2022 Leadership Super Conference

JP Nerbun Key Note Speaker: World-renowned leadership coach, sports consultant, and the visionary founder of TOC

J.P. Nerbun is a world-renowned leadership coach, sports consultant, and the visionary founder of TOC, a leading global sports-consulting and coaching business. With an accomplished career as a professional basketball coach spanning over a decade, J.P. has solidified his expertise in team culture, drawing from his extensive background and knowledge.

J.P.'s mission is to empower leaders and their teams to reach their full potential through coaching, consulting, and community-building. Throughout his career, he and his team have provided personalized coaching and practical resources to hundreds of leaders across various industries, including sports, education, medicine, and business. J.P. is also the founder and co-host of the highly acclaimed sports leadership podcast, Coaching Culture.

In 2019, J.P. published his debut book, Calling Up: Discovering Your Journey to Transformational Leadership. This book has received critical acclaim for its captivating narrative and practical insights. In 2022, he followed up with The Culture System: A Proven Process for Creating an Extraordinary Team Culture, a groundbreaking book that explores a proven framework for developing team culture, embraced by top-tier organizations. Continuing his dedication to leadership development, J.P. launched The Culture System Online Training Platform in 2023, providing leaders with leadership training that equips them with practical skills and tools to enhance their team's culture. J.P. resides in Ireland with his wife and three children.

Dani Sinclair Presenter: Carleton Head Women's Basketball Coach: Lessons from my coaching journey

Carleton Head Coach 2020-Present

- Won a National Championship in 2022-23 season.

- University of Victoria Head Coach 2012-2020

- U16/17 Canada Cadette Women’s Team assistant coach 2015-2018.

- Won the 2015 Cadette FIBA Americas Championship

Coach Sinclair came to Carleton with decades of experience at the university, national, and international levels. She has been part of the University of Victoria Vikes women’s basketball coaching staff since 2005, starting as an Assistant Coach before taking over as Head Coach in 2012.

Before her time coaching U SPORTS athletes, Sinclair was a decorated basketball player for two Canadian universities. She was named CIS Rookie of the Year at McMaster and was a 3-time OUA All-Star while earning a bachelor’s degree in history. She went on to complete a bachelor’s degree in education at the University of Victoria where she won the 2002-03 national championship.

Gord Hopper Presenter: Canadian expectations in safe sport, and how it applies to the school setting

Gord Hopper has been a leader in sport for over 30 years. He has worked at at provincial, national team and university levels, giving him a broad perspective on prevention and management of safe sport issues. He has been involved in sport as an athlete, coach, official and sport leader. He is committed to investing in the prevention side of safe sport to ensure the best experience for all children, coaches and supporters of sport.

Jim Murphy Presenter: Why confidence is overrated and what is even better

Jim Murphy, author of the book Inner Excellence, is a Performance Coach (mental skills) to world-class athletes and leaders around the world. Jim has coached three world #1s in multiple sports. The majority of Jim’s clients in every sport, individuals or teams, have had the best year of their careers (or at least in the last five years) in their first year learning Inner Excellence.

In addition to coaching professional athletes and executives, Jim leads Inner Excellence offsite retreats for families and teams at beautiful locations around the world. Jim is passionate about The Inner Excellence Freedom Project, a charity started in 2019 whose mission is to build homes for those in need around the world.

Luke Ridnour Presenter: Basketball: Offensive Drills and Strategies

Lukas Ridnour is an American former professional basketball player who last played as point guard for the Orlando Magic of the NBA. He played college basketball at the University of Oregon, where he helped to take the Ducks to the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament twice. He was picked 14th in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics. He has also played for the Milwaukee Bucks, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Milwaukee Bucks, and the Charlotte Bobcats.

Levon Kendall Presenter: Basketball: Shooting Drills

Played 12+ years with Canada’s Senior Men’s National Team, playing more than 120 games and representing Canada in over 20 countries around the globe. 8-year pro career in top tier European leagues such as the ACB (Spain), BBL (Germany), and the Euroleague. Scored 16 points and collected 9 rebounds against Australia to help Canada win bronze at the 2005 FIBA Under-21 World Cup, FIBA Under-21 World Cup All-Tournament Team including a 40-point, 12 rebound performance in a 93-90 overtime win against Team USA. Best Defensive Player Award (Team Award, Pittsburgh Panthers, 2005-06). Two-time Big East Academic All-Star, Most Improved Player (Team Award, Pittsburgh Panthers, 2004-05). Three-time BC Provincial Champion, British Columbia Athlete of the Year (2002).

Saralyn Stel Presenter: Volleyball: Drills to build and evaluate your team

Saralyn is a TWU graduate (08) and alumnus of the Women's Volleyball program (03-08). She is an award recipient of the USport Terese Quigly Award, CanadaWest Rookie of the Year, and TWU Complete Champion award winner. She earned her BHKin degree in Sport and Leisure Management from TWU. She was and is always passionate about coaching both elite athletes and grassroots programs. She has coached all around the world with many different sport organizations including Volleyball Canada. Currently, she is the director of 18-2 where she runs multi-sport summer camps, leadership development programs, and year-round sport-specific training. She coaches all the sports in her community while managing the family farm in rural Alberta.

Jeff Stel Presenter: Volleyball: Drills to build and evaluate your team

Jeff is an alumni of TWU Men's volleyball program (2007) winning a National Championship in 2006. He was a TWU Complete Champion Award winner in 2007. Jeff has a BHKin and B.Ed but currently farms full time with his family in rural Alberta. He is a fire chief and leader in his community. Jeff has coached for 25 years but focuses his coaching efforts on his sons' teams (hockey, volleyball, baseball, and basketball). Jeff is passionate about having kids and youth become lifelong lovers of sport.

Carol Hofer Presenter: Canadian expectations in safe sport, and how it applies to the school setting

Carol Hofer has been involved in sport leadership for over 40 years, as an athlete, a coach, a parent volunteer, a community sport club director, and nearly every other role imaginable. The love for sport is in her DNA and her commitment to ensuring that every athlete’s experience is a positive and inspiring one is a key to her definition of success. As a female leader in sport, she has navigated many barriers and sought to change the culture of sport through modelling, mentoring, and advocating for change.

Ryan Hofer Presenter: Allowing athletes to play free

Ryan Hofer, a two-time U SPORTS national champion head coach, has been part of Spartans volleyball in a variety of coaching capacities since 2000 and has been Trinity Western’s women’s team’s head coach since 2006.

Since taking over as head coach, Hofer has helped the Spartans qualify for 12 U SPORTS championship tournaments and has guided TWU to seven national medals, including gold in 2022 and 2015, silver in 2023, and 2016 and bronze in 2011, 2013 and 2017. All told, he has led the Spartans to 10 of the last 11 national championship tournaments. He has also coached the Spartans to 12 Canada West medals, including gold in 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2023.

Individually, Hofer was recognized as the Canada West and U SPORTS women’s volleyball Coach of the Year in 2010-11 before earning another conference Coach of the Year Award in 2021-22.

Hofer also has experience coaching internationally, with Team Canada, as he has been the head coach or the assistant coach at a number of major international women’s events. Most recently, he was an assistant coach with Canada’s senior women’s team, helping lead the Canadian entry at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru. Prior to that, he was also the associate head coach with Canada’s women’s team at the 2015 Summer Universiade in Korea.

In 2012, Hofer coached his Spartans team, who was representing Team Canada, at the U23 Pan American Cup. Before that, Hofer was an assistant coach for Team Canada at the 2009 FISU Games in Belgrade, Serbia. In 2005, he was also an assistant coach with Canada’s Junior National Team and, in 2006, was the head coach of Canada’s Youth National Team.

Before being named head coach of the TWU women’s team, Hofer was an assistant coach with the Spartans for five years and, in 2006, helped TWU win a bronze medal at the Canada West Final Four tournament. That year, TWU also made it first appearance at the women’s volleyball national championship. Prior to that, Hofer was the interim head coach for the 2003-04 season, while his wife Carol took maternity leave.

While as an assistant coach with the Spartans, Hofer was also heavily involved in coaching club volleyball and, following the 2004 season, he was named Volleyball Canada’s Male Coach of the Year. That season Hofer went 41-6 and won provincial and national gold medals as the coach of the Fraser Valley Volleyball Club’s Blitz U18 team. He was also the assistant coach of the TWU 20U team that won gold at the provincial championship and silver at the national championship.

Hofer graduated in 1994 with a Bachelor of Arts in Christian Ministry from Briercrest Bible College. He is a certified NCCP Level IV (indoor) and Level II (beach) coach.

Graham Roxburgh Presenter: How to build a culture that wins beyond the game

Since Graham Roxburgh took over as head coach in 1999, he has guided the Spartans to five U SPORTS national championships (2004, 2008, 2009, 2012 and 2013) and nine Canada West gold medals (2004, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017, 2018, and 2021).

Since 2003, Roxburgh has led TWU to the Canada West Final Four every year and, from 2010 to 2018, the Spartans appeared in the Canada West championship match in eight consecutive seasons.

Roxburgh was the U SPORTS Coach of the Year in 2011 and has been named the Canada West Coach of the Year six times, including in 2009, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2019, and 2021.

Roxburgh has twice been the head coach for Canada’s women’s soccer team at the Summer Universiade, including 2009, in Serbia, where his team finished seventh, and in 2011 in China, where his team finished fifth.

Roxburgh’s teams have also been ground-breaking at TWU, as the team’s 2004 national championship was the first of its kind for the University. That year, the women’s soccer team was also named Sport BC Team of the Year and the BC Soccer Team of the Year. Prior to that, in the women’s soccer team’s first year at the U SPORTS level in 2001, the Spartans earned a Canada West silver medal, which was the first conference medal Trinity Western had ever earned.

Roxburgh first came to Trinity Western University in 1993 as an assistant to coach Alan Alderson with the men’s soccer program. At the time, he was working with Athletes in Action and had just graduated from Wheaton College (Illinois) with a BA in History and Biblical Studies. He was later recommended to take over the women’s program and was hired as head coach in 1998. The fall of 1999 marked his first season with the team, which was only three years after women’s soccer became a varsity sport at TWU.

In 2000, Roxburgh guided the women to a 6-3-1 record and was named BCCAA Coach of the Year.

Roxburgh currently serves as the general manager and technical director for the Fraser Valley Action within the PCSL. He also operates the Spartan Soccer Academy, which is a player development academy for young female players.

Roxburgh is also the director of TeamUp, which works to "partner, collaborate and come alongside local organizations, and use sports either as a catalyst for the beginning of sustainable impact, or a component of a long-term community development strategy."

Mike Shearon Presenter: The Birdman, Pep, and Troy: What is Possible in Your Sport?

Mike has been at TWU since 1998 working with the men’s soccer program. He was appointed head coach 2016. He was Canada West coach of the year in 2017. Mike grew up playing a variety of sports in Cleveland, Ohio. He is an avid college football fan and enjoys any sport. His kids have participated in a variety of sports as well, while his wife is a PE and Art teacher in the Langley School System. Mike also works part-time with Athletes in Action, where he helps with the integration of faith and sport.

Cole Hergott Presenter: Strength & Conditioning: How to build speed and power

Cole Hergott started as the Head Strength & Conditioning Coach for the Trinity Western University Spartans in the spring of 2019. Previously he held a Graduate Assistant position at The University of British Columbia where he received his Master’s degree in Coaching Science.

Cole has done work at almost all levels of sports including stints as an intern in pro, national, high school, and general fitness environments.

Along with his Master’s Degree, Cole has certifications as a Strength Coach (CSCS, RSCC), Personal Trainer (NSCA-CPT), Sport Scientist (CPSS), Nutrition Coach (Pn1), Movement Coach (FMS-2), and Kinesiologist (BCAK).

Brynden McTavish Presenter: Volleyball Providing creative ways for athletes to learn

MacTavish brings a significant amount of varied experience to the table, currently serving as TWU’s lead assistant for the women’s volleyball program. MacTavish joined in 2019 after coaching Langley Christian Secondary’s boys volleyball program from 2012 to 2018. MacTavish led the Lightning to three provincial championships.

MacTavish still works as a physical education teacher at Langley Christian.

Andrew Lenton Presenter: Specialization vs All Round Athete... What does the research say?

Lenton is a graduate of the National Coaching Institute and is an NCCP Level 4 coach, who is also actively serving as a Master Course Conductor for the National Run-Jump-Throw program. He has been involved in coaching at many different levels prior to joining TWU's staff, from local track and sports clubs to BC Summer Games Zone Coach, BC Team Coach for both the National Youth and National Junior Championships. He has also served as Head Clinician for Athletics Canada National Youth Camp. Lenton has been awarded the Sport BC Community Sport Hero Award for coaching excellence & program development.

SPARTAN LEADERSHIP SUPERCONFERENCE

FRIDAY OCT. 20, 2023

AT THE LANGLEY EVENTS CENTRE

PRESENTED BY VBS APPAREL

PRICING

Guest

Speakers

JP Nerbun

Dani Sinclair

Gord Hopper

Jim Murphy

Luke Ridnour

Levon Kendall

Saralyn Stel

Jeff Stel

COACHES

& STAFF

Carol Hofer

Ryan Hofer

Graham Roxburgh

Mike Shearon

Cole Hergott

Brynden McTavish

Andrew Lenton

Venue Information

Agenda & Sessions

Registration : 8:00 AM – 8:45 AM

Keynote : 8:45 AM – 9:45 AM

Session One : 10:00 AM – 10:45 AM

Session Two : 11:00 AM – 11:45 AM

Lunch: 11:45 AM - 12:25 PM

Session Three: 12:30 PM - 1:15 PM

Keynote 2: 1:30 PM - 2:15 PM

Testimonials