Teacher Megan Von Fange recently resigned her coaching duties after 12 years.

When Von Fange first started teaching, the school needed  a swimming coach. She had been a lifeguard and had taught swim lessons, so it was a good fit. “I’ve always enjoyed coaching and motivating, so it was kind of a natural progression to go from swimming to coaching swimming,”she  said.

Von Fange said coaching taught her the benefits of helping students grow in different ways. “One of the things I’m most proud of is helping students become better people, become better sports, believe in themselves and have some confidence,” she said.

After 12 years of coaching, this is her first year of being “just” a teacher. However, she actually added a different type of coaching. This year she is North’s AVID co-coordinator. “It takes a lot of work, time and effort for you to be a coach,” said Von Fange. That is true whether you are coaching sports or academics, she said.