The Springfield Student Est. 1910
September 19, 2019
[scstudentmedia.com]
Contact us: springfieldstudent@springfield.edu
Go to PAGE 9 to read about Springfield College’s one of a kind Football Strength and Conditioning Program
Volume 134 No. 2
State of the CAmpus A recap of the annual all college meeting By Irene Rotondo @irenerrotondo
For just the second time in its history, the Springfield College all college meeting was open for student attendance this past Monday. President Mary-Beth Cooper opened the doors of the Blake Arena Gym, had the bleachers pulled from their place in the walls, and lined the wooden floors with rows of chairs to face a large stage where she would give a sort of State of the Union Address -- that is, to talk about how Springfield College has grown since last year, and present the Cheney Award to a deserving faculty or staff member. The meeting began with Cooper welcoming all of the new staff, faculty, and students on campus and asked them to stand to be recognized. She then dove into a recap of the “Campus Master Plan” from last year’s meeting, which included relocations of President Cooper with Cheney Award winner Gary Enright. Photo Courtesy of Springfield College Marketing & Communications
See All College Meeting on Page 8
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Catching up with Public Safety See what’s new with those who keep our campus safe By Danny Priest @dpriest3
New school years bring change - change among the student body, staff, faculty, and across multiple other areas of campus. Springfield College is not immune to this change, but one area of the institution that typically flies under the radar more often than not is Public Safety. Just like everyone else, Public Safety has their own news updates and events going on, and they want
students to be aware of them to begin the new academic year. To start, the staff has added four new officers to their team this year. Per Sergeant Daniel Cotter, Springfield hired Officer Shannon Trybus, Officer Jenell Castro, Officer Luke Nierenhausen, and Officer Dylan Sullivan. “We’re excited. They should all be wrapping up field training over the next couple weeks,” Cotter said of the new members of the staff. “So you’ll see them kind of using the buddy system, walking around with their field training officer.” The new officers are wasting no time integrating themselves into the campus community. According to Cotter, Officers Trybus and Castro are working with the RA’s on campus to partner up and help get officers inside the residence halls. The focus of their plan is not to get students in trouble by any means, but rather to help with their adjustment to college. The focus especially rests on first-year students to help familiarize them with Public Safety, and vice versa. On top of the new staff, Public Safety has a variety of other events they are planning to roll out over the course of the year. They are arranging to hold presentations on emergency preparedness and active shooters. This way the campus community will be prepared in the event of an emergency. “The way I envision it will be kind of like an open forum,” Cotter said of the
presentations. “I’ll do different dates and times for students, faculty, and staff; whenever it’s convenient for them. I’m hoping to do that at least two or three times throughout the course of the fall.” Another issue the department is looking into is the crosswalks on campus, particularly the crosswalks on the corner of Wilbraham and Alden Street by Locklin See Public Safety on Page 7
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The Springfield Student will be providing coverage of this event. To read our story, head to scstudentmedia.com and get caught up on everything that was covered.
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Photo Courtesy of Springfield College
What exactly is Title IX?
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Title IX is an important law that everyone on campus should be aware of By Ty Coney tconey@springfieldcollege.edu
Mary Simeoli is Springfield College’s Title IX Director.
Title IX is an extremely important concept, but it’s one that not many people may understand. If anyone were to ask college students in particular what Title IX was, they may not be aware. The assumption is usually that it relates to “sexual assault” or “women’s rights.” Now while these are both technically correct, Title IX expands much further than just sexual assault and sexism into issues that students all over the country deal with. The type of issues that intersect with huge social movements such as #BlackLivesMatter, the #MeToo Movement, and the LGBTQ+ Movement. Mary Simeoli is the Director of the Office of Title IX here at Springfield College. Simeoli, an attorney by trade with a professional history in higher education and anti-discrimination law, joined the Springfield College family during Spring Break of 2018 and immediately started to take the campus by storm. Simeoli is responsible for many Title IX sponsored events such as Denim Day and the “Strike Out Sexual Assault” game with the softball team. Simeoli is one person on campus who can provide a clear definition of what exactly Title IX is. “Title IX is the federal law that requires colleges and universities to have a policy in place to stop, prevent the recurrence of, and remedy discrimination in educational activities based on a person’s sex, gender, or sexual orientation,” she said. Essentially, the law requires colleges to allow students to fully access their education by stopping and correcting discrimination at every turn.
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When students take ownership of Title IX initiatives and issues, like consent, it benefits our entire community. It’s one thing for me or another college administrator to tell students to practice and respect consent, it’s a vastly different thing for students to hear it from their peers,”
- Mary simeoli
So why isn’t it at the forefront of social justice issues on campuses today? That is primarily due to misconceptions about what the law actually does and what it’s for. “A lot of people think Title IX is only about sports. A lot of other people think it’s only about sexual assault. Some people think it’s only for women, and a lot of people think it’s only for students. Title IX rights apply to all members of the college community, students
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and employees, and applies to any bias or discriminatory behaviors,” Simeoli said. So how does this work? In the case of a sexual assault for example, if one were to send a report to the Office that an incident has occurred, many would assume that they’d immediately have to testify in an investigation. That too would be a misconception. ”Working with our Office, we have the ability to provide what we call ‘interim remedies’ or ‘support services.’ These can be things like helping to change your housing, (reschedule) classes, or connect students to other appropriate services - all of which can be accessed without a student choosing to move to an investigation,” Simeoli said. Simeoli also acknowledges that students can play a huge part in establishing a safe environment for everyone on campus. “When students take ownership of Title IX initiatives and issues, like consent, it benefits our entire community. It’s one thing for me or another college administrator to tell students to practice and respect consent, it’s a vastly different thing for students to hear it from their peers,” Simeoli said. “When our students establish a culture of consent, healthy habits, active intervention, and respect, we live our shared community values. Students can help establish a healthy Title IX culture by getting involved in our programming, speaking up, and remembering that we’re here for you if you need us,” she added. The biggest message that Simeoli wants people to know is that there is always someone there to help. “I want all students to know and remember that their Title IX rights follow them throughout their time as students. So, no matter where they go or who is involved in an incident of gender-based misconduct, we’re here to help you. Members of our team are always available to answer any questions you have,” Simeoli said. The counseling center provides access to all the resources that the office of Title IX has to offer on-campus. They have also partnered with the YWCA of Western Massachusetts, who have a 24/7 confidential crisis hotline if help is needed immediately.
Springfield College Office of Title IX Contact Information Title IX Coordinator: Mary Simeoli, Esq. (413) 748-3248 Deputy Title IX Coordinator: Sue Nowlan (413) 748-3922 Deputy Title IX Coordinator for School of Professional and Continuing Studies: Camille Elliott (413) 748-3978 Deputy Title IX Coordinator: Michelle Lee Scecina (413) 748-3334 Deputy Title IX Coordinator: Jonathan Howell (413) 748-3195
*All contact information provided is current based on the official Springfield College Title IX Page
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This Friday Springfield College is taking action on climate change. The Student’s Ty Coney got a preview of what the plan is to create change. Climate change is a prevalent issue around the world as global warming continues to become more and more serious. People are starting to see the impact it is having on the world today as time progresses. At Springfield College, students and faculty have taken matters into their own hands to bring awareness to climate change. This Friday, there will be an event open to all students on the campus green outside of the Union from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. This will be held to bring awareness of climate change, as the United Nations are preparing to meet in New York to discuss the issue on Monday. Willow Mennone is a junior Health Sciences major at Springfield College who will be leading the charge for the event. Mennone feels the importance of the event is to show that our campus is on board with the movement against climate change. “All around the nation and the world there have been events, strikes, or movements whatever it may be (called) to promote (awareness of) climate change and promote politicians to do stuff about the (changing) climate because we now are at a time where we are no longer reversing it and are just trying to keep it from getting worse,” Mennone said. “This is an event for Springfield College so the students can show that they care and that they want there to be change and let that be reflective on our campus and kinda show local politicians and people higher up in our campus that we want to make a change and make the environment a priority in our everyday lives,” she added. Her main motivation is to make sure there is a world for the people who come after her that is as beautiful as people today see it. “I want my niece and her children and whoever else to be able to live on this Earth and be able to see this environment we have around us and breathe clean air, and go on hikes and be able to see all these amazing animals we have and what the world provides us,” Mennone said. This event is not just being held by the students,
there are a number of faculty members getting involved and joining ranks to participate. Rebecca Lartigue is an English professor at Springfield College and is also the head of the new Honors Program. She feels that climate change turns into a social justice issue when one looks at how it affects minorities and poorer communities here in the United States and beyond “From a social justice angle some of the poorest communities and poorest countries are going to bear a disproportionate cost of these changes and that just doesn’t fit in with the mission of this college. We should be leaders in humanity so that includes social justice on environmental causes,” Lartigue said. The validity of Climate Change is something that has been debated on for many years and now, as the effects have started to become irrevocable, people are starting to realize action is needed. “The facts are climate change is happening, that’s the science, this isn’t a matter of belief anymore,” Lartigue stated.
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Danny Priest/The Student
Public Safety continued from Page 2
Public Safety is located at 25 Portsmouth Street behind lot 4. Hall. This spot is one of the busiest on campus when classes get out, and students and faculty have to be aware of traffic when crossing the road. “Right now we’re looking into some stuff at possibly getting that intersection altered to where it will have a button to be able to access the cross walk and everything,” Cotter said. Cotter did emphasize that any implementation of cross signal buttons would be years away from happening, due to the communication it would take between the school and the city, as well as figuring out logistical components of putting that technology in. In the meantime, Public Safety has their eyes on it and is working on the situation. “We actually have visibility posts that are out there right now that happen around the change of classes. We make sure our officers are staying cognizant of traffic, yielding to pedestrians that are properly in the crosswalk, especially in front of the Learning Commons and that intersection of Wilbraham and Alden,” Cotter said. Perhaps the most exciting project Public Safety has in the works is the implementation of the Citizen’s Police Academy. The Academy is an idea Cotter is bringing over from his time at Western New England University to help train individuals on some of the roles that come with being a police officer. Cotter attended the Special State Police Academy in New Braintree, hosted by the Mass. State Police and after he graduated from the Academy, he attended Western New England to pursue his undergraduate degree. It was during that time that he realized while his criminal justice classes were important and valuable, they did not fully trans-
late to what he learned at the Academy. So, Cotter created the Citizens Police Academy program at Western New England. The course is a total of 30 hours and stretches through a 10 week span of a semester. Typically his sessions were 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesday nights, though that is not an official time for the program at Springfield. Cotter hopes to open the course to 25 members of campus, across any major, not just criminal justice students. The hope now is that the program can begin in the spring semester. “We did a ton of stuff. We did scenario motor vehicle stops, handcuffing, we did field sobriety testing,” Cotter said of the times they ran the course at Western New England. “We do a class on drugs and all that stuff. It was a lot of fun. At Western New England, we actually had the state police come in for a K-9 demonstration as well. I’m really looking forward to it,” Cotter added. While that’s set tentatively for the spring, Public Safety wants to make sure that in the immediate future, students have the Rave app installed on their phones. According to Cotter, Rave has been updated to include contacts for all outlets on campus, and it is also the main point of contact for Public Safety for Springfield College students, in addition to the phone numbers. As for the rest of what Public Safety does, they are all ears. “We love being approached with ideas, RA’s, and any other staff that have stuff that they want us to do,” Cotter said. “We’re more than happy to help.” Public safety can be reached for emergency at 413-748-5555 (Emergency Line) or 413-748-3516 (Non-Emergency Line).
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the Counseling Center, pushing the parking lots out to the edge of campus, and building multiple new locations such as retail stores and a coffee house. Cooper extended an invitation to everyone at the meeting to be a part of all of the planning committees needed to make these projects happen. “You’ll be hearing more about all of these great initiatives in the next coming months; if you want to be a part of any of these planning committees, please let either myself know or the Vice President or one of your Deans,” Cooper said. After reviewing last year’s meeting, Cooper began to discuss Springfield College’s recognition in the Top 20 Best Schools in the North by US News. “Applications are up. Enrollment is rising. Not only are we ranked 19th in the Best Regional Universities in our category, we are the highest ranked school in Western Massachusetts in our category,” said Cooper, who was met with an explosion of applause. “This marks the 10th consecutive year our overall rankings have increased… we’ve moved up nine spots since last year.” The current financial stability of Springfield College is just as strong
Photo Courtesy of Springfield College Marketing & Communications
All College Meeting continued from Page 1
The crowd looked on as President Cooper spoke during Monday’s meeting. as the growth it is facing, with an official endowment number of $80 million. Cooper also said that Springfield is in the midst of a silent campaign, meaning it will not release to the public what the goal of the campaign is until it reach $30 million of their $50 million goal, but stated that it have already raised $19 million since beginning the campaign in January of this year. A recurrent theme the President discussed thoroughly in her speech was “courage.” Cooper quoted former student, current Peace Corps volunteer, and future social worker, Alexis Jelm, in this part of her speech. “‘I will be striving to be comfortable in settings where I will be uncomfortable at the start.’” Cooper said this resonated with her, because she knows that change is almost always uncomfortable and difficult at the start, but that courage was important for “every aspect of our lives.’” Cooper then went on to praise the faculty for its hard work and dedication to the school, as well as talk about the student trustees and female equity throughout the campus. Partnerships with places such as Educare Springfield and the MLB will help Springfield to stay stable and strong through the years, Cooper
added.
Finally, Cooper announced that this year’s winner of the Cheney Award had an office that was “a temple of student appreciation… walking into it you find artwork, cards, tokens of appreciation, quotes, and an immediate undeniable understanding that this individual is deeply cared for by others and the feeling is mutual.” Cooper listed all of the attributes of the winner and named Gary R. Enright as the Cheney Award recipient. Enright has been the Associate Director of the Counseling Center at Springfield for the last 23 years and an adjunct instructor for the Springfield College Department of Psychology for the past 26 years. Enright also graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Springfield College in 1979 and a Master of Education degree, also from Springfield College, in 1987. His early career path was him working as a teacher with troubled teens, which inspired him to return to Springfield in 1994 and he has remained ever since.
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Olivia Indorf (left) and Terrie Bradshaw (right) pictured during football preseason. (Photo courtesy of Springfield College Media Relations)
Strength in numbers Springfield College football: Only team in the nation with more than two female strength and conditioning graduate assistant coaches By Evan Wheaton @EvanWheaton
Football players begin pushing and shoving on the turf. “GET BACK!” As chaos erupts on the sidelines, student-athletes are beginning to step out on the field during the middle of a game. The GA’s are corralling the student-athletes on the sidelines before the referees begin to throw their penalty flags. “On the sidelines, the strength coaches are called the ‘get back coaches,’” said Brian Thompson, the Graduate Program Director for Strength and Conditioning at Springfield College, with a chuckle. “Your job is to keep the players behind the line so that they don’t get too close out into the field and get a penalty.” Football is an emotional game. Things can get out of hand, and players can have reactions out of excitement, anger, or a rush of testosterone that may cause them to break away from the sideline. “They are more like children in that aspect than anything,” Olivia Indorf, one of the strength and conditioning coaches said. “You’re lit-
erally walking down the line trying to make them get back and they’ll step behind the line and say, ‘I’m sorry Coach, I didn’t mean it,’ and then you turn around and they’re right back on the line again. It’s like herding sheep, to be honest.” The GA’s aren’t just responsible for players -- often times they’ll have to keep the coaches in line as well. “The hardest thing with ‘get back coaches,’ at least for me, is telling the actual coaches to get back,” said Terrie Bradshaw, another strength coach. “They have their headsets on and they’re so invested in the game and they don’t hear you half the time.” The uproar is beginning to die down from the players, although head coach Mike Cerasuolo is immersed in the heat of the moment. He’s too close to the field for the GA’s liking. Verbal commands aren’t producing the desired results. Bradshaw grabs onto Cerasuolo’s belt and yanks him back to the sideline. This team of strength and conditioning coaches are passionate and knowledgeable. They aren’t messing around.
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And they’re all women. Bradshaw, Indorf, Izabella Mocarski, and Kellie Gambell are the four graduate assistants who form the strength and conditioning team for Springfield College’s football program. “I think that we’re all really excited and really grateful for this opportunity, but we definitely earned it,” Gambell said. “We were there all last year every day, early mornings, late nights, doing what we could do to earn these roles.” Springfield College is currently the only school in the nation across all divisions to have more than two female graduate assistant strength and conditioning coaches for football. For Mocarski, the situation is a very normal part of life. “As weird as it sounds, I don’t think it’s hit me like that yet,” Mocarski said on being a part of an all-female GA team. “People keep saying it, but I’m like, ‘I’m just Coach.’” Mocarski isn’t the only one who hasn’t gotten caught up in the unique scenario. Cerasuolo sees four women being the best fit for the job as purely a
coincidence. “We don’t look at it as a big deal,” Cerasuolo said. “We look at it as far as they’ve been with us last year as well as being their first year as a part of the program, so they’ve worked with some great past GA’s, and obviously they’re very knowledgeable and very passionate.” Women play in the WNBA. There are high school and college level athletics for women, as well as powerful icons such as Serena Williams and Megan Rapinoe. This circumstance isn’t about women playing sports. It’s about strength and conditioning coaching growing as a field with a female presence. Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Ore. is a Divi-
sion III institution, where Angela Dendas-Pleasant has been the current head strength and conditioning coach since 2013 and works with their football program. Western Oregon University held a staff consisting of two female coaches (Cori Metzgar-Deacon and Rebecca Smith) from 2013-2018, who were also
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Izabella Mocarski (right) pictured during football preseason. (Photo courtesy of Springfield College Media Relations)
charged with overseeing the strength and conditioning efforts of their football program. In addition, the one Division I institution that has a head strength and conditioning coach (Corliss Fingers) who is a woman is Bethune-Cookman University. And now Springfield College is joining the list in a historic way. Thompson knew the current staff members were the right fit for the job, regardless of gender. “When I look at hiring GA’s for the next year, I look at what they’re interested in and where they’ll fit the best, and it just happened,” Thompson said. “They were all interested in football and they were all fit for football. They all had the passion I needed, the coaching ability, the knowledge and everything with football.” Cerasuolo also felt that the GA’s were obvious choices for the positions. “I always go back to, ‘What do you look for in a strength coach? Knowledge and passion,” Cerasuolo said. “If you know what you’re talking about and you can motivate the kids to execute it, then we’re going to be in great shape.”
The investment and passion of the GA’s is more than just being the first ones at meetings and creating vigorous programs for the players. They’ve bought into the Brotherhood culture and speak the same language, including team mantras. “100-strong is a big one they use all the time,” Mocarski said. “It’s making sure that all the athletes are always invested as a unit, versus everyone going off in different directions.” The phrase “100-strong” is a direct value of the Brotherhood culture. Just because the GA’s are women doesn’t mean they don’t tie into it. “That’s (the Brotherhood) a huge thing we use as well, those are your brothers, that’s your family, we’re part of the Brotherhood,” Bradshaw said. “It’s pretty cool that we’ve become part of the Brotherhood as well.” That genuine mutual respect carries into the weight room, where Bradshaw, Indorf, Mocarski, and Gambell can be heard encouraging student-athletes through the commotion of clanking weights and loud music. The bustling
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Terrie Bradshaw (left) pictured during football preseason. (Photo courtesy of Springfield College Media Relations)
scene is what one would expect -- sweat covering the mats and equipment, as players move from one exercise to the next. But their responsibilities aren’t just shouting for players to ‘get back’ on the sidelines, or motivating in the weight room. Being part of the Brotherhood means caring for each other in a deep way. “Almost everybody can attest that not only do they have an investment to us in the weight room, but they’re definitely people that you can count on and are go-to people for any situation that can possibly come about,” senior center Nick Bainter said. The 100-strong unit doesn’t encompass just the players. It’s the entire Springfield College football program. Everyone has a job to do, and it goes without saying that everyone has one shared task: be there for each other. “A lot of times they can see
the guys and see their demeanor and see if they’re a little down, a little hurt, a little beaten up, whatever the case may be so that they can give us an idea so we can monitor practice accordingly,” Cerasuolo said. Although the strength and conditioning field is seeing an increase in female involvement, at the end of the day, the four women who comprise the Springfield College football strength and conditioning staff didn’t get where they are now because of their gender. They got here because they
were the top candidates from a very stringent screening process. “I hand-pick about 12 students every year to come into the graduate program, anywhere from 50-70 applications,” Thompson said. “Then I pick usually five or six GA’s for next
year out of that group.” After spending the previous year as interns, Bradshaw, Indorf, Mocarski, and Gam-
bell were the four candidates that made the cut for the 2019 season. From working closely with supervisors to write programs about nutrition and conditioning, to implementing said programs, to managing interns and working with injured student-athletes, the GA’s have had their hands full ever since. And they’ve never shied away from the challenge. “If you’re a grad student at Springfield College in strength and conditioning, you’re definitely the real deal,” Thompson said. “You know your stuff.” Bradshaw, Indorf, Mocarski, and Gambell look forward to advancing their coaching careers in the realm of strength and conditioning. Because they were chosen from nearly 100 candidates for a reason. No, not because they’re women. Because they do know their stuff.
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By Carley Crain @carley_crain12
Not many people at Springfield College can say they are from Norway, but Fabian Jensen can. Recently transferring from Wesleyan College in North Carolina, Jensen is excited for his time at Springfield College these next few years. A sophomore in the business management program, he’s also a member of the tennis team. Jensen grew up in Stavanger, one of the oldest cities in southwestern Norway. The large city is known for its beautiful coastal landscape, parks, and hiking trails. Growing up, Jensen spent a lot of time outside with his friends, from riding bikes to playing tennis. He loved the healthy environment and safety that he felt when living in Norway. His family still resides in Stavanger, so he goes back home and visits during vacations. Picking up a tennis racquet for the first time at age six, Jensen fell in love with the sport and has not turned back. Growing up, he brought his talent to junior international competitions. When looking at colleges and going through the admissions process, Jensen knew he wanted to continue his tennis career. He also knew he wanted to travel abroad for college, and experience different places and cultures of the world. He started his college experience in North Carolina at Wesleyan College, but decided to transfer to Springfield this semester.
Fabian Jensen transferred from Wesleyan College to Springfield after making the decision to leave his home in Norway and come to the United States to go to college. (Irene Rotondo/The Student)
A long way from Norway Fabian Jensen is over 3,400 miles away from home, playing tennis for Springfield College
Transitioning to life in America has certainly been an adjustment, although Jensen has enjoyed his experiences so far. “I have been here for a year already, so I am adjusted,” Jensen said. “Of course I miss the Norwegian nature and my family and friends, etc. But overall I like it here. I have also traveled around the world… This was new but not shocking.” Jensen has displayed a type of courage that not everyone has. Coming to America meant a whole new life full of questions, change, and unknowns. Leaving his family and friends was tremendously difficult, similar to what every college student has to deal with. Jensen did not only leave his friends and family behind; he left his home, his country. See Jensen Page 14
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Jensen continued from Page 13
He left behind his childhood and everything he was accustomed to. Jensen was inspired to come to Springfield College from reading about the story of James Naismith. Naismith invented the game of basketball at Springfield College, when the school was still known as the International YMCA Training School. Springfield became the “birthplace of basketball, and in 1959 the city of Springfield also became home to the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Jensen enjoys the community and culture that Springfield College offers, along with its core values. .. He was also very fond of the tennis coaches and the team, which was important to him when choosing a new institution. “I heard about the school as I had read about Naismith in the past and knew he had gone here. The school seemed like a very tight group of people, which was something I was looking for. Tennis was of course a big factor when deciding to come to Springfield. I talked with the coach and it made the decision so much easier,” Jensen said. “Springfield has been great so far,
Sports people are really nice and very welcoming. Food is okay and I get along with a lot of people. Classes have been fun and so far I like my teachers a lot. Tennis is fun.” The Pride tennis team recently started practices and had their first match of the season on Sept. 15 at the Nichols Invitational. So far, Jensen loves being a part of the team. “Getting to spend time with my amazing teammates is so much fun! I have only gotten to know them for a little while, but I think this team is great. Since tennis is such a team sport, it is important that you have a good team to
back you up,” he said. At the Nichols Invitational, Jensen played strong and tough. In the first round of the tournament, He, along with his doubles partner,doubles partner, Micheal Kendrick, won 8-1 against Umass Boston. They both moved on to the semifinals, however eventually falling to Nichols. However, he had an amazing first match with his new team and took away many valuable lessons. “(Jensen) and his teammates competed well in our first competition. Fabian and freshman Michael Kendrick paired up to play doubles and
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were able to have some success winning their first round match and competed really well in their last match. The first tournament competition for us this past weekend at Nichols was exactly what we needed as a team. We are excited for the season,” Pride head coach Mike Louis said. Jensen will be found on the tennis courts for the Pride as he continues his journey in America.
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‘Winning the Game of Belief’ Springfield volleyball head coach Charlie Sullivan co-authors book By Joe Arruda @joearruda9
Springfield College coaches are required to teach a course, whether it be a PEAC, a coaching class, or anything involving sport. Most members of the faculty bring years of experience into the classroom, sometimes having a hand in writing educational books or other sources for students to utilize. For 10-time national championship winning men’s volleyball coach Charlie Sullivan, teaching is not the end of his educational sphere. Sullivan works with multiple teams on campus, giving talks before postseason runs and having many student-athletes in his physical education and sports psychology classes. Sullivan is the co-author of the book, Winning the
Game of Belief: Cultivating Grit that Defines America’s Greatest Coaches, with Kevin Sheehan which has been released this past summer. Sheehan is the father of a former Springfield College lacrosse player, Dylan Sheehan, and was “one of the most infamous lacrosse coaches in the country,” according to Sullivan. Jokingly admitting that he’s not a strong writer, Sullivan turned to a unique altervative. “I did more voice text which was good because I drive an hour and a half to work each day. Kevin would throw me a research topic and a story and then I would give the story over voice to text and he would put them together.” The idea for the book was sparked by one of Sullivan’s talks before the
Charlie Sullivan’s book, released in August, details the formula of a successful program among other things. (Sam Leventhal/The Student)
men’s lacrosse team began their postseason run. “[Kevin Sheehan] really started researching hope and belief and it became his passion, and his son knew that. So his son said ‘I’m gonna record this talk,’ because I gave a talk on how you believe in the postseason and stuff like that,” Sullivan said. “[Dylan Sheehan] said, ‘I think my dad will like this.’ So he recorded it, showed it to his dad, his dad was kind of excited, or impressed. His dad was coaching a high school team at the time, they won the state championship in the Spring and he came to me in the Fall and we started collaborating.” Sheehan began shadowing the Pride men’s volleyball team, following Sullivans coaching strategies in practices and games.
“Really what happened for that book to be created is he took his research which was pretty intricate and then put our stories behind it and combined them. So it’s not dry research reading, it’s like a story in the research. And then we compared that to other cultures that have been successful, coaches that have been successful,” Sullivan said. When author Angela Duckworth researched for her multi-month New York Times bestseller, Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, Kevin Sheehan was a part of her team. Duckworth’s book has drawn substantial attention, including Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll. “[Duckworth] defines what grit is really well, but she doesn’t really have a practical approach
to growing grit or developing grit in players,” Sullivan noted. “It was [Kevin’s] passion to have a book that had a practical approach towards growing grit and having a culture that grew grit, produced players that were gritty and that play really well to their potential.” “I think the book is a good start, it could go into even more detail now that I’ve been through the experience of being part of a book. I think for someone that read the book that they would be able to capture the ideas and really live in terms of believing who they think they are. You are only what you believe you are. So having ideas and practical approaches to believing positive things about yourself and reaching your full potential.”
Football’s all-female strength and conditioning coaching staff is the only one in the nation composed of more than two women
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Photo courtesy Springfield Athletics
The Women of the Brotherhood