Highline has been able to tag a new softball coach, but the Athletic Department is still struggling to pin down a new wrestling coach.
Highline Athletic Director John Dunn has not released the name of the new softball coach, who will replace Jason Evans, who left the program after last year’s pandemic-shortened season.
Wrestling has been without a coach since Chad Beatty left the program in 2020. This year’s wrestling season has been cancelled as a result.
Highline wrestling is Washington’s only NJCAA team. Head Coach Scott Norton ended his 20-year legacy for Thunderbird wrestling in 2018. Coach Norton was inducted into the NJCAA Wrestling Hall of Fame in April 2021.
Chad Beatty replaced Norton in 2019, but stepped down after one season. Beatty told Wrestle Washington that COVID-19 reflected what mattered most to him, and he and his wife thought it was best to return to Iowa to be closer to family.
Hiring a head coach on the collegiate level is not easy, said John Dunn. Highline athletics seeks prospects who are committed to academics, ethical and moral responsibility, and dedicated in recruiting young men and women with character and good work ethic, he said.
At the two-year level, coaches have a unique opportunity to advance both their players and personal careers in their sport, Dunn said.
“For many, the two-year college offers an opportunity to coach at the collegiate level and master their trade in hopes of moving up to a higher level. From a personal level, it is an amazing level to shape and mentor young men and women who for a plethora of reasons are not attending a four year university,” said Dunn.
A challenge in the hiring process is that the college offers low salaries for coaches and the job is strictly part-time.
“They are only paid a small stipend that is less than what a high school coach is compensated for. There are no full time jobs attached to their positions,” Dunn said. Head coaches at Highline get $600 a month and assistant coaches get $275 a month.
“There are no full time jobs attached to their positions,” he said.
“For the wrestling position we have had very little interest and no one to date that has fit our criteria,” said Dunn.
Highline’s emphasis is on academics first, Dunn said.
“No. 1 is a commitment to academics,” he said of the requirements to coach at Highline. “ No. 2 is an emphasis on ethical and moral responsibility. Three is a knowledge and commitment to recruit young men and women with high character and work ethic.”
Dunn said the department continues to search for a wrestling coach, via “several publications that are sports specific and several other avenues via Human Resources.”
