Florida Tech to Offer Athletic Coaching Minor; Starts Fall 2012

Florida Institute of Technology will offer a 20-credit Athletic Coaching Minor, available to all majors, starting in fall 2012. The minor, offered through the Science and Mathematics Education Department, is appropriate for those students who plan to coach or who are seeking a career in sports. Courses within the minor fulfill the requirements to obtain an Athletic Coaching Certificate in the state of Florida.

Education students who successfully complete the Athletic Coaching Minor will be able to add the Florida Department of Education’s Athletic Coaching Endorsement to their Florida Department of Education professional teaching certificate. This will enable them to coach varsity sports when hired, making them more attractive job candidates. Selected courses are also offered for current Florida teachers who may want to add the Coaching Endorsement to their professional teaching certificate. These classes are offered in the evenings for convenience.

Required courses include Introduction to Education; Survey of Human Anatomy and Physiology; Care and Prevention of Athletic Injuries; and Coaching Theory. Students choose between Theory and Practice of Coaching Soccer and Theory and Practice of Coaching Basketball; they choose between Educational Psychology and Sport Psychology; and choose two activity skills classes from among Introduction to Team Sports, Introduction to Weight Lifting, Introduction to Tennis, Introduction to Golf and Intercollegiate Athletics.

“The minor is designed to provide both theoretical and practical experience in the field of coaching for those students who plan to coach and/or seek a career in the field of sports,” said Debra Blenis, Florida Tech director of teacher education.

For more information, contact Professor Lazslo Baksay at (321) 674-8126 or at baksay@fit.edu.