FAIRBANKS, AK – The University of Alaska Fairbanks department of athletics is pleased to announce that two finalists for the Alaska Nanooks women's basketball head coaching position will visit Fairbanks on Tuesday, April 20 to partake in on-campus interviews and various meetings.
The finalists are Jennifer Childress of Western Washington University and John Duncan of the University of Maine at Machias.
Both candidates will have opportunities to meet with the search committee, athletic department staff, the team, select university administrators and members of the local media.
The following is a brief synopsis of each candidate's resume:
Jennifer Childress
Last month, Childress finished her fifth year as a full-time assistant women's basketball coach at WWU, where she has been a part of the Vikings program that made three post-season appearances during her first four years.
Her previous experience includes four seasons as an assistant coach at Cal State San Bernardino, being the Coyotes' top assistant for two seasons. She was also a part-time assistant at WWU during the 2001-02 season, when the Vikings won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship and reached the NCAA Division II West Regional title game.
She taught physical education and health for seven years at Meridian High School and was at the helm of the girl's basketball team for six seasons. In that time, she guided the Trojans to three straight state tournament appearances, winning a district title and reaching the championship game of the Class 2A state tournament in 2000. The 1999 North Cascades Conference Coach of the Year, she posted winning records in each of her last five seasons and was the Northwest Bi-District Tournament Coach of the Year in 1998 and 2000.
Childress completed her master's degree in education from City University (Bellevue) in 2001 and obtained a bachelor's degree in 1992 for physical education at George Fox University (Newberg, OR).
John Duncan
Duncan has been a college basketball head coach for eleven seasons and is no stranger to turning programs around. In just his second season at the helm for UMM, Duncan led his team to a 16-10 overall record, an 8-4 mark in the Sunrise Conference and their first final four conference tournament appearance in recent history.
Prior to signing on as UMM's head volleyball and basketball coach, Duncan was assistant professor of social sciences and head softball coach at Southern Wesleyan University (South Carolina). A native of Virginia, Duncan began his collegiate head coaching career at Midway College (Kentucky) where he served as women's basketball coach, volleyball coach, and athletic director. He led teams to three NSCAA national tournaments and was named NAIA Coach of the Year in 1995.
Duncan moved on to Catawba College (North Carolina) as head women's basketball coach in 1996, where he led the Indians to 150 wins in seven seasons, won three conference championships and advanced to NCAA Division II regional play on two occasions. He was named conference coach of the year in 2000 and 2002 and is the winningest coach in Catawba women's basketball history.
A graduate of Mary Baldwin College and The University of Southern Mississippi, Duncan holds a B.A. in history education and a master's degree in educational curriculum and instruction.
