A New Chapter: Teaching Sports Psychology at Mitchell College

November 18, 2025•2 min read

This semester, I’m stepping into a role I’ve dreamed about for a long time: serving as an adjunct professor of Sports Psychology at Mitchell College.

Sports have always been more than just physical performance—they’re a powerful blend of mind, body, and spirit. Behind every great athlete or team lies the mental preparation, resilience, and psychological strategies that make peak performance possible. As I begin this teaching journey, my goal is to help students see sports psychology not just as theory, but as a living, breathing discipline that impacts athletes, coaches, and even everyday life.

From our first class sessions, I’ve been struck by my students’ curiosity. They want to understand motivation. They want to explore confidence, focus, and mental toughness. They want to learn how athletes recover from setbacks and how psychological principles apply beyond the playing field. That energy excites me—and challenges me to keep lessons engaging, practical, and deeply connected to real-world examples.

Dennis Rinaldi at Mitchell College, 2025

As a passionate educator, I want the classroom to feel like a space where ideas flow both ways. While I share insights from sports psychology research and practice, I also learn from my students’ perspectives, their athletic experiences, and their questions that push the conversation further. Together, we’re building a dialogue that makes the material come alive.

At its core, teaching sports psychology at Mitchell College is about empowerment. It’s about equipping students with tools they can use whether they become coaches, athletes, sports managers, or professionals in entirely different fields.

Skills like focus, resilience, stress management, and team dynamics are universally valuable—and I’m thrilled to guide students in discovering them.

Being an adjunct professor is more than a job to me—it’s a passion and a privilege. And as I begin this journey, I know that each lecture, discussion, and breakthrough moment in the classroom will shape not just my students’ paths, but mine as well.
Here’s to exploring the power of the mind in sport—and to making sports psychology a transformative experience at Mitchell College!

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Dennis Rinaldi

Dennis Rinaldi is a former college basketball player who developed a deep passion for leadership, teamwork, and mentorship both on and off the court. Dennis Rinaldi, has called the Connecticut Shoreline home for the past 13 years he brings over a decade of experience in leadership, coaching, and education to his work with families and young athletes. A former standout college basketball player, Dennis has spent years both on and off the court helping individuals reach their full potential. With five years in nonprofit leadership, Dennis has worked closely with youth and families, developing programs that support personal growth, teamwork, and community engagement. His hands-on experience in high school basketball coaching allows him to connect deeply with student-athletes, helping them navigate challenges on and off the court with confidence and discipline. As an adjunct professor, Dennis also brings a thoughtful and academic perspective to his coaching approach, combining real-world experience with evidence-based practices. His work centers on building strong, trusting relationships with families and empowering young people to become resilient, purpose-driven leaders. Whether coaching on the hardwood or mentoring in the classroom, or helping navigate challenges in the community or at home Dennis is committed to creating supportive environments where individuals and families thrive.

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