Ivan Chambers, Bob Wingett assume new places at respective Academy District 20 schools
Soon, don’t expect to find Ivan Chambers pacing the sidelines in the Liberty gymnasium. And Bob Wingett, he’ll be calling the shots instead of serving as an assistant coach on the softball field.
Both longtime coaches took on new roles earlier this spring.
Chambers, who recently finished his seventh season as boys’ basketball coach, is transitioning into an administrative role as assistant principal.
“I’ve had my principal license for 12 years, and kept that in my pocket for that long,” Chambers said. “I never did feel like it was the right time. Now is the right time.”
Chambers, who coached the Air Academy girls’ basketball team from 2002-10, has been coaching prep sports since 1981, when he got his start in his home state of Missouri. He arrived in Colorado Springs in 1992 when he took the position of assistant athletic director for intercollegiate support at the Air Force Academy.
“I felt now was the right time to make that transition,” Chambers said. “It was time for a change. I really enjoyed it. I did not apply for any other assistant principal job anywhere else. Liberty is where I wanted to be.”
Wingett, who led the girls’ basketball program at Air Academy to a state title in 2012, actually replaced Chambers as coach during the 2010-11 season.
He stepped down at Air Academy in 2014, citing health concerns, but remained on staff as a teacher in the Affected Needs program at the school that centers on students with emotional or severe learning disabilities. He remained an assistant on the baseball and softball programs and also took over as boys’ basketball coach at Evangelical Christian Academy.
“Coaching at ECA is just as strenuous, and all of that medical stuff has been worked out,” Wingett said. “There was a need at the school, and I was asked if I’d be willing to step up and address that need. I decided it was my time to do this.”
So in between coaching softball, assisting on the program’s baseball team and calling the shots for a boys’ basketball team out of district, don’t expect Wingett to ask for help.
“I enjoy being busy,” the native of Southern California said. “I don’t have any free time, but that’s the way I like it, honestly.”
Chambers didn’t set foot in Colorado Springs until 1992 when, while stationed at Homestead Air Force Base in suburban Miami, was forced to find a new residence following the destruction caused by Hurricane Andrew.
And the rest is history.
“As I look back, everything that has happened brought us to where we are today,” said Chambers, who recently celebrated his 40th anniversary with wife Robyn and are parents of two Liberty graduates in 1997 and 2000. “This is the time and this is my purpose, now to help younger teachers become better teachers. I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Ivan Chambers recently finished his seventh season as Liberty boys’ basketball coach and is transitioning into an administrative role as assistant principal.
Bob Wingett celebrates after leading the Air Academy girls’ basketball team to state title in 2012 at the Coors Event Center in Boulder. He stepped down at Air Academy in 2014, citing health concerns, but remained on the teaching staff, as well as in his position as an assistant on the baseball and softball programs. He also took over as boys’ basketball coach at Evangelical Christian Academy. “I enjoy being busy,” the native of Southern California said.
