Coach Alice Lee, the new Director of Athletics, fell in love with sports at a young age, playing pickup basketball and backyard tennis with the other kids in her neighborhood. Still uncertain of her future career path, her passion for coaching blossomed while working at a lacrosse summer camp. One day, a sign came: an athlete at the camp wrote her a letter that she still keeps with her to this day, as a reminder of why she still coaches.

Even though she had only known Coach Alice for just a few days, the athlete wrote that Coach Alice had changed her in ways beyond lacrosse. Coach Alice had changed the athlete’s life. That was the moment when she knew that she wanted to continue making this impact on other athletes. “I credit that letter,” Coach Alice said. “I was like, ‘Wow, could I do this for a living?’ There were other college coaches at that camp too, and I was like, ‘You guys get to do this every day?’”

Coach Alice Lee, the new Director of Athletics, is stepping into her first year at Westridge, succeeding the previous Athletics Director, Coach Melanie Horn. She is a seasoned coach who has coached collegiate women’s lacrosse for over 16 years. Since graduating Central Connecticut State University as a three-time, all-conference selection for the D1 lacrosse team as a goalkeeper, Coach Alice has coached collegiate lacrosse at Amherst College, Middlebury College, and most recently, Williams College where she coached their Division 3 Lacrosse team. In her 8-year career with Williams, her leadership developed women’s lacrosse to be nationally recognized in the National Collegiate Athlete Association (NCAA) top-10. 

Coach Alice has also been deeply committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in women’s sports. Although she is an avid sports fan, she noticed clear signs of the gender gap while coaching collegiate lacrosse and watching national television coverage on lacrosse games. “The equity lens came a lot from the many times men’s teams get way more coverage [than women’s teams],” she said. 

While coaching at Williams College, she was an active member of the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coach’s Association (IWLCA) where she developed programs prioritizing female athletes’ mental health. One of the programs included a leadership program for student athletes of color. “Because women’s lacrosse is not a very racially or socioeconomically diverse sport, we felt as though student athletes of color didn’t have as much support,” she said. “It was a way for them to find community and to acknowledge things that are more relevant within their group.”

Coach Alice’s DEI work for co-ed colleges drew her closer to the inclusive and wellness-oriented Westridge athletics mission, especially for an all-girls education. When she visited Westridge’s campus, she realized that she could expand her impact beyond women’s lacrosse. “Everything that I’m doing in women’s lacrosse at this level I can do on a broader level for all different sports [here at Westridge.] That was really exciting for me,” she said.

At Westridge, Coach Alice is particularly interested in making sure that teams at Westridge do not get more attention than others, which is often an issue for many schools in the United States. She is currently working to recruit student and professional sports photographers so that there is more equitable coverage on the Westridge Athletics Social Media, especially for sports that practice and play games off campus. “We gotta be mindful of the amount that we’re sharing with regards to each sport,” she said. 

Furthermore, Coach Alice strives to balance competition, hard work, fun, and team camaraderie for each school team. “Regardless if we fail or succeed in the process, you change as a person and you grow,” said Coach Alice. “That’s [the mindset] I hope to bring to Westridge.”

Coach Alice’s extensive experiences with coaching made her realize that coaching was not just about teaching sports. Coaches are mentors, inspirationalists, and a support system for those who find sports as a way of escaping the stress of the outside world. “[Coaching gives] me such a strong sense of purpose by giving back and doing something for others,” she said.

For Coach Alice, coaching is not just a job— it’s a lifestyle that feels fulfilling to her, not only because she gets to watch others grow under her leadership, but also because she gets to lead her own development. “Sports have changed my trajectory in life, my confidence, and my courage,” said Coach Alice. “There are days when it’s so tough, but it’s always a great day to control your mindset and [your] mentality.”