Glenn Carter came to the University of Richmond to help move the men's lacrosse team to varsity club status, but he also sees the team as a pathway for giving back to the community.

Carter has a long history coaching lacrosse, beginning as a youth coach when he was in high school. He went on to serve as varsity head coach at Friends Central School in Pennsylvania, assistant coach at his alma mater, Neumann College, and a Division III head coach at Ursinus College. He also coached for the Philadelphia Barrage, an outdoor professional league.

When an alumnus told him about the new lacrosse coach position at Richmond, Carter was uncertain, but his enthusiasm for the program pushed him to find out more.

“I thought it was going to be a bunch of kids that couldn’t pass or catch, because it was a student-run club team,” he says. “I was mistaken; I was blown away by the talent that was here. I left the day of my interview really wanting to make sure I was part of the Richmond community.”

Hiring Carter is part of the men’s lacrosse program’s transition to varsity club status for the 2012 season. The team will also move from competing in the National College Lacrosse League (NCLL) to the more competitive Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA), which hosts a national championship.

“Richmond is the right environment for [lacrosse],” says Carter. “It’s going to give another platform for the school to display itself and how great it is.”

With the fall 2010 season at a close, Carter is currently focusing on recruiting prospective athletes and building support for the team.

“I tell kids all the time that you need to pick your school because of academics,” he says. “If you’re not being recruited by a school that’s going to guarantee to take you to the national championship, Richmond’s just as good of a choice — if not better — because of our academics.”

Carter is also reaching out to the community to increase interest in the sport. He recently hosted a clinic with Andrew Stanley, lacrosse coach at Collegiate School, a k-12 school near Richmond’s campus, to introduce inner-city kids to lacrosse and demonstrate the connection to other sports, such as basketball. He was also able to send participants home with lacrosse sticks from his supplier, STX, for them to continue practicing at home.

The clinic is part of Carter’s emphasis on serving the community. He explained that the team will be expected to participate in service projects throughout the year, such as fundraising tournaments and Habitat for Humanity.

“We’re 40 guys strong, so we can bring a pretty heavy contingent,” Carter says. “These guys get to attend a great school like Richmond, I get to work at a great school like Richmond, and a lot of people don’t have that opportunity in life. To go out and help people who don’t have the same opportunities — it’s something we have to do. We have to be citizens of the world.”