November/December 2019 - 18

Lessons Learned:
ADDING A
NEW SPORT
How Bloomsburg University successfully
launched a women's volleyball program
By Michael McFarland, contributing writer
Bloomsburg University was faced with a serious
problem - it had a need to increase sport offerings for the
underrepresented women.
Adding a new sport to an already crowded landscape,
both within your institution and your conference, is not
as easy as one would think. Sure, there are the knowns:
budget, playing venue, recruiting, coaching and a locker
room. Then there are the unknowns: effect on all other
programs, burden on equipment operations, athletic
training, event staff and general scheduling concerns. A
new program, while welcomed and necessary to advance
your institution, comes with growing pains and challenges.
Here are six lessons learned when NCAA Division
II institution Bloomsburg University added women's
volleyball.
1
.Plan, review, change, plan, review. Is the budget
.identified? Is the budget enough to cover the
expenses? What's the right roster size? How about playing
area and locker room? What impact does the new sport
have on other programs? Do you have storage space for the
equipment and uniforms? The questions are endless.
The key is understanding that not every question has
an answer without first determining what the growth for
the program will be, and what impact it will have on the
existing sport offerings. Bloomsburg first benchmarked
intercollegiate women's volleyball programs within our
conference to determine how each institution handled its
operations. Upon reviewing the information, we developed
our overall operating budget plan and scholarship fouryear
plan (incremental growth year-to-year for each
recruiting class). Yet, while we looked at best practices and
compared budgets to like-sized programs, there were still
a host of unknowns.
We learned one thing from the development process:
Plan for the unexpected. The unexpected may not
even relate to budget or items that you know may be
placeholders until more definite details emerge, like the
exact salary for the head coach versus the salary range.
An example of the unexpected included the relocation of
our softball team locker room to a location closer to their
field, and providing the new volleyball program the softball
locker room. We knew this was going to take place. What
we did not take into consideration was that internet access
16 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019
was not available at the satellite locker room for the
softball team. That forced us to purchase Wi-Fi equipment
so student-athletes were not negatively impacted and had
the ability to study prior to practice. This prompted us to
review our plan, make changes and evaluate a new plan.
The operating budget is another area where flexibility
must be designed into a program's launch. We opened year
one with line items for recruiting and limited coaches gear.
This seems simple and spot on for a coach to represent
the program and recruit a first-year team. However, the
department did not have a volleyball sport-specific logo.
No funding was set aside to create the logo, so we adjusted
and provided the coach and program with proper branding
for improved visibility.
With year two and the first year of competition, we created
a budget based on similar sports travel, meals, lodging,
officiating fees, uniforms and supplies. What we learned
almost immediately is that with a new roster of players, the
travel costs exceeded expectations. This forced an evaluation
and budget recalibration for year two of competition.
Planning, reviewing the plan, adjusting and making
changes is critical to a successful launch of the new program.
Expect the unexpected, and be prepared to adjust in
support of the student-athletes. That way, the entire athletic
department will benefit with the addition of a new sport.
2
.Hiring the right coach. As easy as this may sound,
.it's critical to hire an individual who aligns with the
institution's goals and athletic mission. It's also important
to note that the right coach needs to blend with an
established staff. Everything the program will do is new,
and the program and coach will be looking to merge in
while getting a slice of the pie.
Balancing a new sport, new student-athletes, fitting into
the scheduling puzzle, and creating a culture to align with
existing efforts is difficult. The right coach must be able
to navigate the challenges and create a niche within the
other established programs. There needs to be ongoing
discussions and give-and-take from everyone in the
department. This helps the new sport gel and provides a
successful platform for the coach.
One lesson learned was outlining the roster goals for
the first two years of the start-up program. Bloomsburg
wanted to ensure that the program would have enough
November/December 2019

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