Bio

Cornelius Tavarres joined SUNY Adirondack as the Head Women's Basketball Coach in 2020.  He played basketball throughout high school and on several summer leagues before entering the US Army.  He’s spent over a decade coaching at all levels of girl’s and women’s basketball.  He started coaching girls AAU basketball in 2009 and founded his own AAU organization called Adirondack Shock in 2012.  He coached several local athletes that continued their play at the DI and DII divisions.  

Tavarres coached girl’s modified ball at Corinth Central School District in 2013-14. The following year he was promoted to the girl’s varsity coach and led the team to Sectionals.  In 2015-16 he was hired as an assistant women’s basketball coach at Skidmore College and finished the season with a 14-11 record.   Most recently, he was the head coach at Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (ACPHS).  While at ACPHS he led his team to the 2016-17 Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season and conference titles, received an automatic bid to the USCAA National Championship, and was named Conference Coach of the Year.  He coached at ACPHS from 2016 -2019.

Tavarres is currently employed with the Department of Defense (DOD) as a Senior Auditor, managing the NY Staff.  He is also a DOD instructor for all states and territories.  Tavarres is a U.S. Army Veteran.  He graduated from SUNY Empire State College with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a minor in Accounting.  He has his Master’s degree in Sports Management with a concentration in Coaching Theory and Strategy from American Military University, resulting in a 4.0 GPA. 

He and his wife Kimberly, a U.S. Army Veteran as well, have three grown children and reside in Queensbury, NY.  His son Josh is active duty in the U.S. Army, his daughter Kea is teaching at Cap Cana Heritage School in the Dominican Republic and is the Boys Head Basketball Coach, and Katlyn, his youngest, is completing her Doctoral Degree in Occupational Therapy at Sage College.

Cornelius and his family are heavily involved in the community.  They are part of the American Red Cross Eastern New York Disaster Workforce Engagement Team.  They volunteer their time with Hometown Thanksgiving every year, preparing thanksgiving dinners for the infirmed.  He also volunteers with Big Brothers and Big Sisters and currently has a Little Brother he mentors and hangs out with on a weekly basis.