2006-07 News Archives
France Takes Rutgers-Newark Volleyball Helm
NEWARK, NJ (June 18, 2007) - Karl France
has been named the coordinator of volleyball operations/head men's
volleyball coach at Rutgers-Newark, director of athletics
Mark Griffin has announced.
The Brooklyn native knows the Rutgers-Newark program and its EIVA
competitors well, having served as the assistant men's volleyball
coach at New York University for the past five seasons. The
Bowling Green University graduate begins his duties
immediately.
France will be the school's first coordinator of volleyball,
serving as the Scarlet Raider men's head coach while overseeing the
NCAA Division III women's program which competes in the New Jersey
Athletic Conference. One of his first duties will be to hire
a staff which will include a head women's volleyball/assistant
men's volleyball coach.
"Rutgers-Newark has a proud history in both its Division I men's
program and its Division III women's program," France stated.
"I look forward to working to return both programs to championship
caliber levels."
"Karl is a good fit for Rutgers-Newark," Griffin said. "He
already knows our program, our competition and where we expect to
be. I am confident that both men's and women's programs can
return to championship form under his direction."
At NYU, France assisted Jose Pina, helping the Violets to two NCAA
appearances. The 2004 team went a perfect 12-0 in the EIVA
Hay and achieved a #2 national ranking.
Prior to his stint in Manhattan, France was the men's and women's
head volleyball coach at the College of Mount St. Vincent from 1998
to 2002. He posted an overall record of 76-46 with the men's
program, being named the North East Collegiate Volleyball
Association Coach of the Year in 2000. He guided his men to
three Metro East first-place finishes and three NECVA playoff
appearances, earning a conference runner-up finish in 2002.
On the women's side of the ledger at Mount St. Vincent, he was
voted the Skyline Conference Co-Volleyball Coach of the Year in
2002 as well as the Hudson Valley Women's Athletic Conference South
Coach of the Year in 2000 and 2001. Mount St. Vincent won
three HVWAC tournament titles and claimed three Skyline Tournament
berths in his three seasons at the helm.
France was the head coach of the New York City Men's Open
Volleyball Squad in the 2005 Empire State Games as well as the
NYC's Scholastic Women's team mentor from 2002 through 2004.
He coached volleyball, basketball, softball and swimming at the
Marymount School in Manhattan before landing the dual job at Mount
St. Vincent.
In his fourth year of working with USA Volleyball, he will help
coach the USA Youth A2 team during summer training and competition
in Flordia.
Still active as a USA Volleyball player, France played three
seasons of club volleyball at Bowling Green before earning his
bachelor's degree in communications in 1991. He participated
in swimming and soccer at Brooklyn Tech High School.
He served as an on-air analyst for CSTV during the broadcast of the
2005 EIVA Championship match.
Rutgers-Newark is the only NCAA program in the nation which
sponsors a Division I men's volleyball program while participating
on the Division III level in its other nine varsity programs.
The men's program made five NCAA Final Four appearances between
1977 and 1990 while the
women's volleyball program has claimed five New Jersey Athletic
Conference crowns.