At Sky Academy we have three College Counselors: Dan, Korie and Margaret who work collaboratively throughout the high school years bringing unique yet complementary experiences and advice to the prospective college athlete and her family.
Dan Durkin. Coach Dan has 32 years as a D1 college coach with 14 years at Duquesne University with record as all time winningest coach in Duquesne history. He knows what it takes to play in college, and he understands from first-hand experience what college coaches are seeking and how the recruiting process works especially at the D1 level. He has many coaching connections among the country’s top conferences. Please see these testimonials from former Coach Dan college athletes.
Korie Hlede. Korie transformed herself from a high functioning 12-year professional player into an expert coach and trainer. She is a student of the game and deeply understands where the game is headed. She is an excellent teacher and a successful coach with 10+ years at AAU level. She is one of the owners of Sky Academy. Click here for her bio.
Margaret Stender. Margaret was the founding CEO of the WNBA Chicago Sky. She has 30+ years’ experience in marketing, communications, and professional business. She is also one of the owners of Sky Academy. Click here for her bio.
These three counselors will collaborate with you and your family to assess the current state of your game and academic situation, discuss your goals and aspirations of playing in college, and help you create an action toward those goals. The action plan will include the following.
- Suggestions for improving your game to make it college ready
- Focal areas for academic preparation
- List of prospective colleges
- Communication recommendations for building relationships with college coaches
- On-going advice, counsel, suggestions once you begin to engage with colleges