By Jayden Zhou ‘23, Sports Editor

In March of 2022, Newark Academy introduced NYC native Seth Leiberman as the school’s new Athletic Director. Born and raised in Westchester, Mr. Lieberman knows this area well, but he also has experience leading school athletics in Ohio and North Carolina. At NA, he finds that the facilities are superb, the coaches are dedicated and intelligent, and student body is energetic and enthusiastic – some of the best he’s seen during his years working in athletics. 

During our interview, Mr. Lieberman made it clear that he enjoys working with the student body when coming up with ideas for athletic  activities, and is always willing to sit down and have a conversation with anyone. His “people-person” personality became evident to me when he agreed to take a lunch meeting with my friends to discuss possible ideas to boost school spirit at sporting events. Not only was he gracious enough to talk to me and my friends, but he was fully intent on implementing our ideas. In fact, when I walked into his office to interview him a few days later, our ideas were written on a notepad front and center on his desk. One of these ideas between the pink-out for breast cancer awareness month, which was implemented shortly after we brought the idea up to him. 

While he is always open to new ideas and constantly scheming and organizing, he prefers to do so behind the scenes. In fact, you may not even notice him at certain sporting events and games, as he prefers to stealthily watch in the background and “see everyone else succeed.” 

As for the future of Newark Academy athletics, Mr. Lieberman not only sees NA’s powerhouse teams “building on the success of last year’s 8 state championships,” but also fully intends on helping developing teams realize their full potential. He specifically emphasized his desire to work with these teams so that they see levels of growth necessary to be competitive. But Mr. Lieberman is not only concerned with elevating all of the NA’s teams to an elite level. More specifically, he’s looking to “encourage everyone,” and “help everyone get the chance that they want,” when it comes to exploring sports and athletics. This holistic approach to NA athletics encourages anybody with an interest in athletics, which is a great sign for the NA community.

My biggest takeaway from talking to him was the sense that his intentions and actions are for the betterment of the student experience at NA. It’s easy for schools to become hyper focused on state championships and awards and forget about the students who achieve them in the first place. However, I have no doubt that Mr. Lieberman will do everything in his power to ensure that student wellbeing is prioritized. As a senior at NA, I’m sad I won’t be able to see all the good work that he does in the coming years. Nevertheless, I am very optimistic about the future.