2021-2022 COACHING STAFF

Danelle Kern
Dani Kern, a Charleston native, who has always been on staff here at Islanders.  She grew up playing volleyball almost her entire life.  She started playing at around the elementary school age, then joined her middle school and high school teams while also playing at the club level. Dani went on to play at the collegiate level for the Citadel.  Dani coached for the Islanders when the club was in the early stages of growing the program back in 2005 and 2006 while going to school at Coastal Carolina.   Dani is happily married and has two beautiful girls.  She is super excited to get back to the courts and into the gym to continue to grow the program at Islanders through Itsy Bitsy again this season.                                                          


Mindy Helmly
Mindy started playing volleyball in the sixth grade in Cedar Falls, Iowa and was a starting setter on her JV, Varsity and college teams.  Throughout junior high and high school, Mindy played Club and Junior Olympic Volleyball and attended numerous Olympic Development Camps. She moved to Anderson, SC before the start of her junior year in high school and immediately made an impact for T.L. Hanna High School bringing the program to a competitive level.  As a senior, she was voted to the All-State team and selected to play in the state All-Star tournament.  She excelled as a defensive specialist and setter and attended Anderson College on a dual volleyball/softball scholarship.  After college she earned a Pharmacy degree from MUSC and is the pharmacy manager at the Bishop Gadsden Retirement Community.  She currently lives on James Island with her two sons, Andrew and Hayward.  Mindy has been instrumental in the growth and development of the Fort Johnson Middle School volleyball program. She is also active in coaching other sports for the James Island Recreation Dept and serves as Vice President of the James Island Coaches Athletic Program.  Her focus is on fundamentals, sportsmanship and learning to love the game.  This will be Mindy's 9th year coaching our top 12s team with the Carolina Islanders.

Courtney Simmons 

Coach Courtney Shine is a native of Moncks Corner, SC. She moved to Branchville SC where she played high school volleyball under Starr Bright. She was a standout on the volleyball court garnering many All-Region, All-Tournament honors. She was named the Times & Democrat player of the year, CAWS player of the year, also MVP of the North/South team in 2008.  Went on to play volleyball at Lander University where she was also awarded MVP honors. Coach Simmons has coached both JV, Varsity Volleyball and Club Volleyball. She is currently the head volleyball coach at Berkeley High School and teaches at Whitesville Elementary, Coach Shine is beyond excited about continuing her knowlegde of the game to her players.  This will be Coach Shine's 6th season with the Carolina Islanders.

Shanara Pou 
Moncks Corner native, played high school volleyball under Coach Tonya Thompson at Berkeley High School. She was exceptional on the volleyball court, she was nominated 2 years in a row for Gatorade player of the year award 2000 and 2001.  Shanara chose to take a step outside of the box, venturing to upstate New York receiving a Bachelor’s Degree and playing volleyball at Syracuse University.  She continued her eduacation by completing the Dual Masters program from Webster University along with becoming a certified Massage Therapist. Shanara has coached Varsity Volleyball as the Assistant Coach to Head Coach Courtney Simmons at Berkeley High School for one year.  Coach Pou is excited about returning for her 2nd season.

Pam Cenkner 

Pam brings over 21 years of coaching experience to the Carolina Islanders.  She has been instrumental in teaching the fundamentals of many players in the Low Country, who have excelled in their middle, high school and college programs.  Pam was the head coach at Christ Our King Middle School for 6 years, and while there she led her teams to SIX championship titles as well as other state and region titles for SCISA and two Coach of the Year honors.  She has been recognized by the Town of Mount Pleasant as their Volunteer Coach of the Year, for her time, dedication, and commitment to the youth volleyball programs in the area.  You can spot some of her players by the excellent skills, discipline and fundamentals they showcase on the court.  Her 8th grade team's at COK made a mark in the Low Country in having the most 8th grade consecutive championship titles of any middle school team in Charleston with a season high record of 6.  Pam's Islander teams always finish strong with bids to Nationals. In the 2013-14 season, her 14 Elite team was nationally ranked in the top 100 at 55th, in 2014-15 season her 13 Elite team was nationally ranked 57th and this past year in 2015-2016 her 14 Elite team garnered a 41st in the National Rankings! She is also the Club Director of Carolina Islanders which was ranked 57th of the best clubs in the Nation for the 2014-2015 club season. Pam always looks forward to coaching and getting to know another group of girls to add to her extended family. 

Coach Sims

                                                 COACHING ASSIGNMENTS ARE TENTATIVE AND COULD BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE.