I started teaching in graduate school. That’s according to my resume. In truth, I started teaching way before that. My introduction to professional teaching happened at the J Robinson Intensive Wrestling Camp when I was just 18 years old. There are no real words to describe this camp – it’s something that has to be experienced. I can use the words tough, grinding, pain, growth, doubt, fear…but those are ultimately just black marks on the screen. This camp, which I first experienced as a camper, was easily one of the most challenging things that I volunteered for in my life.
I was hired to help run camps that operated throughout the country. I wrestled and taught in Ohio, Iowa, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Oregon, and California. Many of those states are considered the hotbed of the sport. I also had the opportunity to train with the University of Minnesota’s Division 1 team, which was an eye opener. I taught some of the most talented and credentialed high school wrestlers in the country. I was challenged by the kids and my peers alike and there was only one way to prove myself, which was performing on the mat. It was a trial by fire.
In the end, I didn’t really wrestle in college. My first year I got sick, and my second year I got sick of wrestling. Sick of coaches that didn’t really care about me. Sick of teammates that weren’t really a team, but a group of individuals masquerading as a team. I went to a few practices, won my varsity wrestle-off spot, and never showed up again.
Fast forward many, many years and it’s the summer of 2014. I requested a meeting with Phil to discuss wrestling at LREI. I was granted the meeting and was asked, “Why does LREI need wrestling.” I spent some time and thought about this question. There are so many reasons, but in a short meeting with Phil I thought it would be best to bring in former assistant coaches (I was the head coach of a high school for many years and when I resigned so do my assistants) so they could add their voice to this after all we all were doing this and almost always losing money. Our salary never covered our operating costs and the amount of time we put in was really mind-boggling. Wrestling is the long season. It’s the season that never ends. It’s year round. It’s a grind and it’s beautiful.
In the end, there were five us in the meeting. We all wore jackets – a small but important detail – because when we were coaching we always wore slacks and jackets. It was important for our athletes to know, for the referees to know, for the opposition to know that this was a special day. Something special was about to happen. The group of guys who showed up to talk to Phil aren’t the suit-wearing types. Interestingly, no text or email or reminder of any type was sent about apparel. We all showed up ready. Phil was surprised that so many of us were there. In some ways our readiness to discuss and share our plan for an LREI wrestling program may have made him feel ambushed. It was an honest mistake. Still, he hung in there and listened to us and our answers to the question why wrestling.
Since then I have put a massive amount of energy creating our school’s first wrestling program, which started in September of 2017.
I have chosen to write about this as my study of inquiry for a number of reasons. The first is I’m passionate about doing this. Second, I think it’s useful for me to put spend time putting language to this not only as an artifact but as a meditation. It will allow me to see how far I’ve come and likely will help me plan the next steps forward. Also, in the event that a colleague wants to start their own program for the school, they may be able to glean something from my process to help streamline their own.
Currently, the wrestling program serves middle schoolers in 5th and 6th grade. Next year it will expand by a year and serve 7th graders as well. The following year it will run 5th-8th grade. By the 2021-22 season we will open the program to the high school. On Saturdays we open the room to “Pee-Wee” wrestlers (PK-2nd grade) and there has been a nice turn out. And starting in January, we will open the room on Wednesdays to 3rd and 4th graders as part of LREI Afterschool. Right now I’m the sole engine driving all of this. I have a good support system of assistant coaches, but they are almost all only available on the weekend. The one assistant I had whose schedule can accommodate ours moved to another independent school that pays much more than what we can offer.
Thinking ahead, this self-study will help me strategize a long-term plan for keeping this program vibrant and growing, for giving it a name and home in an institution that doesn’t currently have anything like it, and for making it sustainable for me, for other coaches, and for the wrestlers. I’m also interested in putting language that connects the skills I developed over the years as a teacher and in administrative roles that have helped prepare me structure this endeavor.
Frank, thanks for diving into this “meditation.” I like this word as I think it aligns well with the underlying purpose of the self-study. That purpose is grounded in a belief that our most profound learning comes from experience that we then subject to reflection. It is clear that this project has much been driven by substantial experience and time “on the mat.” My guess is that you have not had as much time to step back and reflect on what it all means for you, your assistant coaches and your wrestlers. I hope that the somewhat formal structure or at the very least the obligations of the self-study create this space. I also hope that in addition to insights that you have about the program and its ongoing development that you also carve out some space to examine how this work has inspired and changed you as a teacher, leader and learner. I hope that it also points to new paths and possibilities for you as a member of our professional community.
Frank, I have only spoken to you briefly about your wrestling experiences at LREI. It is nice to read how the program has grown and your visions for the future.