As a tenured 8 year Evanston Township girls varsity basketball coach and FIBA gold medalist coach, there was no better option to appoint the new position of Assistant Athletic Director than Evanston coach Brittany Johnson.
With this title, it may seem that Johnson’s job only reflects in the athletic portion of students’ lives. However, this position was created in order to assist student athletes with the other aspects of being a student athlete, outside of just playing their sport.
“I’m most excited that, since I’ve worked with only the girls basketball team as a head coach, I now get to work with all student athletes,” said Johnson, while talking about some of her new responsibilities as Assistant Athletic Director.
In her new position, she will be overseeing and supporting the academic side of athletes’ lives, while also expanding leadership programs and opportunities for student athletes, such as an Athlete Advisory Council and the Varsity Club.
The Athlete Advisory council, she described is, “composed of our senior leader athletes, who will start initiatives to represent all programs, and get involved with the Kitpit.”
The expansion of this program is an effort by Johnson to increase student engagement in sports activities like games, which she believes will help strengthen Evanston athletics as a whole. In addition, the Varsity Club is another organization Johnson is working to initiate, which consists of varsity athletes coming together for committees to better the Evanston Athletic program.
“I’m really looking to transform our Athletic Department in regards to focusing on things that I think will really help students grow as leaders,” said Johnson.
Another huge focal point in this transformation is on the mental health side of student-athletes’ lives. In the past few years, mental health in sports has taken a forefront, which has led many to realize that the mental workload on many student-athletes’ can often be overwhelming and stressful. Johnson, whose specialty is student wellbeing, has started two new programs that enable student-athletes to work with mental skills coaches, as well as a student athlete support group, which she hopes can lessen the mental toll on students.
“We want them to build a community of student-athletes who have the same mental challenges, and provide them with a safe space where they can open up and heal together.”
Throughout these student led programs that Johnson is working to expand, she has one main goal, “to help our students grow.” These student-led initiatives give student athletes an opportunity that they have not previously been presented with, which is the ability to give their own input on the athletic program that they participate in.
“The biggest thing is giving [student athletes] a voice,” Johnson noted, regarding her hopes for the year, “I want all of our student-athletes to have a voice and a say in how we run our athletic department, and I just want to be the bridge that allows them to do that.”
Johnson’s dedication to Evanston township’s success and equity between students and staff has landed her in a new role this school year, in which she is already making huge strides. She hoped that down the line one of these programs could change a student’s life.
“I envision [Johnson] creating more opportunities for student-athletes,” said Athletic Director Chris Livatino. “Especially students that want to take advantage of getting an almost collegiate level athletic experience in the High School setting.
