Women's Basketball coaching staff

Shawn Reneé Polk
Head Coach
Phone (617) 287-7848
Email - Shawn.Polk@umb.edu

Shawn Reneé Polk, who has gained a reputation as one of the better young coaches in the Boston area, became UMass Boston’s 10th women’s basketball coach in August 1998. Following her ninth year at the helm of the Beacons’ program, she has brought in a core of players that have helped UMass Boston become one of the better programs in the region under her guidance.  The Beacons have shown improvement over the course of her nine years and become an annual player within the Little East Conference.

Polk’s hard work was realized during the 2006-07 season as UMass Boston matched a school-record for wins with a 15-11 record, including a new school-mark for Little East Conference wins with an 8-6 showing.  The Beacons finished third in the league, their highest showing in school history.

Polk came to UMass Boston with extensive experience in the Boston basketball circles.  She spent two seasons as the head coach at Roxbury Community College and has worked with a number of local basketball organizations.

Polk has established herself as an active leader in sports and athletics in the city of Boston.  She is the former Director of the highly regarded Boston Neighborhood Basketball League (BNBL), the city’s oldest youth basketball league.  She oversaw all operations of the entire league, including 22 sites with over 3,000 boys and girls between the ages of 11-19. She was also the sports director at the YMCA in Boston for two years, a physical education teacher for the City on A Hill Charter School in Boston and has worked as an event manager and a coach with the Bay State Games.

A 1993 graduate of UMass Amherst with a bachelors degree in sport management, Polk also serves as the facilities scheduling coordinator for the UMass Boston athletic department. She is a resident of Roxbury.

Josh Bartley
Assistant Coach
Phone - 617-287-7848
Email - josh.bartley@umb.edu

Josh Bartely heads into his second season on the UMass Boston women’s basketball staff.  In his first season, he helped the Beacons match a school-record for victories.   

Prior to his arrival at UMB, he enjoyed four successful seasons as the Fulton High School Girls basketball team’s assistant and junior varsity head coach.  While at FHS, he coached the JV squad to a school-record 18 wins and also coached the softball varsity squad to the state sectional playoffs. 

Before becoming a coach, Bartley also enjoyed an excellent athletic career at Westminster College, where he was a four-time Academic All-Conference performer in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

His athletic prowess wasn’t limited to the gridiron in high school as he earned 11 letters in three sports, at Fulton H.S., with four in baseball and football and three in basketball. 

He graduated from Westminster in 2000 and earned a masters of education degree from University of Missouri-Columbia three years later.

Brianna Ford
Assistant Coach
Phone - 617-287-7848
Email -



Ed Perkins
Head Athletic Trainer