East High School tennis coach Michael King leads with joy

“I’ve also been coaching girls’ swim in the winter for the past three years now. The swim coach quit and some of the girls on the tennis team wanted to swim, so I stepped up and have really been enjoying it.”

East High School's Diversity

Student-athletes at East High School represent several different cultures. King’s background in history and his travels across the globe have given him the perspective and tools necessary to teach—and lead—students who are from different countries through a lens of inclusivity.

King teaches history and specializes in working with English language learner (ELL) students. As a result, his tennis teams are primarily refugee and immigrant students new to the sport. King—who is conversational in Spanish and went to East Africa to study Swahili—can coach in multiple languages.

“The way in which we foster cross-cultural inclusivity on our team is through modeling joy,” he said. “This is the same practice I use in my classroom, and it has always been effective. Show your student-athletes that all cultures are valid and model intentional, authentic relationship-building, and joy will spread.

“It’s more fun to love than to hate, and I think this is something that needs to be explicitly taught and modeled. Learn your students’ lives so you can engage in the specificities of their culture. Then everyone will be able to enjoy each other through their differences, not despite their differences.”

The culture that King has cultivated with his student-athletes at East overflows into the community in which the school is located.

“In terms of promoting tennis to the greater community, we work with the Stephanie Waterman Foundation, but I’m also always trying to get my student-athletes to teach their families how to play,” King said. “Growing up with tennis as a family sport, tennis has always been a community-building tool for me.

“One example of this is one of the young men who helped me start the team when he was a senior. Eight years later, his little sister is now on the team, and his little brother would also go on to become a team captain. This also helps spread the sport within certain immigrant communities. We’ll have students who come to East wanting to play because one of our former players they interacted with in their neighborhood played and saw how much they loved it.”

The Joy of Coaching

King’s positive influence on his students, both in the classroom and on the courts, allows them to flourish—and their success is his greatest joy.

“My favorite part of working with student-athletes is seeing their growth, not just in season but also after graduation,” King said. “Some of the freshmen who started with me eight years ago are now graduating college. It’s been an absolute privilege to see their development athletically, academically and most importantly as young adults who are working to make the world a better place for all.

“Having the opportunity to be able to be part of so many different peoples’ lives brings me joy, and helping create opportunities of joy for my student-athletes is why I do what I do. Teaching and coaching is my passion. I can’t imagine doing anything else.”

King was quick to recognize the success his players have had in recent years. After several seasons of hard work, the team took home its first trophy last year.

“We had been close for a couple years but couldn’t quite get there,” King said. “And when we finally got one last year it was the crowning achievement for my varsity, which had five seniors graduating who had been putting so much hard work in for years. I was incredibly proud of them.”

King mentioned some of his favorite memories throughout the years include all the laughter and camaraderie the team has shared. The Kansas City tennis community also got a shoutout from King, as did his coaching staff.

“Our program would be nothing without the hard work these student-athletes have been putting in, the hard work and sacrifice of our assistant coach, Seki Anderson, and all the community support I’ve received,” King said. “The tennis community in Kansas City is remarkable. All the volunteer hours and donations have really helped our program not only continue to exist, but to thrive.”

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