Teacher Spotlight; Mrs. Schmitz

Mia Taggart and Hadlie Brady
September 20, 2022

For this week’s spotlight we decided to focus on coaches/teachers. We have chosen to interview Mrs. Schmitz. She teaches Computer Science classes and coaches girls’ basketball as well as JV volleyball. 

  1. How do you balance coaching after school and teaching all day?
    • Balancing coaching and teaching takes some serious planning and organization. It’s honestly, really hard to keep up. Balance usually includes spending some extra time outside of both school and coaching to make sure things are done and ready to go for the next day.
  2. What is the biggest challenge you face during coaching?
    • The biggest challenge I face with coaching would be entering and updating stats for the girls. I know that this is not required of me but I know it benefits me as a coach and the players know what areas we need to work on.
  3. What is the biggest challenge you face during teaching?
    • During teaching, the biggest challenge is definitely keeping up with grading. Teaching a subject like coding and computer science there are a lot of pieces that go into successful projects.
  4. How do you overcome these challenges?
    • To overcome these, like I mentioned previously, I just have to stay organized. If I can have a detailed to-do list for myself while I’m working during my plan, before school, and at home I will likely get the tasks completed in a more timely manner.
  5. If you had to choose, would you choose full-time teaching or full-time coaching?
    • It would be a tough decision, but ultimately I would choose teaching. This choice would give me the ability to impact the lives of more students. However, I love coaching and could never see myself giving up one for the other fully.
  6. Why did you start coaching?
    • I started coaching because I love watching athletes grow. The impact you can make is so rewarding.
  7. How long have you been coaching/teaching?
    • I started my 4th year teaching this year (2nd at WRHS) and this will be my 8th year coaching volleyball. I’m looking forward to coaching a second year of basketball this year, too.