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Broomball Sweeps Forman Students were greeted by a transformed lawn in front of the Forman School Henderson Administrative Building when they returned to campus in January 2021. The School’s maintenance team had converted the sprawling space into an ice rink. “A lot of the venues that we would normally use in the winter were either limited in the number of people that could be there or we just couldn’t take students there, so we began to think about other ways we could create opportunities for students,” says Head of School Adam K. Man P’15. “One of the things that came up was the idea of creating an ice rink.” The welcomed addition allowed for safe athletic practices and weekend fun amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It also brought with it the introduction of a new winter activity to Forman: Broomball.
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“Broomball is like hockey without sticks and skates,” describes Ryan Langan ’22, who often organized pick-up broomball games on the rink. “You play with brooms and shoes… It’s not too competitive. It’s mostly very funny just sliding around on the ice.” In February, the ice game took center stage during a school-wide tournament where five teams put their skills to the test. “The broomball tournament was awesome,” says Scott McCarty ’76, P’02, P’05, Major Gifts Officer and former Athletic Director. “Kids made their own teams and some faculty members jumped on the teams.” Man, who played as a goalie in the heated match, adds, “Over the course of the winter, as we went through
various tournaments and opportunities, more and more students became excited about [broomball] because they realized I can just come out, I don’t have to know anything about it, it’s a lot of fun, and I don’t have to be a talented broomball athlete to play.” After scoring big among students and faculty alike, the ice rink is expected to return this winter if the weather cooperates. “We knew that it was going to be cold in that stretch from January to spring break, so it worked out well,” Man says. “If we look at an unseasonably warm forecast this winter, we might change plans.”
Students and faculty after the broomball tournament.
