sports
Getting to the Heart of Team Leadership Coach Jorge Dieppa P ‘00 ‘04 By R.C. Ganser P ‘15 ‘21
J
orge Dieppa was inducted into the Gulliver Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012, in the second class of inductees. During his 30-year career at Gulliver, his impact on generations of students has been wide-reaching. He taught physical education, was Chair of the Prep Physical Education Department and served as Gulliver’s Assistant Athletic Director. He has coached teams including girls’ golf, boys’ soccer and track and field. Most recently, Dieppa has applied his coaching expertise to a relatively new sport at Gulliver, bowling, as the Co-coach. Who better to assist a head coach in a new sport than someone who started a program from scratch – as he did with girls’ golf – and has more than 500 wins, took teams to seven state “final four” championships and brought home four state championship titles – as he did with boys’ soccer? Leading by example, time and again Dieppa has directed a program, established a high level of success, and passed the job to the next generation of coaches to follow in his footsteps. That’s one reason he was inducted into the Florida Athletic Coaches Hall of Fame in 2008. Daniel Boston, Gulliver’s Sports Information Coordinator, sat down with Dieppa to talk about how he sees his impact on Gulliver. What career accomplishment are you most proud of? Despite being well-known as a soccer coach, I am most proud of starting the girls’ golf team. I have two daughters, Michelle ‘00 and Marie ‘04, and felt by starting the team I was aiding in the battle for gender equality by forming a team that girls can play golf on. What do you think is the most important impact you have had on Gulliver or Gulliver Athletics? I felt my ability to unify the varsity program with the Middle School soccer program was my most impactful accomplishment, because it really turned our soccer
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program around. There was one common philosophy that was being communicated from the Middle School to the varsity level. This provided a united effort in regard to development and coaching principles. What has surprised you the most during your time at Gulliver? How much and how fast Gulliver has grown. What does Gulliver mean to you? A lifetime of work. I have been at Gulliver for 30 years. It is extraordinary to be at one place [for that much] time. I am very fortunate to do what I am passionate about. I have been able to coach many sports, including track and field, golf, bowling and soccer. What is the philosophy you have tried to instill in your students and athletes? Start with the fundamentals, set goals. Stay focused. Don’t succumb to emotions, because they derail you from your goals or the task at hand.
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“I was aiding in the battle for gender equality by forming a team that girls can play golf on.”