Promoting Women’s Coaching: Grants Distributed, C-Diploma Workshops funding
Canada Soccer is proud to share the progress in the AccelerateHER program, which aims to enhance gender equity in the Canadian advanced coaching landscape. This update highlights the allocation of grants to 50 coaches and the funding of four all-women C-Diploma workshops in collaboration with provincial associations.
AccelerateHER has provided financial support to 50 women coaches nationwide throughout eight provincial organizations.
“Canada Soccer received overwhelming interest from women coaches across the country in response to the AccelerateHER program launch,” said Sara McConaghy, Director of Community & Fund Development. “The demand underscores the need for initiatives like AccelerateHER to advance and support women in coaching. The highly enthusiastic engagement we have received highlights the untapped potential and eagerness among women coaches to excel in our game. AccelerateHER is a vital step towards creating an inclusive and equitable coaching landscape in Canada Soccer.”
The list of grant recipients includes:
British Columbia
Brianna Morden – Coquitlam Metro Ford Soccer Club
Alberta
Cat Fox – New Frontier Soccer Academy
Aleasha Weicker-Pasternak – St. Albert Impact
Manitoba
Tonya Derkson – Université de Saint-Boniface
Ontario
Mallory MacDonald – Brams United Soccer Club
Melanie Jimenez – BVB International Waterloo
Laura Arduini – North Mississauga SC
Christina Romanelli – Toronto Blizzard SC
Québec
Julie Casselman – CF Montreal
Nova Scotia
Fawn Mulholland – United DFC
British Columbia
Tanya Laine Racher – Nanaimo United FC
Lee-Ann Denham – North Shore Girls Soccer Club
Haley Bartram – Kamloops Youth Soccer Association
Alberta
Bryn Cleasby – Scottish United Soccer Club
Angie De Benedetto – EMSA / Warriors Soccer Club
Marni Devlin Moses – Edmonton Sting FC
Marie Ingram – KC Trojans Soccer Association
Catherine Ridgeway – Swan City FC
Saskatchewan
Shirley Potts – FC Regina
Tarin Ballan – Queen City Soccer Club
Manitoba
Anisha Kinnarath Salam – A.K. Soccer Academy
Alison Clarke – Manitoba Soccer Association
Rochelle Dziadekwich – Manitoba Soccer Association
Nova Scotia
Sylvie Smith-Ford – Inter Halifax Soccer Club
Meghan Earle – Suburban FC / Soccer Nova Scotia
Yukon
Sarah Hanson – Yukon Soccer Association
Ontario
Andrea Petrina – Hamilton United Elite Soccer Club
Natasha Araya Lentz – Toronto High Park FC
Brogan Marhsalsey – BVB International Waterloo
Sydney Vander Hoef – Guelph Youth Soccer Club
Laura Twidle – Oakville Soccer Club
Simone Chiodo – FC Durham Academy
Francesca Cardwell – Burlington Soccer Club
Faziela Haffejee – FC Durham Academy
Tessa Dimitrakopoulos – Oak Ridges Soccer Club
Sarah Pacheco – London TFC
Québec
Andréa Fox – Celtix du Haut-Richelieu
Andréanne Thériault – Club de Soccer de Trois-Rivieres
Chloé Cummings – Club de Soccer de Roussillon
Elena Waldispuehl - CS Montreal
Éloïse Bélec – A.S Blainville
Gilleanne Estrada-Cortez – Association Regionale de Soccer Concordia
Katy Fontaine – Revolution FC
Mélanie Desrosiers – Revolution FC
Sheila Couture – Mistral de Sherbrooke
Stéphanie Lopez – Club Soccer Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve
Alberta
Gabriela Tiemstra – Calgary Villains FC
British Columbia
Meegan Maultsaid – North Shore Girls Soccer Club
Saskatchewan
Jaime Drader – Valley Soccer Association
Ontario
Cassandra Briscoe – Future Girls Soccer United
In addition to individual grants, the AccelerateHER program has partnered with Alberta Soccer, Manitoba Soccer Association, Soccer Quebec, and Soccer Nova Scotia to fund and host all-women C-Diploma workshops.
Details about these workshops will be communicated directly by each Member Association.
AccelerateHER will continue to support all women coaches accepted in Canada Soccer’s 2024/25 Advanced Coach Education Workshops by offering access to an additional national network of support and comprehensive program content, which will enhance their skills and diploma workshop experience.