  | Once a public school physical education teacher, Charlie Connery is now URI's award winning gymnastics coach. | ||||||||||
An Unexpected CareerBy Shane Donaldson The road to success and happiness was a short one--at least geographically--for URI's women's gymnastics coach Charlie Connery, Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year in 1999-2000 who is now in his 21st season with the Rams. Connery's unexpected career as a college coach was kindled during his days as a public school physical education teacher in North Kingstown, R.I. After watching tryouts for a middle school basketball team back in 1971, Connery saw the need for another activity for many of the boys at the school. "I saw 90 boys try out for the school basketball team and only 15 made it," Connery said. "That meant 75 unhappy junior high kids went home with nothing."
Rather than watch so many students go without an activity, Connery began an after-school gymnastics program. There was such a following that several of the middle school boys started a team when they moved on to high school. Next the girls asked to participate, and soon there was a heavy demand for gymnastics coaching. "After watching the after-school program develop, parents asked if the children could have more," Connery said. "We got an old mill building, and with the help of many volunteers, we fixed the mill up, did a lot of fundraising, bought gymnastics equipment, and started to offer the sport year round." In 1980, after nine years of teaching in public schools, Connery moved down the road to become the head gymnastics coach at his alma mater. He took over a program in just its fourth year of existence, and in his second season his team made its first-ever post-season appearance. Despite the pressures that can come with a top-level college program, Connery keeps the goals for his team in check. "It's not the ultimate goal, but the reality is that there is a route to a national championship," Connery said. "We do want national recognition, and we do want to be competitive, but we do not have, nor want, a win-at-all-cost mentality. There is success in knowing that if we are having the best meet of our lives, we can be competitive with any team in the country." Since joining the Rams, Connery has coached 10 post-season teams, including seven in the last eight seasons. Though he has been a driving force behind the growth of gymnastics both in his hometown and at URI, Connery stresses that he is only a small part of the success. "All of the development of gymnastics in this area through the years has been made possible by the students, the assistants, the trainers, and the volunteers," Connery said. "Those are the people who form a team. By no means should it comes across as the success of one person." Connery is proud of the success of Rhode Island's gymnastics program. However, he is just as proud of the advancements made by URI as a whole. "I've seen new dorms built, the opening of the Mackal Field House, and improvements to both the Memorial Union and the Library. Those are three key areas for improving the University," said Connery, who graduated from URI with a bachelor's degree in 1971 and went on to earn his master's degree in 1976. "Being a part of the development is exciting. When I was first here, only 20 percent of the students were out-of-state or international. Today, more than 50 percent of the student body is out-of-state and there are students from more than 75 countries." The growth of the University as a whole has in turn helped the athletic program, a fact not lost on Connery. "The more our teams gain regional and national attention, the better the quality of the students that we attract," Connery said. "We are the state school, and it's important to provide higher education for in-state students, but by recruiting student-athletes from all over country, particularly in the Northeast and just outside of New England, we attract better student-athletes. The athletes we bring in realize that we care about them both as athletes and as people. We build adult relationships on trust, which helps the athletes see the program grow." In Connery's eyes, any success of the gymnastics program is shared by the other athletic programs at URI, and vice-versa. "Any time any of our intercollegiate programs--whether its sailing, lacrosse or basketball--compete at the national level, it helps all of us," Connery said. "Show support for all the programs, and we all will benefit." To help ensure that his gymnasts continue to benefit from URI's program, Connery has devoted his career to teaching a sport that has always fascinated him. When he is not in season with the Rams or conducting one of several gymnastics camps throughout the year, Connery is most likely attending a camp himself. "There is so much to be gained from attending camps. People want to learn from me, and I feel I can always learn from others as well," Connery said. "When I started North Kingstown's after-school program, the idea was to instill enthusiasm for the sport. To see the skill levels of the gymnasts keep growing has kept that enthusiasm alive. But it's a challenge to keep the skills improving, which is why we travel to clinics. If you stand still, you are going backward. We need to keep the program moving forward." A three-sport star in high school, Connery ran cross-country and participated in indoor and outdoor track while at URI. Unfortunately he had to stop competing in order to work to pay for school. This experience helps him relate both to the athletes on his squad and to the parents and fans supporting them. "After the competition ends, the athletes know they have parents, friends, and fans who have waited to see them," Connery said. "We go out and work the crowd and mingle with them. We want to let everyone know how we feel about their support." A former Good 5¢ Cigar sports writer, Shane Donaldson '99 is a reporter for the New England Patriots Football Weekly and for the team's Web site at Patriots.com. |
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