Sept. 17, 2010
Bronx, N.Y. -
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On Thursday night, Fordham head coach Tom Masella took some time out of his busy schedule to do something important: speak to a group of high school student-athletes who assembled at O'Keefe Commons for the Positive Coaches Alliance (PCA) Triple-Impact Competitor Scholarship Awards Ceremony sponsored by Deloitte LLP and the Thrive Foundation for Youth.
The evening had a Fordham flavor to it as not only was Masella the keynote speaker but former Fordham volleyball student-athlete Lindsay Schedeler Hanson, FCRH '05, program manager for PAC and ceremony organizer, was there while former WFUV announcer Brian Clark, FCRH '10, served as the master of ceremony.
Founded as a non-profit within the Stanford University Athletic Department in 1998, Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) has the mission of "transforming youth sports so sports can transform youth." To that end, PCA has conducted nearly 9,000 live group workshops nationwide for more than 475,000 youth and high school sports leaders, coaches and parents. Workshop attendees have helped create a positive, character-building youth sports environment for more than 3 million youth athletes.
PCA's partnership network includes more than 1,700 youth sports organizations, cities and schools. In 2010, PCA will conduct roughly 1,300 live, group workshops across the U.S., while assisting thousands of other individuals via online courses at www.PositiveCoach.org.
The 20 finalists in attendance on Thursday night have demonstrated that they are dedicated to improving themselves, their teammates and their sports as a whole. At the end of the night, four student-athletes were chosen to receive a $1,000 college scholarship.
PCA has the support of elite coaches and athletes on a National Advisory Board , including National Spokesperson, Los Angeles Lakers Coach Phil Jackson.
After opening remarks from Clark, Schedeler Hanson welcomed the student-athletes and their families and stressed how important the program is. "This program is important because we honor you student-athletes for doing the right thing, both on and off the field," said Schedeler Hanson to the students in attendance. "We also would like to thank Deloitte whose support has allowed us to expand this program to New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago and Houston."
Schedeler Hanson introduced Robin Zhang, Senior Manager, Marketing, Deloitte, who congratulated the student-athletes on their achievements and stressed that Deloitte will continue its support of the program. "Deloitte has been a supporter of this program for many years and we look forward to continuing that support for the years to come," she said.
Masella then took the podium and reiterated how special the student-athletes in attendance are, due to their action on and off the field. "You are special people and it's not just because of your God given talents," he said. "A lot people have athletic ability and may be very strong academically. But they didn't put in the extra effort that you have, an effort that made your team and community a better place and that's what makes you special."
Masella went on to relate to the crowd his experience with sports. He remembered receiving a can to help raise money when he played pee-wee football. "On the side of the can it said `Building Character through Football'," he said. "I didn't understand what it meant originally but now I do. And now I pass on that message to my student-athletes and ask them to make a commitment to the sport and to the team."
The Fordham mentor used one of his own players to bring home a point about commitment and how a sport can change lives. He brought up the story of wide receiver Jason Caldwell, a 2009 consensus All-America, who Masella recruited while he was head coach at his previous school. Caldwell, who grew up in inner city Baltimore, told Masella that "he has bigger aspirations" and declined an offer to play for Masella at the school. But when Masella was named head coach at Fordham, one of the first recruits he thought of was Caldwell. A call to Caldwell brought renewed interest from the wide receiver who accepted an offer to play for the Rams. He graduated last year and could have left school but he wanted to come back and give back to the game that had given him so much as he had an extra year of eligibility remaining due to missing his freshman year with an injury. Caldwell will leave Fordham with an undergrad and graduate degree.
Masella wrapped up his talk by telling the students in attendance to enjoy these moments. "These are some of the best time of your life," he said. "When I talk to alums they always revert back to their days as a student-athlete, both in high school and on the collegiate level. They all value the experience of being a student-athlete and what being a student-athlete has done for them in life."
The four award winner when then announced. They are:
Christopher Langsdorf of East Side Community High School in New York City.
Alyssa Casino of Maria Regina High School in Rye Brook, New York.
Andrew Marks of Lynnbrook Senior High School in Hewlett, New York.
Samantha Smith of Sachem High School East in Holtsville, New York.
Clark wrapped up the evening linking his experience covering the recently completed U.S. Open at the U.S. Tennis Center. He described how the two singles champions this year, Kim Clijsters and Rafael Nadal, are more than just champions on the court. They both conduct themselves with character and dedication off the court as well, characteristics that other players see and emulate.
"Both Kim Clijsters and Rafael Nadal are true champions," said Clark to the student-athletes. "They are humble, dedicated and hard working individuals who take nothing for granted. That teaches all the other players a valuable lesson, a lesson which you have all passed on to your teammates and classmates to make them better."
