Opportunity Summary: The Squash and Education Alliance (SEA) seeks a seasoned, passionate, and organized squash professional to be SEA’s Director of Player Development. The Director of Player Development will lead SEA’s efforts to raise the level of squash across the network by overseeing a network-wide player and coach development system that aims to provide all SEA participants with high quality squash instruction and the opportunity to achieve their full potential as squash players. Specifically, the Director of Player Development will oversee SEA’s local, developmental and national High Performance Team (HPT) system, organize and lead HPT Squads during the school year and the five-week SEA Summer Academy at the Kent School, chaperone and coach top-ranked SEA players at US Squash tournaments, and be a resource and mentor to coaches across the SEA network. The Director of Player Development will be the most senior squash position at SEA, will work closely with the Director of Competition, and will report to SEA’s Managing Director.
Duties and Responsibilities: Specific responsibilities will include but not be limited to:
Player Development
- HPT System – Lead and strengthen the High Performance Team system, with the goals of creating a sense of shared vision for squash excellence among SEA programs and enabling the hardest working and most promising players in the network to reach their full potential. This work includes identifying local and regional coaches for private lessons, distributing lesson funds, making US Squash tournament recommendations, creating training plans for players and coaches, and supporting the college recruiting process.
- HPT Tournaments – Select, chaperone and coach national and developmental HPT students (10-15 each) to a minimum of four US Squash junior squash tournaments annually.
- HPT Squads – Organize and lead three HPT squads (fall, winter, spring) for 10-20 national and developmental HPT players, and organize the HPT Selection Tournament each fall.
Summer Camp Management
- SEA Summer Academy – Plan, staff, and lead the five-week SEA Summer Academy, SEA’s marque training camp which brings together 75+ students over three sessions (two one-week sessions and one three-week session for HPT players).
Coach Development
- Coach Development – Support the improvement of squash programming in member programs by visiting member program practice sessions, sharing resources with coaches, and annually organizing two coach trainings (with SEA’s Director of Competition).
Network Support
- SEA Tournaments – Attend and support the Director of Competition at four of SEA’s six marquee, three-day competitions:
- October: High Performance Team Trials (location TBD, Indigenous People’s Day Weekend)
- November: Great Lakes Championships (Detroit or Chicago, Veterans Day Weekend)
- January: West Coast Invitational (San Diego, MLK Day Weekend)
- February/March: Team Nationals (Philadelphia, US Squash Specter Center)
- June: Individual Nationals (Amherst & Williams Colleges)
- July: Summer Midwest Championships (Kenyon College)
- Grantmaking – Participate in SEA’s grant-making efforts that are focused on raising the level of play and coaching across the network with grants.
- Partnerships – Collaborate with organizations that can enhance SEA’s player and coach development (US Squash National Team coaches, US Squash coach accreditation personnel, and club coaches).
Qualifications & Experience
- Years of experience as a squash coach, ideally at a variety of levels.
- Experience in organizing squash camps and a passion for developing squash players and coaching coaches.
- Experience as a student, volunteer, or staff member of an SEA member program a plus.
- Valid US driver’s license and ability to drive a 15-passenger vehicle.
Qualities & Skills
- Exceptional interpersonal skills and ability to build strong relationships with various stakeholders.
- Sets high standards for self and colleagues; highly self-motivated and thrives under pressure.
- Excellent attention to detail and project management skills, and the strong writing and communication skills.
Hours & Travel: SEA’s main hours of operation are Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm, and our office is located in the Financial District of Manhattan. Beginning in the fall, SEA will have a hybrid model of 3 days in the office per week, and we will continually monitor this policy as public health and other circumstances permit. This role includes considerable travel – more than any other position at SEA. Annually, the position will include 20 weekends of work (Fri-Sun or Sat-Sun), or approximately half of the year’s weekends. The travel includes visits to SEA member programs, attendance at tournaments and squads, and coaching at the five-week SEA Summer Academy in CT. After working on weekend days or federal holidays, the Director of Player Development receives comp days for each day worked.
All SEA staff are expected to show proof of full vaccination (vaccine plus booster(s)) at start date.
Compensation & Benefits: $80,000 with the potential to earn considerably more depending on experience level. Includes four weeks of vacation annually, health insurance benefits, and, after one month of full-time service, a 401K matching plan. Vacation time must be taken outside of programming responsibilities.
Start date: September 2022
SEA is the umbrella organization and governing body of a network of 19 U.S. nonprofits and 5 international affiliate organizations that combine squash, academics, mentoring, travel, college support, and career readiness for more than 2,500 young people. Ninety-four percent of the high school graduates of our U.S. member programs matriculate to college, one-third attend top-100 ranked colleges, and more than two-thirds earn degrees in six years or less. SEA leads this network by launching new programs, promoting best practices to ensure the highest quality programming among member organizations, and providing additional educational and athletic experiences for students and alumni of our member programs.
SEA is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Please visit our website to read our full statement.
We are committed to a policy of non-discrimination and equal opportunity for all employees and qualified applicants without regard to sex, race, color, religion, age, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or marital status.
Interested? Candidates should send a resume and cover letter to info@squashandeducation.org.
