Coley tabbed to help lead Wayne Country Day School athletics
BY AVIEL SMOLKAASMOLKA@NEWSARGUS.COM
Wayne Countr y Day School athletics direc-tor David Flowers and Head of School Todd Anderson had a problem. They needed to hire a new assistant athletic director.Enter Marlon Coley. The former Charger returned to his alma mater after Flowers and Anderson recently hired him to the positions of assistant athletics director and assistant basketball coach.
Coley said the opportunity gives him a chance to help continue Wayne Country Day’s run of success while also capitalizing on the opportunity to be a hands-on presence with the Chargers’ student-athletes.
“I can’t really put it into words,” Coley said. “I’ve seen the school grow tremendously over the last 10 years from the moment I stepped on campus to the moment I took the job and decided to come back. I’m ecstatic to help the kids grow, mature and teach life lessons.“It’s just a really great opportunity for me to come back.”
Coley, who played high school basketball at Wayne Country Day from 2010-2014, recognized early on in his career that basketball isn’t just a sport. It’s a tool that would play a significant part in determining his next chapter.After getting injured his senior season, Coley always held his head high and kept working hard to achieve his goals. He graduated high school and attended Campbell University. Two weeks after graduating from Campbell, Anderson sat Coley down and told him the job was his if he wanted it.And Coley jumped at the opportunity.
“Marlon is such a success stor y for us,” Anderson said. “I was just as lucky as I could possibly be because this is a kid who pulled himself up by his boot-straps. That kid is self-made, and he did the work by himself.
“I’m just so proud of him.”
The experiences Coley built up through-out his life have imbued him with a unique perspective on student-athlete life. It’s a perspective he said that will help inform his priorities and outlook in his new job.
“At one point I’m a student-athlete, gradu-ate and I’m an alum, now I’m a staff mem-ber,” Coley said. “I’m just grateful for the opportunity to give back to the school that helped me so much. That helped me get to where I want to go, and now I’m coming back to give back.”
BY AVIEL SMOLKAASMOLKA@NEWSARGUS.COM
Wayne Countr y Day School athletics direc-tor David Flowers and Head of School Todd Anderson had a problem. They needed to hire a new assistant athletic director.Enter Marlon Coley. The former Charger returned to his alma mater after Flowers and Anderson recently hired him to the positions of assistant athletics director and assistant basketball coach.
Coley said the opportunity gives him a chance to help continue Wayne Country Day’s run of success while also capitalizing on the opportunity to be a hands-on presence with the Chargers’ student-athletes.
“I can’t really put it into words,” Coley said. “I’ve seen the school grow tremendously over the last 10 years from the moment I stepped on campus to the moment I took the job and decided to come back. I’m ecstatic to help the kids grow, mature and teach life lessons.“It’s just a really great opportunity for me to come back.”
Coley, who played high school basketball at Wayne Country Day from 2010-2014, recognized early on in his career that basketball isn’t just a sport. It’s a tool that would play a significant part in determining his next chapter.After getting injured his senior season, Coley always held his head high and kept working hard to achieve his goals. He graduated high school and attended Campbell University. Two weeks after graduating from Campbell, Anderson sat Coley down and told him the job was his if he wanted it.And Coley jumped at the opportunity.
“Marlon is such a success stor y for us,” Anderson said. “I was just as lucky as I could possibly be because this is a kid who pulled himself up by his boot-straps. That kid is self-made, and he did the work by himself.
“I’m just so proud of him.”
The experiences Coley built up through-out his life have imbued him with a unique perspective on student-athlete life. It’s a perspective he said that will help inform his priorities and outlook in his new job.
“At one point I’m a student-athlete, gradu-ate and I’m an alum, now I’m a staff mem-ber,” Coley said. “I’m just grateful for the opportunity to give back to the school that helped me so much. That helped me get to where I want to go, and now I’m coming back to give back.”
