Ever since he graduated from college in 2002, Justin Page has been searching for a social studies teaching job.

This summer, he found what he wanted. But accepting the position means Page will have to give up his job coaching the Old Town High School girls basketball team.

Page resigned last month after two years coaching the Coyotes to take a teaching position that will have him spending half of his time at Stearns of Millinocket and the other half at Schenck of East Millinocket.

Page, a 1998 Schenck graduate, said he was torn between staying with the Old Town team, which would likely mean long daily commutes during the winter basketball season, or giving up coaching to pursue his teaching career.

“I was worried that by burning the candle at both ends I wouldn’t be able to give the kids 100 percent,” said Page, who recently moved back to East Millinocket. “They would just get a watered-down version of me, and that wouldn’t be fair to either party.”

Page will be teaching world history, psychology and sociology at the two schools, which are about 10 miles apart. He plans to volunteer wherever the basketball teams need him, but didn’t rule out a return to coaching if a job opened up in the area.

He spent the last two years as an educational technician in the Old Town system. Page will get a salary in his new position, which he said will help him catch up on the typical debts of a college graduate who decided to pursue coaching before teaching.

“I’ve always put coaching first, but I think it’s time for me to focus on my career,” Page said. “It’s really the first time I’ve made a decision like this for myself.”

The Old Town girls won just two games per season under Page, but the Coyotes have been at a huge disadvantage in enrollment. The school will be at around 540 students this year, Page said, playing in Eastern Maine Class A’s Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference against schools like Bangor, which has around 1,200 students.

“[EM Class A] is going to be the most potent it’s been in a while this winter,” Page said.

Four of Old Town’s starters graduated, leaving only junior guard Jenna King. The graduates include KVAC North first-team all-star guard Katie Bergeron and honorable mention center Jenny Jones.

“I think it’s going to be a year where the kids need to stay excited about playing and not worry about wins and losses,” Page said. “They should play for little goals. I’d have a checklist at halftime. Did we take a charge? Did we force two jump balls?”

Junior varsity coach Alan Brownewell coached the team during its summer schedule, Page added.

Jessica Bloch can be reached at 990-8193, 1-800-310-8600 or jbloch@bangordailynews.net.