Our faculty are dedicated to our students! Many of them don't only teach - they also coach or advise clubs as well.
To celebrate our coaches who also teach or are staff at CDH, we're sharing a Q&A with each of them over the next few months! Today, meet Amy Bellus '90, a Boys Basketball Coach and Assistant Principal.
Did you participate in the sport you coach as a student-athlete?
Yes, I played basketball for four years at Derham Hall and Cretin-Derham Hall.
What made you decide to coach?
When I started teaching, my high school coach was still the varsity coach and asked me to be an assistant. I jumped at the chance. I'm very competitive and always understood the game probably better than I played it. I was excited to become a strong female role model. When I retired from coaching girls, Jerry Kline '93 was kind enough to let me come keep the book for the boys team. Eventually, I worked myself into an assistant coach role and have really enjoyed coaching on the boys side for several years.
How long have you been coaching here at CDH?
I have been coaching for 26 years at various levels.
What do you love about coaching?
I love working with young people and helping them to build life skills through sports. I really enjoy watching them grow and mature over their years here at CDH!
How does your experience as a coach improve your work
One of the best parts of coaching has been the opportunity to create relationships with students I might not otherwise know. I think the stronger those relationships are, the more effective we can be in our day jobs!
How does your experience as Assistant Principal improve your coaching?
My job in administration reminds me how important it is to have something that offers some stress relief and allows you to just play. I try to always come to practices and games with a positive outlook, regardless of how my day was. Sometimes that is more challenging than other times!
Do you have any favorite memories from your time coaching?
One of my favorite coaching memories was during one of my first years coaching the B-squad girls' basketball team. I took it really seriously and I'll never forget during a game at Johnson I was giving a tremendous pregame speech! I must have gone a little over the top and taken it a little too far, because as we went to break our huddle, one of my players started chanting "Rudy! Rudy! Rudy!" referring to the then very popular movie by the same name. After that, I learned that maybe a B-squad win or loss wasn't the be-all and end-all!
Read about previously featured coaches:
Chris Babcock