomplished through coaching.
This seminar certainly accomplished that. We desire for our Sports Ministry
students to make an eternal impact through sports. That includes both
evangelism and discipleship aspects of Northland’s life-touching-life
philosophy of ministry.”—Coach Dennis Scott