Remaining intensely focused on whatever task was at hand and making no time to consider the path she was forming or the walls she was forcing down along the way.

1. KATHRYN SMITH - First Female NFL
Coach
Source: https://hubpages.com/sports/KATHRYN-SMITH-First-Female-NFL-Coach

2. Remaining intensely focused on whatever task was at hand and making
no time to consider the path she was forming or the walls she was
forcing down along the way. Though, from first glance at the career she
built and name she made for herself, no one would ever know how
humble Kathryn Smith truly was. She has been called a ground
breaking trailblazer, and someone who is undoubtedly making history,
shattering the glass ceiling alongside female politicians and activists.

3. Despite these titles, Smith has always insisted that is not the reputation
she was going for when she started out on her career path. Since Smith
became the first full time female coach of the National Football League,
several women have followed in her footsteps and broken into the
world of the NFL. But it took more than just wanting to be a football
coach to actually become one at that level.

4. Smith was interested in sports from the
beginning, but it was never really about
being a football coach. For her, “It was
more than ‘Oh, I’m going to specifically
be a coach.’ I just got into football and
I’m going to do everything I can to
work my way and try to progress in this
field, and fortunately it’s worked out the
way it worked out,” she told one
reporter. Still, being involved in the
world of athletics didn’t hurt her cause.
Early Life

5. She was a three sport athlete in high school, participating in lacrosse,
swimming and bowling at the Christian Brothers School. Smith was not only
interested in playing sports, but also watching and working in the field. She
quickly learned a love of football from her father and, from the sidelines,
assisted him in coaching her high school’s football team by keeping the team’s
stats for him. From that point, her fondness of the sport would only grow, and
unbeknownst to her, would lead to a ground-breaking career path.

6. After graduating high school in 2003, Smith went on to study Sports
Management at St. John’s University in New York City. During her
freshman year, she became the student manager for the men’s
basketball team at the university. Later that same year, she would land
her first internship opportunity.
Breaking into the Business

7. Growing up in Dewitt, a small suburb outside of Syracuse, New York,
Kathryn was a natural born Jets fan. So it was no surprise that when the
time came for her to look for an internship, she sought one with the
New York Jets. This was her first step into the NFL, and garnered her the
title Game Day and Special Events Intern. She held this position for two
years, until she was promoted to a College Scouting Intern in 2005.
After another two years, Smith would graduate from St. John’s and
become the Players Personal Assistant for the Jets.

8. While her college degree and internship experience had gained her a
second promotion, Kathryn was far from the stage where she would
end up standing. She remained a personal assistant for seven years
until, in 2014, she finally landed a position as an Administrative
Assistant, again with the Jets. It was merely a year after this significant
jump, and twelve years after her start, that Smith would be stolen away
from the Jets, and begin working for the Buffalo Bills as an
Administrative Assistant for Rex Ryan. At this point, she was on fire and
her momentum could not be stopped. Less than a year post team swap,
a thirty-one year old Kathryn Smith would make history.

9. On January 20, 2016 Smith became the Special Teams Quality Control Coach
for the Bills. Her name would go down in history that day as having been the
first female full time NFL coach, but for her it was never about being the first.
It was about being there and doing what she loved. Her relationship with the
coaching staff and players was nothing short of professional. Smith recalls
being treated as an equal always, saying that “Not a lot of emphasis was put on
the fact that I’m a female and they’re all males.” Her male counterparts,
including Ryan, have never spoken out about her in an adverse manner, but
contrarily have praised her for her work ethic.
Making History

10. For Smith, it was always about working hard and doing her best, not
necessarily becoming a coach in the NFL and certainly not about
leading a feminist revolution; however, intentionally or not, that is a
platform that she had a large role in and did not shy away from
accepting her part in influencing change.

11. She is an inspiration in an unconventional sort of way. Instead of
making noise about the barriers she busted down, she aims to
normalize women in the workplace, for sports and the NFL especially,
but also in other areas. Growing up, Smith’s parents always told her
and her brother that they could be anything they wanted to be, but
unlike most parents, they added in “regardless of your gender.” They
began instilling a gender normalized belief system in her, and it would
appear that it stuck.
A Unique Inspiration

12. Bravery is a large part of what allowed Smith to get to where she did,
but this bravery is not something that is taught to most young girls the
way it was to her. In her “Teach Girls Bravery, Not Perfection” TED Talk,
Reshma Saujni delves into the performance gap between girls and boys
in school. She notes that a overwhelming number of girls are afraid to
try, because trying could mean failing. These girls are taught that they
should be perfect, and failing is not perfect. Meanwhile boys are taught
to take risks and to be brave. She beseeches her listeners, saying “We
cannot leave behind half our population. We have to socialize our girls
to be comfortable with imperfection.” This is what Smith’s actions have
shown young girls and women of all ages everywhere.

13. For the entirety of her career, Smith has indirectly stressed Saujni’s
point in refusing to allow her biological makeup to define what she
could do. She was brave and unyielding, and undeniably made people
realize that women are capable of more than they are allowed to
believe. She was always battling for more than girls being allowed in an
all boys world, and her quiet fight did not go unnoticed.
Not Letting Anything Stop Her

14. During an interview just after securing her position in both football and
history, she was questioned concerning how she felt about making history.
Smith responded, in her typical fashion saying, “I hope it’s leading to, honestly,
to it not being a conversation. I hope it just becomes ‘This is the next coach of
this team,’ but that’s the announcement, not that ‘It’s a female coach.’” She has
never been interested in making history, but, again, normalizing women in
the work force, regardless of their chosen field. Smith kept her head down, but
her goals high. Despite her willingness to not make noise, her
accomplishments have spoken for her- loudly! Kathryn Smith has paved the
way for females around the world and the opportunities afforded to women
show no sign of slowing down anytime soon, thanks to women like her.

15. Thank You For Watching