The City Knights men’s volleyball team has undergone a drastic change because of the current financial climate that the Californian economy is facing. with the apparent inability by the governor to find much needed funds, students are starting to lose the most valuable commodity, our teachers.
The faculty has changed the roles and duties of the deans and made them more focused on particular activities. Previous deans had an array of responsibilities spreading everyone very thinly.
With the restructuring and reorganizing of different departments, this has allowed the dean of athletics to focus more on her responsibilities involving her department.
The previous head men’s volleyball coach, Brent Crouch Ph. D, philosophy, has moved with his family and now taken up a full time position with Oregon State.
“It was a difficult situation and we were sad to see him go”, said Kathy McGinnis of Coach Crouch’s departure.
The athletics department under Dean McGinnis has grown tremendously and our athletics teams including Men’s Volleyball continues to grow in strength.
The new coach, Curtis Jackson, came to City College in late August/early September. Coach Jackson came into a difficult situation, trying to pick up a team after the season had already started.
Jackson was faced with a surprise on the first day of class, and in the process, adopting only three of the existing coaches’ players.
Jackson kept two of the three and started building a new team with extensive recruiting, by posting flyers and chasing down every lead. His hard work has paid off in that he has a full team of “really exciting players”.
After many tryouts and struggles, the coach managed to get hold of a number of players’ information, and of the 29 men who tried out for the team, 14 would qualify and remain. Coach Jackson is only part time at City College, but went on to say “I thoroughly enjoy being here it is a great school”.
The Harry West Gym is a venue for the men’s volleyball having been built in recent years and is well suited to hosting teams and spectators alike.
The men’s volleyball team competes in the PCC and non-conference matches within the San Diego Community College District. They are working towards building a winning reputation.
Jackson will be implementing a new training regiment this upcoming semester as he looks to improve on physical fitness often team. Having his own business, Jackson Health & Performance, which specializes in assessment, nutrition and program design.
Jackson also coaches Matt Olsen, pro beach volleyball player, Daron Rahlves, winter X Games skicross champion and Mike Morrison, another pro beach volleyball player.
Jackson is looking to implement a complete new regimen for the men’s volleyball team starting next semester. The new training set will consist of full body exercises and focus on “explosion,” as the clean jerk and the snatch. These exercises improve leg strength and assist with clearance of the ground.
Jackson is assisted by Don Samuelson “who is doing a great job”, according to Jackson.
