Jenkins named Har-Ber girls coach

Kimberly Wilson Jenkins Springdale Har-Ber girls basketball coach
Kimberly Wilson Jenkins Springdale Har-Ber girls basketball coach

SPRINGDALE -- Kimberly Wilson Jenkins, a former standout at Arkansas and a highly successful coach at Valley Springs, was named as the new girls' basketball coach at Springdale Har-Ber on Tuesday.

Jenkins replaces former Lady Wildcats coach Jaime Green, who recently accepted the head women's basketball coaching job at Adams State in Alamosa, Colo.

At Class 3A Valley Springs, Jenkins won 487 games and two state championships in 2010 and 2016. Her Lady Tigers teams reached the state finals five other times, including three straight years from 2015-2017. She was named the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Division II Coach of the Year in 2017.

"Coaching at Har-Ber is a great opportunity and this is a great time for my family to make a move," Jenkins said in a news release. "We were able to accomplish a lot at Valley Springs. I'm ready to see if I can do it at this level."

Jenkins was the athletic director at Valley Springs and was heavily involved in all aspects of the basketball program from the pee-wee program to senior high girls over an 18-season span. She and her husband, Quincy, and their two sons have deep roots in the community which made leaving Valley Springs a difficult choice, she said.

She broke the news to her team Tuesday morning that she would be taking the job at Har-Ber.

"We had an emotional team meeting at Valley Springs," Jenkins said. "We were and always will be a family. I even had a few players whose mothers I coached. It was clearly presented to us that Har-Ber is family, too. This is a great team to be a part of."

In addition to almost 20 seasons as a high school coach, Jenkins was an assistant at the college level at New Mexico State University, the University of Tulsa and NorthArk Community College in Harrison.

At New Mexico State, she coached under John Sutherland, who was Jenkins' coach at Arkansas for her freshman season in 1993. Ironically, it was that connection that led her to Har-Ber as Jenkins was recruited to play at Arkansas by Tracey Stehlik, whose husband is Springdale Public Schools Athletic Director Wayne Stehlik.

"Tracey recruited Kimberly to Arkansas and I've had the opportunity to recruit her to Har-Ber," Wayne Stehlik said in the release. "Kimberly will be a great addition to the faculty and coaching staff at Har-Ber High School. She will create a winning culture in the locker room and on the court. She has a great vision for the Har-Ber girls' basketball program."

Jenkins graduated from Hampton High School in 1993. At Arkansas, she was the team's leading scorer for three seasons and still ranks fifth all-time with 1,755 career points. She played her final three seasons under Gary Blair. Her career also includes stints as a color commentator for the Arkansas women's basketball broadcasts.

She earned her bachelor's degree from Arkansas and her master's in Educational Administration from Central Arkansas.

The Har-Ber girls program is not the only basketball team at the school that will benefit from this hire. Jenkins' son, Lawson Jenkins is a highly regarded rising junior combo guard. Last season Lawson Jenkins averaged 25 points per game at Valley Springs and is drawing Division I interest from several programs. Lawson helped the Tigers to a 28-10 season and a berth in the Class 3A state tournament.

Sports on 05/02/2018

Upcoming Events