Former SEMO coach now leading Cape Christian School

Longtime Southeast Missouri State University coach Carroll Williams has plenty of things he could do in retirement. Golf, one of the sports he coached at Southeast, is one. But at 80 years of age, Williams spends his days doing what he does best -- teaching, coaching and leading students at Cape Christian School.

Full disclosure: I attended Cape Christian for seven years. The education experience was top-notch. The small classes and fantastic educational instruction were a huge benefit, but far more important were the Christian values taught.

That same approach to education guides Cape Christian -- and other private institutions -- today.

Coach, as most people call him, retired from Southeast Missouri State University in 2005. It was the final year of the golf program. He spoke to the Southeast Missourian then about his plans following retirement to get more involved in business. Yet his heart for teaching and coaching -- and a willingness to serve -- led him to fill many roles in local education.

When Williams retired from Southeast he started coaching the freshman basketball team at Central. After the school hired Drew Church, the call came once more.

"Dr. [Mike] Cowan said, 'You know, Drew [Church] has never been a head basketball coach. Would you move up to the B team and take the JVs and work with him for a year or two until he gets his feet on the ground?'" Williams recalled.

Then, for eight years, he helped at the Cape Girardeau alternative school.

Williams' role at Cape Christian is just as eclectic as his coaching and teaching career. While he was teaching at the alternative school, he was approached to coach Cape Christian's girls basketball team. That led to teaching P.E. and other classes, plus serving as athletic director. When the school's principal candidate backed out last summer, he was asked to serve -- at least in the short term -- in that role. With his wife Debbie already teaching first grade at Cape Christian, Williams agreed.

"At 80, I don't need to be doing this," he said. "I need to be doing some other things, but right now, I can fill a need that they have."

Williams thinks of this as an opportunity to instill good character traits in the students: accountability, responsibility, dependability, commitment and dedication. Combining both educational standards with character development rooted in the Christian faith is an advantage the school has in education.

"No matter who's in my job they're going to learn math, science, English, history, etc. And they'll leave and go to another school, and they'll be very capable academically. But I get to have a hand in helping them grow in character. For example, get a work ethic out of these kids," Williams said.

Those same character traits were shown to Williams when he worked at Southeast.

"Mark Scully was the president. Alton Bray was the registrar. Jack Wimp was the treasurer. Forrest Rose was the dean of students. All those people were heavily involved in their local churches...

"They all had Christian ideas, Christian principles. And they did their job in that very same manner."

For Cape Christian, Williams projects a future of growth. A high school is not out of the question, nor, at some point, is multiple classes for each grade.

He's also excited about the effect President Trump's tax bill will have on private education.

The tax overhaul included language to allow parents to contribute to a 529 plan they also could use for K-12 education. Previously in Missouri the MOST 529 plan was an advantage for college savings. But with the law change to allow K-12 education as an approved expense, Williams is hopeful it will assist more parents who want to send their children a Christian school.

Details are expected to come any day from the state. The MOST 529 website notes Missouri taxpayers can deposit up to $10,000 per year into the MOST 529 plan without state tax consequences.

Williams is working to bring a major speaker to the area to talk about the benefits of Christian education and the 529 tax advantage.

It's interesting to hear the coach speak about his approach to education, particularly with reading.

"There are some things you can do by watching someone do it," he notes. "But even in golf, the one thing you do in golf is you read a lot of things in order to know what these guys do. It's not just me watching Jack Nicklaus hit a golf ball. I need to understand what he's trying to do."

Williams may not hit the golf course as much as he could these days, but he's doing important work helping students stay on the right educational and life course. That's something to celebrate.

n

A lesson in sportsmanship

Southeast Missourian sports editor Josh Mlot recently profiled Nathan Ruark from Saxony Lutheran.

Ruark was injured on Feb. 28 when Saxony played Charleston in the Class 3 sectional basketball game. He received a head injury and, while returning home, experienced other symptoms. He was diagnosed with a level 3 laceration of the spleen and spent days in the ICU.

Several Charleston players visited Ruark at home and gave him a signed basketball by the team.

"They didn't have to do that at all," Ruark said. "They should be focusing on they just beat Whitfield and are going to the final four -- I should be the last thing on their mind. ... It just kind of goes to show that these athletes here are great people and have great futures, and we're all going to look out for each other."

Hats off to these players and their coach, Danny Farmer, for instilling good character traits.

Lucas Presson is the assistant publisher of the Southeast Missourian. You can send him an email him lpresson@semissourian.com.