ATLANTA – SIUE's Ariel Massengale has been selected to participate in the 2025 Women's Basketball Coaches Association Next Generation Institute, organization officials announced.
 
The 2024-25 season marks the fourth season Massengale has been an assistant coach for the Cougars. Massengale was one of 32 coaches nationally selected for a high-level education program for experienced assistant coaches who aspire to become collegiate head coaches.
 
Massengale joined SIUE's coaching staff in July 2021 after two seasons on staff at Lipscomb. Prior to Lipscomb, she acted as a graduate assistant coach at Mississippi, assisting in scouting and recruiting. Since Massengale has joined the staff, SIUE has had a pair of All-OVC first team selections with Gabby Nikitinaite in 2022 and Ajulu Thatha in 2023.
 
The Next Generation Institutre enters its third year with a curriculum focusing on the CEO attributes needed to lead a program and be a problem solver in todays ever-changing landscape of higher education and the enterprise of intercollegiate athletics.
 
"A college athletics team is a company; the head coach is its CEO," said WBCA Executive Director Daniella Donehew. "A head coach must be more than a strategist and tactician in the sport. They must also be an inspirational leader, businessperson, communicator, marketer, visionary, and manager of people and resources. The Next Generation Institute challenges participants to put aside the X's and O'x for a while and concentrate on understanding and developing those skills so that they are prepared to take the next step in their career and become successful CEOs."
 
About the WBCA
The Women's Basketball Coaches Association is the professional association for coaches of women's and girls' basketball at all levels of competition. Founded in 1981, the WBCA offers educational resources that coaches need to help make themselves better leaders, teachers and mentors to their players; provides opportunities for coaches to connect with peers in the profession; serves as the unifying voice of coaches to those organizations that control the game; and celebrates those coaches, players and other individuals who excel each year and contribute to the advancement of the sport. Visit www.WBCA.org for more details about the association.