About Coach Ahern

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

-Nelson Mandela

In Rhode Island sports circles, most people often remember James “Jimmy” Ahern as the long-time coach of the Mount Pleasant Kilties basketball team where he won two (2) state titles in 1980 and 2003. Or they talk of the kid from Smith Hill (Providence) who went on to Providence College where he was co-captain of the basketball team that went to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). And yes both those accomplishments are true and were a source of pride for Coach Ahern. However, what isn’t more widely discussed was Coach Ahern’s passion for learning and education. Coach Ahern had an insatiable quest for knowledge and emphasized the importance of education in his more than thirty (30) years as teacher and guidance counselor at Mount Pleasant High School and Central High School.