By Josh Beavers

Carrie Jones brought archery to Minden High School in 2016, launching the school’s first archery team. Jones had initially learned about the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) years earlier when her daughter competed for Benton Middle School’s team in 2009-2010. At the time, Jones thought an archery program would benefit Minden students, but assumed a P.E. teacher had to oversee it. In 2016-2017, Jones discovered that anyone trained as a Basic Archery Instructor could coach a team. With archery growing quickly across the state, Jones decided to start a team at Minden High. 

Though archery ran deep in her family, Jones had never shot a bow herself. “I never shot a bow until I agreed to assist with archery even though archery has been a big part of my family,” she explained. “My husband is an instructor as well as a bow hunter, my daughter competed in NASP. My son competed as well, and he is also a bow hunter. However, I did not shoot because I was a left handed shooter, and they were all right-handed shooters which would require a different bow.”

In the archery team’s first two years, their main goal was fundraising to purchase their own equipment. They initially borrowed from the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. In Spring 2018, the team began competing in NASP tournaments. “That spring we competed in three tournaments,” Jones said. “As archery has grown in the state the number of tournaments offered has increased.” 

This year, the team has already competed in several local and regional bullseye tournaments. Jones shared that her goals for the team center less on competition and more on growth. “My goal is to not only expose them to another sport, but to strive to improve to beat their previous score as well as have fun,” she said. 

Jones highlighted that archery provides unique opportunities for all types of students to succeed. “Archery is a safe sport that can be done for a lifetime. It is a sport that does not require you to be extremely strong and athletic just dedicated and focused,” she explained. “It is a team sport, but it is also an individual sport.” She added that top performers at state tournaments can win college scholarship money, providing extra incentive for athletes.

With Jones’ leadership and passion, the Minden High School archery team continues to offer students a supportive environment to learn a lifetime sport. Though initially unfamiliar with archery herself, Jones has built a successful program engaging students and helping them develop focus, persistence, and self-confidence.