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The Callaway girls track and field team has a new coach and for Cavalier fans, it will be a familiar face. Demia Mitchell is the new woman in charge and she comes with a wealth of experience helping young ladies prepare for the future as she currently serves as the Callaway Middle School girls track and field coach as well as an assistant girls basketball coach.

“I want the middle school girls to start working with the high school girls,” Mitchell said. “I want the high school girls to serve as role models for the younger girls and hopefully get them hyped up about being a part of the track and field team when they get older and get into high school.”

She also served as the head coach of the cross country team a season ago but will forgo another season in charge as she transitions to coaching track and field at the high school level.

Outside of the school, Mitchell has helped coach the Troup County Parks and Rec track teams as her track and field resumé is filled to the brim with experience, making her a natural fit for the head coaching job at Callaway.

“I coach at Callaway Middle and with the parks and rec teams, so I guess a lot of people see my passion for track and field,” Mitchell said. 

“Putting back into the community I grew up in is something that really stood out to me.”

Mitchell was a multi-sport standout during her time at LaGrange High, earning a spot on the Piedmont University track and field team when her stellar high school career wrapped. Mitchell’s forte was in the 100-meter dash, the 200-meter dash, as well as the 400-meter run, but her strengths in coaching are across the board.

Despite having all the qualifications to be a head coach at the high school, Mitchell did not envision this opportunity presenting itself so soon. 

“I was actually quite surprised, and it put a big smile on my face,” Mitchell said about when she got the offer. 

“I expected it in a sense, but definitely not this soon, but I’m excited to get this opportunity to get started with the girls.”

Callaway’s girls track and field program is in a healthy state as former coach Andre Johnson passes the torch to Mitchell. Her goal is simple: continue the work that Johnson has done while providing her own wrinkles and personality to the atmosphere around the girls track and field program at Callaway. 

“I want to be the type of coach that I never had,” Mitchell said. “I’m not saying I had bad coaches, but I just want to be there for the kids, whether it is a talented kid that has not quite gotten there yet or somebody who has been running track for years.

“I want to see greatness in these kids in the community because we have a lot of talent out here.”

Track and field has always been in her blood and when she was at Piedmont she decided to change her major to sport and fitness administration, so that she could one day be a coach.

A lifelong Granger, Mitchell has found a new home on the other side of the county, draped in red and black. 

“It’s a swap for me, but it’s a good feeling to be a part of Callaway,” Mitchell said. “Everybody has been welcoming here and this is now my third year as an art teacher (at Callaway Middle). It has been smooth sailing since day one, and I couldn’t be happier.”