Former women’s basketball standout Adrienne Shibles is returning to Bates College, but the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame coach won’t be bringing her whistle with her to the Lewiston campus.
The 1991 graduate, who built a hall of fame coaching career at rival Bowdoin College before leading the Division-I Dartmouth College women’s team the past two seasons, is transitioning to an administrative role as the associate director of athletics at Bates, the college announced Monday.
The appointment will take effect July 3.
Bowdoin women’s basketball coach Adrienne Shibles leads the Polar Bears in a Jan. 6, 2020, practice. Portland Press Herald file photo
“We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Adrienne back to Bates,” Bates Director of Athletics Jason Fein said in a college press release. “From her days as a star student-athlete with the Bobcats, to her incredible tenure as head coach with Bowdoin College, Adrienne knows the intricacies of the NESCAC student-athletes, coaches and staff extremely well. She will have a chance to make an immediate impact in building working and mentoring relationships with the Bobcats.”
According to the press release, Shibles will provide strategic leadership for the college’s athletic department, as well as vision in the design, implementation and assessment of student-athlete growth, with a focus on leadership development, academic success, health and well-being and equity and inclusion.
“I am thrilled for the opportunity to return home to Bates and to collaborate with passionate and principled coaches, administrators and campus partners,” Shibles said in the press release. “I would like to extend a special thank you to Jason Fein and (Deputy Director of Athletics) Celine Cunningham for their support throughout the process; I’m so excited to work alongside these two progressive leaders in serving the athletic department and greater Bates community.
“From its inception, Bates welcomed all to its campus and continues to promote inclusivity, equity and social justice as its guiding principles. I am honored to work at an institution that has always embraced these values, and I’m eager to give back to the community that provided me such a transformational life experience as a young woman.”
Shibles, who came to Bates as a student-athlete after growing up in Knox and graduating from Mount View High School, was a 1,000-point scorer for the Bobcats during her collegiate career.
After earning her Bachelor’s degree in history, Shibles moved on to Smith College, where she earned a Master’s degree in exercise and sports studies.
Other responsibilities as Bates’ ADA include serving as a bridge between the Advancement and Athletics departments, assisting in the cultivation of fundraising efforts and helping further the development of the Friends of Bates Athletics giving program, according to the press release. She will also oversee a coach development program, focusing on the successful onboarding and support for head coaches and assistant coaches during their tenure at Bates.
Shibles began her coaching career at Division-III Swarthmore College, where she also served as a an Associate Professor of Physical Education. After nine years in Pennsylvania, she returned to Maine as the Dean of Athletics and Co-curricular Programs at Gould Academy in Bethel.
Shibles transitioned back to coaching as she began a 13-year career at Bowdoin, which featured 281 wins, 11 NCAA Division III Tournament appearances and a pair of national championship runner-up finishes.
She finished her coaching career at Dartmouth before stepping down in April.
Shibles is joining a Bates Athletic Department that includes her daughter, Elsa Daulerio, a rising sophomore on the women’s basketball team who led the Bobcats in rebounds and blocks and earned all-state honors as a freshman.
“My twenty-nine years as a collegiate coach were incredibly rewarding, and over that time I was privileged to collaborate with dedicated and passionate student-athletes,” Shibles said in the press release. “Through the wins and losses, the relationships built through coaching have always been the most fulfilling part of the job, and serving the Bates Athletic Department will give me the opportunity to continue to coach and mentor in a different capacity. Though my role has changed, my purpose as an educator remains the same: to support and empower others.”
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