Walker Ferris - Men's Head Coach

Having joined SA at the start of the 2021 fall season, Coach Walker looks to blend an "earned, never given" mentality with a collaborative, competitive, and fun training atmosphere as the men's squad works towards success at the regional and national levels in 2022 and beyond.

Originally from Savannah, GA, Coach Walker rowed for the Savannah Country Day School before attending the University of Georgia. After rowing four years and graduating in 2015 with bachelor's degrees in economics and in history, he coached high school rowing in Jacksonville, FL from 2015-2017 before returning to Athens to lead the men's rowing program at UGA from 2017-2021. He is also in his fifth year with the USRowing U19 National Team System, having most recently served as a coach and as the equipment coordinator for the combined men's and women's 2021 ODP camp. He is also a USRowing Level II certified instructor.

Erin Haworth - Women's Interim Head Coach

Coach Erin Haworth, a US Rowing Level II Certified Instructor and a SARC alum, began coaching the women's team in Fall 2018, working primarily with the Novice Women. Erin was a rower and coxswain for SARC from 2008-2014, where she raced in the Varsity 4+ at Youth Nationals in 2012 and in the Varsity 8+ at HOCR 2013 and 2014. Afterward, she spent four years as a coxswain at the University of Alabama, Roll Tide! At UA, Erin was a member of one of the first boats in program history to receive a medal at the Big 12 Conference Championships, was a 4-time member of the All-SEC Academic Honor Roll, and gained racing experience across the country.  After college, Erin spent 6 years working with the women's Novice/U17 squads, which found success in both race results and athlete development.  Taking over the women's squad in the fall of 2023, the women's squad placed a program-best 6th place at the Head of the Charles in the Varsity 8 and 4th place in the U17 4+.  The squad also won gold at Head of the Hooch in the U19 8+ and U17 8+.  Erin is excited for the opportunity to build on that success this spring!  When not at the boathouse, Erin teaches fitness classes at SPENGA Roswell, spends lots of time with her two golden retrievers, Maggie and Moose, and finds joy in her own workouts!  

Kiyah Sherman-Women's Assistant Coach, Foundations

"Kiyah Sherman is an SA Alumni graduating in 2018. She has rowing experience in not only the South East but internationally as well. She had the opportunity to represent her Irish team at the Ghent International Spring Regatta in Belgium in 2017. She then attended U of SC and helped build up their program before coming back the Atlanta to formally pursue a coaching career. In addition to coaching, she is the sales manager and coach at a rowing based fitness studio in Roswell and enjoys free time with her cats and her husband." 

Corey Babb - Foundations

Coach Corey joined SA as a Level II US Rowing Certified Coach for the 2022 Fall Season. He currently serves as the Middle School Coach and is a graduate of Berry College in Rome, GA where he rowed as a member of the Berry College Viking Crew for 4 years. In his time at Berry, he participated in the lightweight men's 4+, mixed 4+, mixed doubles, and senior men's 4+ in events across the southeast including two trips to the Marathon Rowing Championships in Natchitoches, Louisiana. In addition to his team positions, he served as a training coxswain for the freshman women's teams and crew management through active engagement with his coaching staff and hands-on support of the crew through boathouse and boat maintenance and responsibility for transportation to and from regattas. Coach Corey has worked in the environmental, health, and safety management profession for over 20 years and spent much of that time working on, or on behalf of, the Chattahoochee River. He resides in East Cobb with his wife, Sarah, and their two daughters, Katherine and Ainsley.  

Lauren Heflin - Men's Assistant Coach

Originally from Tallahassee, FL, Lauren started as a rower with Capital City Rowing, and eventually transitioned to a role as a Coxswain, primarily for the men's team. She started college at the University of North Florida, in Jacksonville, and transferred to UGA in 2016. She quickly joined Georgia's rowing club as a men's coxswain, and in 2019 graduated with a bachelor's degree in Environmental Economics. In 2020 she moved to Atlanta, where she currently works as a project manager. Lauren is excited to be part of the SA coaching staff! 

Rafael Abromson - Assistant coach and Foundations

Throughout most of my life I’ve been involved in sports and extracurricular activities. I grew up in East Cobb and attended Pope High School where I up to my junior year I was a state swimmer and then part of my school’s drum line. At UGA, I mainly stayed active by running long distances, skateboarding and rock climbing but junior year by sheer coincidence I shared a class with one of UGA rowing club’s recruiting officer and an SA Alumni, Julian Austin Bragg. As fate would have it, Austin would end up coaching my novice boat: a boat that didn’t row pretty but had a LOT of heart. We would go on to medal at several intramural regattas. Despite popular belief, our ergs do float at that level. My senior year, Coach Walker Ferris would came in hot and introduce some ridiculous workouts, which after surviving, led to my 4 taking silver at hooch and our 8 throwing down respectable times at the big leagues. While my rowing career was short lived, I was enamored by the grittiness and type 2 fun aspect of the sport, and I’m extremely blessed to now be a part of this program. For one reason or another I’ve always been stellar at motivating (read:politely yelling) at people. My philosophy is simple. Rowing is sport of preparation, not miracles. The crew that brings home gold is the crew that has the most heart not only on race day, but on every workout, day in and day out. 

Coach Stephanie Parker - Assistant Women's Coach

I’m Stephanie! SA has been in my life for as long as I can remember. I rowed here for 6 years, but have had 2 sisters go through this program before me, as well as a mom who coached, and a dad who was VERY involved in fixing things here. I went on to row at the University of Alabama and graduated with a degree in exercise science with my concentration in coaching. Since then I’ve been hanging out with my dog, coaching weightlifting and CrossFit, and working in the restaurant industry!