Latin School of Chicago

athletics CAPTAIN'S COUNCIL STUDENT ATHLETES TAKE THE LEAD I t is 7:30 a.m., and about a dozen Latin athletics team captains are gathering for their bi-monthly Captain's Council meeting. They quietly chat about scores from the night before, upcoming games and homework. Then, Athletics Director Tom Bower opens the meeting with a few brief words: "It's my honor to work with you. Being a captain is an important job. And, as captains, you have important responsibilities." With this short introduction, Bower sets the message for the discussion: To be a team captain is not just to be the most popular or the most skilled athlete. Captains are leaders who can affect the success of a team, the confidence of individual players and the image of their school on the field, in the pool or on the court. Bower, along with Assistant Athletics Director Liz Tortorello-Nelson and Tim Cronister, director of Student Life, use the meetings – which are mandatory for all varsity team captains – as a forum to talk about larger issues in high school athletics, such as hazing or During this meeting at the start of the spring season, the captains shared results of their first assignment, which was to meet and start talking to their coaches. The group also discussed dealing with frustrations about team cuts, a captain's responsibility to step in when they witness abusive game-time behavior, and when and how to approach a teammate who is not performing. Although he runs the meeting, it is Bower's goal to encourage independent thinking and decision-making. Much time is spent talking through problems and coming up with solutions. "In so many ways, leadership has been taken away from kids in sports these days," he says. "They don't go on the playground and figure it out themselves. They participate in organized activities that are run by adults, and they start to take a back seat to their own personal kind of leadership skills. I want athletes to take a more active role in deciding what happens on the playing field." Although, not every 7:30 a.m. meeting results in animated discussions, varsity swimming, basketball and water polo captain Chloe Kaulas '10 says each meeting serves as a valuable reminder. "It helps me to refocus every time we go into a meeting," Chloe says. "It is so easy in sports, especially "Captains are leaders who can affect the success of a team, the confidence of individual players and the image of their school on the field, in the pool or on the court." sportsmanship, as well as to provide guidance about practical, everyday concerns, such as a divisive team member or making younger players feel like valuable members of the group. They also outline what captains should be doing as part of their job. "At Latin there has never been a well-defined role for our team captains; it has always depended on the individual coaches and how involved they wanted to be in training their captains," Bower explains. "We felt it was important for all captains to have some common language about what it means to be a captain and to be exposed to some basic leadership skills." 10 Latin Magazine when you are a starter, to make it about 'me.' What am I doing? How am I playing? It is good to be reminded that it is not all about 'me.' That as captain, I am responsible for all these girls, and they need me to be a line of communication, an advocate and a role model." Conner White '10, who has been a captain for basketball and track, believes he would not be leading as effectively without his experiences on the council. "Being a captain has taught me invaluable lessons about how to work with people, how to get your ideas across and how to manage conflicts. But through Captain's Council I've also learned that I don't always have to be the best player, that even when I mess up I can still be a good captain, and that by working hard and showing commitment I can have a bigger impact than by what I say or do on the court," Conner explains. ….All lessons that will certainly serve Conner and his peers well in their future athletic endeavors and beyond. • – Evelyne Girardet

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