By Tyler Park ’14, Staff Writer

It is fair to say that Newark Academy athletics has had a significant makeover over the past year. With a new athletic Director, Mr. Gilbreath, and a new turf field, the athletic community is in the midst of a transition from old traditions to new ones. One of the most obvious changes to the program is the end-of-season sports assembly.

Coming into this year, there had been worries that the assembly had worn out its welcome with the community. Non-athletes frequently complained about the monotony of the event; every season, it seemed, offered the same, tired speeches from coaches. There was nothing new to be excited about.

Looking to spice things up this year, Mr. Gilbreath decided to make some significant changes. The core of the event has remained the same: participants on Varsity teams are called up to the stage, where they receive either a letter, a pin, or a plaque, depending on their level of experience within that sport, but now the captains make the speeches instead of the coaches.

There were several reasons for this decision.  “I think the captains have a more relatable perspective, and I wanted to try and make it more entertaining that it had been in the past,” he said.  “I also wanted to add a little more responsibility for the captains, and I want to see kids take their duties as captains very seriously.”

The experiment of captain speeches seemed to be a success. “I found the way they did it this year to be more personable,” said Sydney Mann ’14, who has seen many sports assemblies in her six years at the Academy.  Agreeing with her was Varsity Football and Swimming Coach Bill Blomn, the only two-sport varsity head coach at the school, saying,  “I loved it.  I think that adding a little more responsibility to the role of captain is definitely a positive.”  Mr. Gilbreath himself was also pleased with the event saying, “I thought it went pretty well.  I liked hearing the captains speak.”

The captains also viewed the event as a success, even though some were a tad apprehensive at the thought of giving a speech in front of the entire school. “I was a little scared at first, but I enjoyed talking about the team and our season, and it was nice to be able to hear from the other captains.  I thought it was good for the community to be able to get a player’s perspective,” said junior Volleyball captain Liz Meijer.   Senior Football captain Nick Lawler had similar feelings, saying, “Coming in, we didn’t really know what the expectations were, because this was the first year.  However, making the speech was fine, and I think having the captains speak is a good idea as long as they take it seriously and do it well.”

The change might not stop here. Mr. Gilbreath is open to the event continuing to evolve over the course of his tenure, especially in ways that engage the non-athletes in the community. To him, additional visuals are a source of potential future change. For the first time, video highlights of the sports teams were played, and Mr. Gilbreath thinks their role could be expanded further, saying, “’I’d like to add a few more of them in the future.”

On the whole, the first-year athletic director expressed the belief that his initial assembly was a success, but there are certainly changes that still have to be made.  “I give myself a B or a B+,” he said, as the humanities teacher in him resurfaced.

The community seems to embrace the sports assembly as worthy recognition for our athletes, and most believe that it should be kept as a Newark Academy tradition. “In this academically-crazed environment, I love the idea of honoring kids who have made an extra commitment to their school,” Mr. Gilbreath said.  Meijer echoes this sentiment, saying, “I like the sports assembly.  It’s nice to have recognition for all the athletes.”

There is no doubt that playing a sport at Newark Academy is a difficult and time-consuming proposition, with all of the academic and outside commitments that our students undertake.  Thus, the sports assembly provides a well-earned reward for those who have chosen to take the time out of their schedule to help their teams, their school, and themselves.  In the vision of Mr. Gilbreath, the athletic assembly will continue to evolve into an entertaining and essential part of our athletic program, and we will continue to honor our worthy athletes for years to come.