Kayla Burse has proven time and time again she is a program changer.
Based on her impact in the Chattanooga area, formerly as a star athlete and now as a coach in multiple sports, Burse stands a great chance to help build something unique at a school she once called home.
Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts has hired Burse as its head coach for girls’ basketball as well as boys’ and girls’ tennis, and she’s looking forward to the opportunities the 2023-24 school year will provide.
“I am a 2006 alum from CSLA middle, and I always thought how cool would it be if they had a high school,” Burse said. “When the opportunity presented itself, there was a lot of prayer and talk with my family, even thinking about my son’s future. This was a blessing in disguise for sure.”
Burse’s return to CSLA will come at a new campus where the sports facilities include a synthetic turf field for football and soccer as well as tennis courts.
CSLA has moved from its old location in East Brainerd to the former Lakeside Elementary School on Jersey Pike off Highway 58. Younger students started the 2022-23 school year there as construction continued for renovation and expansion, and by January, all grades at CSLA — kindergarten through 10th at the time — were taking classes at the new school. The school will have juniors next school year and a senior class the following year.
“To come back at a time when things are finally setting in stone with a new facility and some of the same teachers that taught me is really special,” Burse said. “I am so excited to be given this opportunity to help spearhead these programs into successful ones. It’s an honor to be a fellow Eagle coming back home and being able to prayerfully do that.”
Burse (formerly Kelly) was a prep star on the basketball and tennis courts for Chattanooga School for the Arts & Sciences. She helped CSAS make what remains its lone trip to the TSSAA girls’ basketball state tournament during a 28-win season for the Lady Patriots. In the Class 1A state quarterfinals in March 2010, Burse’s versatility showed in a 58-39 win over Scotts Hill as she scored 11 points while adding seven rebounds, six steals and two assists.
Burse and her sister Ahmee also won back-to-back Class A/AA girls’ doubles state championships in 2009-10, with the latter won in a tiebreaker. The twins went on to help Milligan University capture the 2014 Appalachian Athletic Conference title on the way to an appearance in the NAIA national tournament.
Burse comes to CSLA after leading her last girls’ basketball team and boys’ tennis team at East Hamilton to significant heights.
Her 2021-22 Lady Hurricanes won the program’s only district championship while falling by only three points in the region final. She took the following basketball season off due to the birth of her first child.
This spring, the East Hamilton boys’ tennis team had an undefeated regular season and finished 15-1 overall with a district tournament title and a region runner-up finish. The doubles team of junior Will Harden and sophomore Evan Seo made it to the state tournament.
“The beauty in coaching is you get to prayerfully make a difference in kids lives,” Burse said. “I have a connection to so many kids in Chattanooga, and they will always feel like my kids. I enjoy building great relationships with them and their families.”
While not ignoring the significant challenge ahead of helping CSLA put itself on the map in high school sports, Burse believes the Class 1A program has the potential to do great things.
She is living proof the Eagles can produce extraordinary talent on and off the court.
“We have to work hard and understand the legacy,” Burse said. “We had a NFL player in Josh Malone walk the halls at CSLA. Tamira Rumph was the first Division I basketball player to come through the program. We have a rich history of athletes. We would love to get CSLA back to almost a mini sports academy on top of the academic excellence it still holds.
“It will be key for us to get to the foundation of working hard and being grateful,” she added. “This generation, you have all the facilities to be great. So let’s do it.”
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com.