In independent schools, some teachers are “triple threats.” In our world, this is a compliment reserved for those community members who teach, advise AND coach. It is one of the wonderful traditions in schools like ours because it gives students the opportunity to see that the same teacher in the classroom who loves literature and poetry ALSO cares for them as an advisor AND shares their passion for a particular sport or activity. This is one of the many types of modeling that matters if we want each student to enjoy a balanced intellectual, artistic, spiritual, and physical life.

 

While I spend much of my day “principaling,” I still love to coach and try to make sure that it is a part of the way that I get to work with students each year.

 

There is always a history to what we enjoy and want to give back. In my case, I learned how to work hard and be passionately committed to a group through sports. That can certainly happen in a lot of different endeavors, but for me it was through soccer, basketball, and tennis. I can remember getting up at 5:30 a.m. during my sophomore summer in high school to meet a buddy to kick the ball around before we went to our respective summer jobs: just the two of us, day after day.

 

At 5’8” and a hulking 128 lbs, I had no illusions about how far I would go in the game, but I learned through these practice sessions that what gets you anywhere is commitment, persistent, practice, and a bit of metaphorical or real sweat.

 

I was also lucky because I had some great coaches, people who cared more about me than they did about our win/loss record. Don’t get me wrong, they kept score and pushed me hard, but I also knew that what they were trying to teach went far beyond field play or the ability to volley a tennis ball. One coach in particular stands out to me: Ed Quigley.

 

Quigley was a fiery Irishman with a tuft of hair on his nose and cigarette-tinged breath. He had no sense of interpersonal space and routinely invaded my “bubble,” talking to me from at most three inches. His lasting lessons were about the importance of putting the team before the individual, doing whatever you do with passion, and finding humor in what is going on around us. Coach was also my favorite and best English teacher. He made it clear that you can be a lot of different things at the same time….an intellect, a cut-up, an athlete, an artist, a confidante, vulnerable as well as strong….because he was.

 

I coach because I want to help kids grow up, explore passion and enjoy what is special about being part of something a little bigger than themselves. Sports is the first place that many young people realize their potential for leadership and for abstract reasoning. I also coach because there is something pure about going out onto a court or field and giving it your best shot. You might win, you might lose, but each player has the chance to bring the best that she has and put it on display. To shine. I also coach because it is fun: fun to be with kids, fun to share with them an activity I love, fun to help each grow from challenges, missteps and moments of brilliance.

At CA I hope that middle school athletics are for everyone, whether a child chooses a competitive activity or a fitness-related endeavor. I hope that our students view the program as a supportive place to try something new and as a place to polish skills and grow as a leader.