SVSEF Welcomes New Staff to the Team
Chuck Harris, Alpine Men’s FIS Prep Program Head Coach
SVSEF welcomes Chuck Harris to the program, who comes to us with over 20 years of coaching experience. Harris will fill the new role of the Alpine Men’s FIS Prep Program Head Coach. To further define and support the FIS Team going into the 2016-2017 season, the Alpine Team has conscientiously delineated programming, and has added a Men’s FIS Prep Program.
Harris was born in Portland, Oregon, and attended Eastern Oregon University, where he earned his Bachelor of Science in history. He proceeded to direct and lead ski programs across the country, thereby gaining ample familiarity with various programs and with different approaches to coaching and FIS programming, specifically. From 1994 through 1999 he was the Men’s FIS Coach at Burke Mountain Academy in Vermont, and from 1999 through 2002 he coached both Men’s and Women’s FIS for Ski Club Vail in Colorado. He continued his travels westward, acting as the McCall Ski Racing Team Program Director for FIS/U16 from 2002 through 2014 in Idaho and the head U16 coach at Jackson Hole Ski Club in Wyoming from 2014 through 2016.
SVSEF is eager to have Harris on board. SVSEF Alpine Program Director Scott McGrew remarked, “His attention to detail, adept technical knowledge, and commitment to athletic and character development will be a great value to our club and we are excited to welcome Chuck into our community.”
Pat Lee, Snowboard Team Manager
Pat Lee, originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is stepping into a new role for SVSEF as Snowboard Team Manager. In this position, Lee will oversee the Snowboard Team operations, as well as coach within the program. The position is embedded in the entire Pipe and Park Program, which is under the leadership of Tyler Conway. Lee attended Sierra Nevada College in Lake Tahoe where he earned his bachelor’s degree in international business. Lee has been a competitive freestyle snowboarder for over a decade. His enthusiasm for winter sports has resonated with his prior occupations; Lee has been a Smith Sport Optics athlete, a member of the operations crew for Prospecting Idaho (a Smith Optics web series/private snow cat operation) for four years, and has worked for the U.S. Snowboard Team in Grand Prix events operations and as head of operations and branding for the Rev Tour. Lee was a coach for SVSEF in 2008, and is looking forward to rejoining the program. Said Lee, “I am truly excited to join the SVSEF snowboarding program, and look forward to working with the talented kids and staff. I am fire up to help the athletes set goals and work towards achieving and developing the skills necessary to exceed their expectations. I love snowboarding and feel it is important to pass the tradition down to future generations.”
Chris Mallory, Cross Country Gold Team Head Coach
Chris Mallory returns to SVSEF and the Wood River Valley after a three-year hiatus, during which time he coached for cross-country powerhouse, the University of Vermont. Mallory will be replacing fellow Vermonter Colin Rodgers as head coach for the SVSEF Cross Country Gold Team, as Rodgers is returning to Vermont to assume the role of Green Mountain Valley School Cross Country Program Director. Mallory grew up racing first out of Colchester, Vermont, and then for the University of New Hampshire. Rick Kapala, SVSEF Program Director, said of Mallory’s hire, “We are really excited to have Chris returning to our SVSEF Cross Country program. Chris has a track record of demonstrated success at every level and he brings the depth of knowledge combined with a high energy work ethic that is critical for success at the Gold Team level.”
Erika Rixon, Director of Academics
Erika Rixon is transitioning from the role of Alpine North Series Head Coach to the SVSEF Director of Academics. In this position, Rixon will act as a liaison between SVSEF and the local school systems to better support athletes in balancing school and SVSEF athletics. Rixon will work with school counselors to develop programs that allow athletes to get adequate training while at the same time keeping up with their credit requirements for graduation. Rixon is no stranger to the other side of the equation, with a background in coaching since the 2007-2008 season, and having been a successful student-athlete herself. Rixon grew up skiing in the east before she attended the University of Colorado and the University of Utah for her undergraduate degree in sociology, during which time she also raced for the NCAA Alpine Ski Team. Rixon earned a M.A. in sport and performance psychology in 2012 from the University of the Rockies. With SVSEF, Rixon was an assistant coach for the U18-U21 program, before moving into the position of Head Women’s FIS coach. In the 2014-2015 season she traveled the World Cup circuit as a coach for Hailey Duke, before returning to SVSEF in her role as North Series Team Head Coach. Said Rixon on the importance of this program, “I watched so many kids phase out of skiing after years and hours of commitment and dedication for various reasons, but one is often times that school is hard to manage with how much is missed. Therefore, I look forward to the opportunity to make sure that the kids are getting the best of both worlds, education and ski, while recognizing that their ski career can be involved in their lives even after SVSEF.”
Program Start Dates
Please note the start date below for your specific program; if you have any questions, please contact your coach or call the office at (208) 726-4129.
Alpine FIS: September 6
Alpine USSA: September 6
Alpine Intermountain: October 3
Alpine North Series: October 10
Alpine Mini World Cup: October 10
Alpine Devo: November 1
Alpine LASAR: January 11
Cross Country Comp: May 1
Cross Country Prep: October 17
Cross Country Lake Creek Devo: October 31
Cross Country Croy Devo: November 29
Freeskiing Travel A: November 1 (Dryland is available in the Fall at no extra fee)
Freeskiing Travel B: November 1 (Dryland is available in the Fall at no extra fee)
Freeskiing Comp Home: December 1 (Dryland is available in the Fall at no extra fee)
Freestyle A and B: November 1 (Dryland is available in the Fall at no extra fee)
Freestyle Comp Home: December 1 (Dryland is available in the Fall at no extra fee)
Freestyle/Freeskiing Prep Team: December 2 on snow; dryland at the Airbarn is available in November for an additional fee
Freestyle/Freeskiing Devo Team: Early December on snow; dryland at the Airbarn is available in November for an additional fee
Apply for Financial Aid Today – Deadline is August 12th
SVSEF believes that any child with the desire to participate in one of our programs should be able to do so. As Interim Executive Director Sam Adicoff noted, “providing financial aid to our athletes and their families is always a strategic priority for our organization. We have been fortunate, through the generosity of our donors, to increase our financial aid awards from $150,000 three years ago to over $250,000 this year.”
We are now accepting applications for Financial Aid for the 2016-2017 season – the deadline to apply is Friday, August 12, 2016. All athletes and families are encouraged to apply. Financial Aid is need-based and will be evaluated based on the School and Student Service for Financial Aid (SSS) by NAIS. A special financial aid committee, comprised of board members and executive staff, reviews the reports and takes a very serious approach to evaluating financial need prior to making any final determination or award.
For more information and to apply today, please visit the SVSEF website.
If you have any questions, please call the office at (208) 726-4129 or email us at info@svsef.org.
SVSEF Executive Director Shares Survey Results
Hello All,
Thank you to everyone who participated in our year-end organizational survey. This process was simply intended to help us understand if you think the SVSEF does what we say we are do. We received 125 anonymous responses across all disciplines. Your comments were both insightful and critical to our process of monitoring our performance to better serve you and your children.
To summarize the survey results, over 90 percent reported you are satisfied with the program, feel we were meeting our stated mission and working well with the valley’s educational institutions. A trend in the comments for two of these questions was that you felt we focus too heavily on the best athletes. You feel we should make sure that we attend to the needs of all our athletes regardless of their ability. Inclusiveness is the quality you are looking for from the SVSEF.
89 percent of respondents feel our athletic /administrative staff meets the needs of athletes and families. 87 percent are satisfied with our communications and 84 percent feel we are actively instilling the SVSEF Core Values in our athletes (Passion-Perseverance-Sportsmanship-Teamwork-Creativity-Character). The trending comment on Core Values is we need to stress more teamwork and relationship building between the Snowboard, Nordic, Freestyle/Freeski and Alpine teams.
We take the results of this survey seriously and will use this important data to shape our future efforts. The 2015-16 season is well underway for our coaches and staff and we are very excited for what the coming year will bring.
I want to thank everyone in the SVSEF community for their commitment to the organization and its athletes, coaches, families, and friends. The SVSEF does a great service for the Wood River Valley as you have verified in your feedback. We have identified areas of improvement and will continue to strive for advancement in the way we work with kids in all our programs. We are a great team with our sights set on becoming even greater.
Rob
Rising Juniors, Seniors encouraged to apply for True North Scholarships
Thanks to the generosity of the Kalik Family, three SVSEF student/athletes will be given merit scholarships covering 50 percent of their tuition for the 2015-16 season. Recipients are chosen solely for merit, financial need is not a consideration. Last year’s honorees were Renee Shapiro, Grace Gorham and Wyatt Smith.
Here is the topic question for this year’s essay:
Has your experience as a member of the SVSEF empowered you and how will you carry this with you into the future?
The True North Award celebrates the spirit of John Randolph Kalik who found his best self in Idaho. Inspired by mountains and starry skies, he discovered inspiration, meaning and purpose. He delighted in joyful fun, transcendence, gratitude, and love. John was killed in a plane crash in 1980 at age 24. We are grateful for John’s legacy and the Kalik Family’s generosity that profoundly and positively impacts the lives of our SVSEF student/athletes.
Student-athletes are asked to submit essays to Jody Zarkos by Monday, June 15. Completed essays may be sent via e-mail to jody@svsef.org, USPS to P.O. Box 203, Sun Valley, Idaho 83353 or fax (208) 3548.
Olympic Day is a program-wide celebration that features field games and relays for SVSEF team members of all ages. Kids are asked to register for the event by clicking HERE.