Tara Dunsmore – 18U White – Assistant Coach

This is Tara’s seventh year of assistant coaching with the Park Girls Volleyball Club and is a Certified Development Coach with Volleyball Canada.

Tara has successfully earned two diplomas from the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, including Personal Fitness Trainer.  As part of this path at NAIT, she took courses in Movement Mechanics, Physiology of Exercise, Nutrition, Applied Physiology of Exercise, Functional Training and Assessment, Resistance Training and Assessment and received her AFLCA (Alberta Fitness Leadership Certification Association) and CPAFLA (Canadian Physical Activity and Lifestyle Approach) certifications.

Being involved in the sport of volleyball for over 30 years, Tara brings with her a wealth of experience and knowledge.  She began coaching volleyball during the 1998/1999 season as an assistant coach for the NAIT women’s volleyball team while completing her Personal Fitness Training diploma.  It was not until recently that she continued her passion for coaching volleyball when her oldest daughter was eligible to play volleyball in Junior High school.

In her first year as head coach in 2022 Tara finished top 10 in Division 1 in each 13U Volleyball Alberta Premier tournament placing 3rd, 4th, and 6th place respectively. In 2023 her 13U-White team placed 1st in Division 1 in both Premier 1 & 2, and 4th place in Provincials. This past season her 15U team remained in Division 1 all year, concluding with another 4th place finish at Provincials. Tara has also assisted 4 seasons for the Lakeland Ridge’s Jr. & Sr. girls volleyball teams in Sherwood Park with her husband Patrick.  Together, their primary goal is the long-term player development of their athletes by focusing on strong fundamental and technical skills.  In addition to coaching volleyball, Tara has coached four seasons of soccer at the U6 and U8 age level where she completed a Canadian Soccer Association course for developmental athletes.

Tara played the setter position for NAIT during her 3 seasons from 1995-1998.  In her final season, she was awarded the Silver Torch Award as the team’s Most Valuable Player. In that same year, she was selected to the All-Star team for the ACAC North Division.