Pendleton alumni, Samantha Clark, returns to our community as the newest Director of Youth and Family Programs, here at Community Sports and Wellness. Clark brings more than fifteen years of coaching experience and a passion for youth program development as she takes on this role. “I’m honored to have the opportunity to help build a foundation of love for movement and wellness in our community. I want to build an athletic space where everyone, can find their fit.”
Clark has a long history of success in program development. In 2009, Clark graduated with a B.S. in Business Management. That same year, Missouri Valley named Clark as the newest, and youngest head coach at MVC. As the Head Coach of Missouri Valley College, Clark focused on the recruitment of skilled athletes that brought value to the program. “I went out and recruited the best of the best. It was important to build a strong foundation of talent that would help lead this program to success.” In 2009 Clark’s team finished top ten in the UCA College National Championships and finished with a 2nd place conference title.
Samantha spent time working in Business Management as a Marketing Director for Snap Fitness, but her passion for teaching and coaching ultimately lead her to pursue her teaching degree in Career and Technology Education in 2012.
In 2013 Clark began teaching and coaching at Benbrook Middle-High School. She taught Entrepreneurship, Marketing Education, and was hired as the Varsity Cheerleading Coach. “This was a brand new program, I had the chance to build it from the ground up.” From 2013-2017 Clark built a nationally competitive program that had an undeniable success record. “Our athletes were unbeatable. We went undefeated the first three years of competition, winning more than fifteen first place titles.” “It was the commitment and support of the administration, athletes, and community that fueled the success of these programs.”
In her most recent endeavor, Samantha created an educational Summer Camp hosted on the Shenandoah School Community Campus. Clark built the foundation of the camp on a blended learning platform where students were able to fill the gaps of educational loss with the year of online learning. Clark planned daily lessons in Math, Reading, Writing, and most importantly Social and Emotional Learning. “After more than a year of online learning, our students needed an opportunity to have fun. I wanted camp to provide them with structured lessons to fill those educational gaps, but most importantly an opportunity to play. We all know how important free play is in the development of the whole child. I’m thankful for the gracious support from SSC and my business partner Hailey Lohrey. I couldn’t have done it without them.”
With a passion for continuous personal growth and development, Clark earned her Master’s in Business Administration, with a concentration in data analytics, and a Master’s in Educational Leadership. There is no doubt that Samantha Clark brings both experience and passion as she takes in her new role of Director at Community Sports and Wellness