Jay Watts, Director of Athletics

Jay Watts, Director of Athletics

Jay Watts was named GPS Director of Athletics in 2017. He graduated from the College of William and Mary (Williamsburg, Virginia) with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology. He then completed his master’s degree in education/sports administration from Georgia State University (Atlanta). Jay also holds a Certified Master Athletic Administrator certificate from the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. He has served as a guest lecturer in the Sports Administration departments at both Georgia State and Kennesaw State University (Georgia), and is an adjunct professor in the Health and Human Performance department at University of Tennessee Chattanooga
Prior to his arrival at GPS, Jay was an athletic administrator and teacher at the Westminster Schools in Atlanta. He also coached varsity basketball, varsity lacrosse, middle school cross country, and middle school football. While serving as the head varsity girls lacrosse coach at Westminster, he was selected as the Georgia State Coach of the Year five times and Area Coach of the Year 11 times. His teams won nine state tournament championships, and his program was one of the 10-winningest in the country from 2001 through 2015. He was selected as Georgia Lacrosse Foundation Man of the Year in 2006 and elected to Georgia Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2007. He volunteered with USA Lacrosse from 2001 to 2017, serving on the Board of Governors for the Women’s Division of USA Lacrosse from 2005 to 2009. He chaired the organization’s Safety Education Committee and was a member of the USA Lacrosse rules committee for six years. Jay also served on the NFHS Girls Lacrosse Rules Committee for eight years, working as the chair of the committee from 2011 to 2015. In 2018, he was named the head coach of the Polish Women’s National Lacrosse Team and in 2020, he was named the head coach of the Polish U20 Women's National Lacrosse Team in addition to his duties with the senior team.
 
Jay has been published in the Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance as well as Interscholastic Athletic Administration and presented at numerous conferences across the United States. He serves on the TSSAA's Board of Control for the East Independent division. Jay graduated from McCallie in 1990 and is a strong supporter of single-sex education. “I truly believe that an all-girls school provides the best environment to support our students in and outside of the classroom,” he says.
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