Ruben Nieves

is responsible for
overseeing the recruitment, training, and evaluation of PCA’s trainers.


He also oversees the evaluation of PCA’s impact on YSOs, coaches, parents and athletes.

Ruben earned his Masters Degree in Education from Stanford University in 1982. He coached collegiate volleyball for 18 years including stints as the Head Men’s Coach at Stanford and the Head Women’s Coach at Fresno State. Ruben was twice named NCAA Men's Volleyball Coach of the Year, in 1992 and 1997. He guided Stanford to the Cardinal’s only men’s volleyball NCAA championship in 1997.

Ruben also has extensive experience and success in international volleyball. He spent the summer of 2001 as Head Coach of the USA Men's Volleyball World University Games Team which captured the Gold Medal in Beijing, China, thus becoming the first and only American squad in history to accomplish this feat. Ruben was also an advisory staff member for the 1996 U.S. Olympic Volleyball Team. In 1995, he was Head Coach of the USA Boys Youth National Team that competed in the World Championships in San Juan, Puerto Rico.In addition, Ruben has taught physical education for seven years at all levels K-12.

Ruben has worked with Positive Coaching Alliance since 2001 and has presented over 150 PCA workshops.


Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) is transforming youth sports so sports can transform youth. Through partnership with more than 1,700 youth sports organizations, leagues, schools and cities nationwide, PCA has conducted 9,000-plus workshops for youth sports coaches, parents, organizational leaders and athletes.

Since Executive Director Jim Thompson founded PCA as a non-profit within the Stanford University Athletic Department in 1998, we have helped create a positive, character-building youth sports environment for more than 3 million youth athletes.

In our online courses and live, group workshops, our goal is to establish as the prevailing models in youth and high school sports:

• The Double-Goal Coach®, whose first goal is winning, and whose second, more-important goal is teaching life lessons through sports

• The Second-Goal ParentTM, who concentrates on life lessons, while letting coaches and athletes focus on competing

• The Triple-Impact CompetitorTM, who strives to impact sport on three levels by improving oneself, teammates and the game as a whole.

PCA gains support from elite coaches and athletes, including Los Angeles Lakers Head Coach Phil Jackson as PCA National Spokesperson. Our National Advisory Board comprises such leaders as NBA and NCAA Champion Coach Larry Brown, former senator Bill Bradley, NFL Hall of Fame Member Ronnie Lott, Olympic Gold Medalist swimmer Summer Sanders, Olympic Gold Medal gymnasts Bart Conner and Nadia Comaneci, University of North Carolina Men's Basketball Retired Head Coach Dean Smith, Cy Young Award winner Barry Zito, and Former NFL Head Coach Herm Edwards.

Our partners, trainers, workshop attendees, National Advisory Board members and thousands of individuals, foundations and corporations together lead the Positive Coaching movement that is sweeping youth sports in this nation and beyond.

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