Bishop Amat’s Richard Wiard will remain the girls basketball coach at Amat while he serves as interim athletic director at Charter Oak


By Fred J. Robledo
Richard Wiard, the winningest high school girls basketball coach in San Gabriel Valley history, isn’t ready to give up what he’s built at Bishop Amat. Wiard, who has won four CIF championships and two state titles the past 12 years, will remain coach at Bishop Amat while he serves as interim athletic director at Charter Oak, a position he strongly considered pursuing before deciding to remain as the Lancers’ girls basketball coach.
Wiard, who took a one-year sabbatical from coaching in 2008 to pursue a second Masters degree at Azusa Pacific, is an economics teacher at Charter Oak, where his wife Kathy Wiard is the principal.
For years, Wiard has taught at Charter Oak and coached girls basketball at Bishop Amat. He’s been a high school basketball coach for nearly three decades.
Over the summer, Charter Oak vice principal and athletic director Glenn Martinez left the school to become the CIF-Southern Section assistant commissioner, leading to speculation that Wiard would become the athletic director or vice principal at Charter Oak.
Since Martinez left, Wiard has served as the interim athletic director at Charter Oak. However, Wiard said he isn’t seeking the job permanently. “This is what happens when your wife is the principal,” Wiard joked. “I’m helping out. I’m not considering it (athletic director) long term, it’s a short-term solution.”
Wiard came to this decision recently. Two months ago, he was strongly considering a move to the administrative side, whether at Charter Oak or somewhere else.
But when it came time to make the decision, his heart was with the Amat girls basketball team. “I didn’t want to give it up,” Wiard said. “I’m not that old yet. I still enjoy it.”

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