New Athletic Director Is No Stranger to Dimond Athletics

After the retirement of former athletic director and teacher John Snead, it was pretty obvious as to who should obtain the job of athletic director at Dimond.

Kathleen Navarre is the varsity flag football coach and is very involved in all of the sports around Dimond High, as well as being a math teacher and the director of graduation. 

She was not directly asked to have the job, she said. Everyone sort of just saw it coming. 

Navarre said “Everyone expected me to become Athletic Director, but administration did not ask me personally to do it.”

Since taking on her new job, she has not had very many big changes in her schedule because of her major involvement with sports already. However, one big change is that she no longer has a conference period.

 Navarre said “It is a huge struggle to not have a class period to focus on athletics and activities.”

Before, she did not have to deal with gym scheduling, which is the biggest change from last year to this year.

At the beginning of the year Navarre said, “She was building gym schedules and dealing with the smoke and cancelled practice times outdoors.”

When asked about things that she has to do now, Navarre said “The major thing is the facilities schedule to accommodate all the sports that are in season and out of season wanting space to train.”

Having a new task to take on can be difficult. However, Navarre seems to be liking it. 

Navarre said “I’m liking it. Not having the [extra] class period is challenging, but I love sports and activities and working with coaches and athletes!”

There has not been a huge change at all.

Navarre said, “I already supported all the coaches and athletes.”

If you are a student athlete at this school, odds are you know how caring Navarre is and how much she puts into Dimond athletics.

She takes care of a lot of students physically and emotionally. She will be the first to buy them lunch if they do not have it and be a great listener if they are in need of someone to talk to.

Senior Haley Rogers has a great relationship with Navarre. 

Rogers said, “I would describe my relationship with Navarre as a continuous support system,” which is probably the same for many student athletes around Dimond.

Skyler Coleman, a junior at Dimond High School, is another one of Ms. Navarre’s athletes and said, “I would describe my relationship with Ms. Navarre as very close. I know that I can go to her with any question or problem I have.”

One thing that sets Navarre apart from most other coaches at Dimond is how much she really cares about her athletes. 

Coleman said “My favorite thing about her as a coach is how well she gets to know her athletes.” 

Coleman and Rogers can also both agree that she is always there to push student athletes to their full potential.

Sometimes she can even push them so hard they would think she is mad at them, but Coleman knows that is not the case. 

Coleman said “She pushes you to be your very best.” 

According to Coleman, one of Navarre’s favorite sayings is, “I’m not yelling at you ‘cause I’m mad, it’s ‘cause I love you!”

On top of all the athletics, Ms. Navarre makes school easier and better helping with assignments as well as being a shoulder to cry on. 

Rogers said, “Ms. Navarre has made high school easier for me by helping me with my school work, sports and hard times.”

Coleman said, “She is always there for me, whether it is for sports, school or personal life.” 

Having a teacher that is reliable and trustworthy is always important, especially throughout high school. Staff and students trust her to take care of the athletic department.