When previous athletic director Ian Mackenzie left the school last spring, assistant principal Joe Bosco didn’t have to look far for a replacement.
State Requirements teacher Peter Jordan was reluctant at first when asked to take the position of athletic director but decided to go for it.
Said Jordan, “It was a challenge and an opportunity to try something new and I almost never turn that down.”
Jordan is gaining experience with management but is also getting the chance to watch and learn sports he never played as an athlete, such as water polo, tennis and volleyball.
When Jordan was a running coach, he only needed to focus on his job as the coach. He now looks at a bigger picture. Jordan is in charge of making sure all the sports teams run smoothly, which includes everything from hiring coaches and buying gear to organizing field use.
“As the athletic director you need to be able to roll with the punches because it seems like there’s always something breaking down or going on or there’s something you need to attend to,” said Jordan.
One of Jordan’s main goals is to “open up channels of communication with the parents.” Teenagers tend not to be the most reliable communicators and it’s important for parents to know what’s going on in the sports. Jordan hopes to help the parents understand what they can do to get involved in athletics, especially in the two new sports teams this year: girls’ golf and boys’ lacrosse.
A big change for Jordan is that he deals more with adults, coaches and parents rather than directly with the athletes.
“I’m hoping I’ll get a handle on things to a point where I can spend a little more time enjoying the games and getting to know the athletes,” said Jordan.
He also plans to fill the coaching positions with people who will keep the position for more than a season. Having long-term coaches builds valuable coach-to-athlete bonds that help teams be successful. So far Jordan has hired all the coaches for fall and winter sports and is working on spring sports such as volleyball, lacrosse and badminton.
He also intends to make some changes to the seventh period sports physical education class and expand it to include weight training, aerobic training, yoga flexibility and agility training to better prepare the athletes for their sports.
