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Coaching Staff

Coach Julie Ross will be in her 7th season as a coach at Green Hope in 2023 after coaching at East Forsyth. She serves as the head indoor and outdoor track as well. Coach Ross is a USATF Level 1 Certified Coach and she also hold AIC and CIC Certifications from the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS).  Julie is a former Green Hope runner herself and teaches Spanish at her alma mater.

Coach Jill Gardiner was born and raised in Cary. She graduated from Cary High School where she played several sports: soccer, tennis, swimming, cross country, and track and field. She eventually earned a full soccer scholarship to NC State University where she earned All-American status. While playing for the US Women’s National Team she sustained a career ending soccer injury. This is when her attention turned to long distance running and triathlons. After starting in mechanical engineering at NCSU, Jill earned a degree in Social Work instead (NCSU 1995). She then went on to earn dual Master degrees from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in Mathematics and Secondary Education (1998). While earning her Master degrees she also began teaching and coaching at Garinger High School, in Charlotte. While at Garinger she taught history and coached women’s soccer, men’s tennis and men’s and women’s track and field (1996-1998). After Garinger, she taught and coached at Concord High School. While at Concord she coached cross country, track and field, soccer, tennis, swimming, volleyball and basketball.

Coach Gardiner has earned several honors while teaching and coaching. In addition to being named Teacher of the Year twice, she has also been named conference coach of the year multiple times for different sports (men’s cross country, men’s tennis, men’s soccer, men’s track and field, women’s tennis and women’s soccer). She was also honored as the County Coach of the Year a few times. She has coached numerous Conference Championship teams, Regional team winners and several individual state champions.

In 2017 Coach Gardiner returned home and has taught mathematics at Green Hope since. 2023 will be her 6th year on the Green Hope cross country and track coaching staffs.

Rett Summerville will be in his 8th year as the pole vault coach at Green Hope. He’s a former 16’ high school vaulter, Division I scholarship athlete with over 10 years of pole vault experience and is an NFHS certified pole vault coach.