Student: What drew you back to Springfield College to take on this new role?
Stern: There was an exciting opportunity that hadn’t been open. That opportunity opened up, and really, this place is about teaching and development. It was a decision to leave coaching the highest level of athletes to go coach [with] the highest level of coaches, and that’s what this place does. That opportunity was there, and I just happened to be in Western Mass. again. It was 30 minutes down the road, and it made sense. It felt like where my soul was meant to be.
Student: How have your experiences at UMass Amherst, Iowa, and Central Michigan shaped your coaching philosophy and approach to strength and conditioning?
Stern: Well, think about all the people… we coach people and human beings, all the people with different personalities, memories, experiences and stories. You take all that, and it helps you form that philosophy of how to coach people and do things the right way. I got to bring that experience here and do it with the people at my alma mater. And frankly, I went here. I understand this culture. It makes sense. It’s about doing the right thing for others and performing to the best of your ability, in that nature.
Student: How do you approach developing strength and conditioning programs for athletes across the different sports, each with their own physical demands and performance?
Stern: First and foremost, we have six really incredible young coaches that have anywhere from three to four teams each. I have two teams of my own, and I assist with one team — one of our larger programs. In that nature, they’re all responsible, and they take pride in understanding what it takes to develop each of their own different teams that they have, so they can, to the best of their ability in this environment, get specific with their programs and what they need. They work closely with the coach and the sports medicine staff. They do a lot of research, a lot of studying, a lot of extra time that you never see, to make sure that the sets, the reps, the technique, the execution, the movements are all dialed in for each of their respective teams, so they get the best product.
Student: How do you connect with all the athletes that come into the weight room?
Stern: We work with people, right? Relationships. If my words and my actions fall in line with each other, and everything I do is in their best interest, or what I believe to be their best interest, well, that’s an easy connection point. I want them to build confidence, build leadership skills, build their ability from a strength, power, speed standpoint, movement quality standpoint, a tissue quality standpoint, and with the goal of helping them achieve their goals and becoming the best they possibly can. And if I have that in mind, and all of our coaches out there have that in mind, well, that’s a really good start, isn’t it? And then you dive deeper trying to understand who’s in front of you.
Student: Having previously been a student-athlete at Springfield, how does that experience influence the way you work with athletes?
Stern: I knew what it was like at one point for four straight years to run around with blood, sweat, and tears in this room, and I understood what it was to earn things, to attack the process, to be part of average teams, but also be part of very successful teams. I know what it’s like to go through that process. I know what it’s like to have different GAs coaching you, coaches in and out, the day-to-day, the other 23 hours of the day you’re not inside this room. I understand what those buildings are, what they feel like, what they smell like, what it’s like to go to Cheney at night and in the morning and for lunch and all that. I lived that, and it does help me relate to some of our student-athletes, but I don’t take that for granted. I’m extremely grateful to be back here. You know, it’s really cool.
Student: How do you hope to involve Springfield students in strength and conditioning and help them prepare for careers in the field?
Stern: I believe that you should have the largest welcome mat in front of your door on the entire campus. This school, its product is the people, and exercise science plays an enormous role in that. Anybody on campus is absolutely welcome. But also, I’m going to make an effort to leave out here, leave these doors, and go build that relational infrastructure outside these walls. I don’t want to be confined to this office or this weight room. I’m going to build relationships on all parts of campus. So then it creates this kind of network on campus that’s very inviting. It’s very warm. I want people, it doesn’t matter if they’re an athlete or not, to come in here and build confidence with the knowledge and the coaching. I want them to understand themselves and who they are and who they want to be as they build out their direction here, and then when they leave, you know, our graduate program is the biggest it’s ever been, and with strength and conditioning specifically, what a cool opportunity you’re gonna have. I get to influence that in a very positive way.
Student: What are some of your biggest goals for the strength and conditioning program in your first year?
Stern: That relational structure is going to be huge. Really navigating what we have, where we’ve been, who we are, and what we have, and who we can be, and then kindling those relationships that Dr. T has cultivated over such a long period of time when he was here. Continuing to cultivate more relationships, and continuing to invest both on the academic side and the athletic side, because this is a cool room where it’s actually an academic space. It’s almost like an academic lab, but it houses 760-plus student-athletes. You said 20-plus sports and all their head sports coaches. The academics and the athletics really come together in that teacher-coach philosophy, so cultivating those relationships. I would really like to see a sports nutrition element to this student-athlete experience. Because if we’re talking human performance, well, realistically, inside this room, they break down. The other 23 hours of the day – sleep, recovery, nutrition, habits, behaviors – are how they can come back in here the next day and continue the effort. So it’d be nice to have a nutrition, athletic nutrition piece with it.
Student: Anything else you want students to know about you?
Stern: I want to be the biggest welcome mat on campus. Please come by the office anytime. I love to talk shop. I want to be a stepping stone for anybody who wears that triangle on their shirt and in their heart. I’m lucky and grateful that I get to do that.