Meet Enthusiastic Faculty Adviser to Women's Tennis Brent Heeringa

Assistant professor of computer science Brent Heeringa has been at Williams for three years, well, four if you count the year he took off from graduate school to serve as a visiting professor (2003).

Two years ago Eph women’s tennis head coach Alison Swain ’01 and Brent Heeringa, struck up a conversation at a college event and it led to Heeringa taking on the role of Faculty Advisor for the women’s tennis team.

“Alison and I met at a PET (Project for Effective Teaching) event in the fall of 2007,” said Heeringa. “We started talking about tennis and she mentioned that the team needed a faculty advisor. I thought it would be rewarding and fun to experience Williams in a different role -- a chance to engage the college outside of teaching and research.”

There is no written job description for the role of Faculty Advisor. Asked about how he sees his role as the women’s tennis team advisor, Heeringa noted, “Mostly I see it as a recruiting tool for the computer science major! No, honestly, I view my role very simply: be a supportive, attentive, and approachable member of the faculty.  Often, this boils down to attending matches, sending a few encouraging emails, and pointing the players in the right direction or toward the right person when they have an academic question.”

“Brent has been an amazing faculty advisor to our tennis team,” says Swain. “He has so much energy and is so enthusiastic about participating in team events. From emails to the team, cheering at matches, and even throwing out volley winners in practice, the girls have really felt supported by him both on and off the court.”

Heeringa is easily recognizable at Eph matches as he bounds from court to court shouting out encouragement and engaging fans, parents and Eph players not competing at the moment in a constant dialog.

“I attend most of the home matches during the fall and spring seasons of which there are very few,” says Heeringa. “They typically last 3-4 hours. I have also driven down to Amherst when Williams plays Amherst away. This is pretty convenient since my in-laws live in Amherst and I did my Ph.D. at UMass.”

“Once or twice per season Alison invites me to practice with the team, which is a lot of fun. I also attend the team kick-off event in the fall and the events associated with parents' weekend in the spring. Since both the fall and spring seasons are pretty short, it's a relatively minimal time commitment. The heart of the women's season is during spring break when they play half a dozen matches in warmer climates. The schedule also ramps up again at the end of the season.”

“Traditionally, Williams has a strong team, so the early rounds of the NCAA tournament are played locally which is fortunate.”

Heeringa extended the reach of his road tour this past May when he traveled to Atlanta for the NCAA Championships. A most memorable trip that resulted in the Ephs second consecutive NCAA, “Unbelievable,” said Heeringa in summing up the week in Atlanta. “The women played three matches en route to the championship. The first match against Denison was a nail-biter. Several of the women rebounded from first-set losses to propel the team to victory.”

“I remember pacing nervously throughout the Denison match. I really didn't want the women to go home after the first round. I think this is where I first truly bonded with the players' parents. The second match against Emory saw the women flexing their muscle and playing near-perfect tennis. The doubles teams volleyed well and everything gelled.”

“Of course, this set up a sort of fairy-tale final against Amherst. Wanting to keep things dramatic for the spectators, the women went down 1-2 after doubles. Of course, they rallied with inspired play to dominate singles, winning four straight matches en route to a 5-2 victory. I felt very happy and embarrassingly proud.”

Coach Swain reported hearing more than one Amherst player in Atlanta asking, “Who is that guy?” in reference to Heeringa and his enthusiastic support of the Eph team.

This coming academic year Heeringa will be at Boston University and one might think that would curtail his involvement with Eph women’s tennis, but fear not.

“I am taking my AP leave at Boston University where I will be working with colleagues at many of the Boston-area schools on problems in theoretical computer science, and in particular, approximation algorithms,” said Heeringa. “These are procedures for finding pretty good solutions to computationally difficult problems.”

The Ephs can expect to see Heeringa at ITA New Englands, Tufts, and more, which will give him a chance to see the Ephs compete in different venues.

Heeringa’s role as the women’s tennis team’s Faculty Adviser has given him a whole different perspective on Williams and Williams athletics.

“Before advising the women's tennis team, I didn't really grasp how well athletics, and in particular team athletics, fit into a holistic view of the liberal arts,” noted Heeringa. “The students push themselves mentally and physically in ways that complement but are distinct from the ways they push themselves in the classroom. These experiences, whether they come from being a student member on a committee or from being a cast member in a theatre production, provide a valuable and positive set of skills. For example, the women on the tennis team are consistently and often emphatically encouraging each other, whether it's on the court during a difficult set or it's off the court in preparation for a match. One can easily imagine a player parlaying her motivational skills on the court into the motivational skills required of, say, managing a small team, teaching high-school students, or collaborating with research colleagues.”

A former high school tennis player, it is most enjoyable for Heeringa to take in the Eph team’s matches. “I played tennis in high school but didn't play in college,” noted Heeringa.” I plan to make my mark in the tennis world 40 years from now in one of the over-70 leagues,” which will still leave plenty of time to stay on as the Faculty Advisor for a Williams women’s tennis team that has won the NCAA titles both years he has been the team’s Faculty Adviser.