The Coach Speaks about the Program
Program Advantages
Grinnell College offers the talented student-athlete a chance to fully experience the liberal arts education. The track and cross country experience offers the following advantages: The programs offer the student-athlete an opportunity to participate in a proven and successful program that is a healthy balance of academics and athletics. Competitions are scheduled to allow all members to participate and to avoid academic conflicts. Athletes receive one-on-one attention in an environment that promotes learning and development as an athlete. The coaches are highly-trained and respected nationally for their knowledge. The track team enjoys a two-week spring trip to Florida each year to compete and train for the outdoor season. Grinnell athletes also have the opportunity to compete in major home events. For 2006, Grinnell will be host the 44th Annual Les Duke Invitational on September 9th. Grinnell also hosts the Dick Young Track and Field Classic on the 3rd weekend of April.The athletic experience at Grinnell tends to balance the academic rigors of the college. Athletes repeatedly speak to their ability to do better in their studies when participating in a sport. The program is progressive. Women officially started to include the pole vault in competition during the 1998 season and the event has become one of Grinnell's strongest. Another recent addition is the indoor weight throw. The outdoor hammer event also is an event now contested.Athletes can be dedicated and committed to their sport but can have fun too!
Balancing Academics and Athletics at Grinnell
Grinnell champions academics and believes that athletics contribute to a student's overall liberal-arts education.
The college believes students gain self-discipline and self-confidence from athletic competition, and also learn to set goals and work with others. At Grinnell, athletics supplement academics, providing a release from academic challenges as well as helping students forge a sound mind in a sound body.
Grinnell coaches are selected for their dedication to both athletics and academics. Coaches not only pay attention to how students play on the field--they're also concerned about classroom performance. This makes it easy for scholar-athletes to combine academic and athletic pursuits in a successful college career.
Practice schedules are designed to allow ample time for academics. Grinnell does not impose a minimum cumulative grade-point average as an eligibility requirement. Regular, full-time students in good standing are eligible to participate in athletics. Special services, including free tutoring and math and reading labs, are available to students who need academic assistance.
Grinnell's track and cross country athletes have a history of successfully balancing academics and athletics. The cross country team has been Academic All-America as a team for fourteen consecutive years and leads the conference with Academic All-Conference selections.
What Makes Grinnell Cross Country Special?
There are many special aspects of a Grinnell College education. Participating in the cross country program has grown into a particularly special experience for those who take part.
When I took over as the cross country coach at Grinnell in 1985, the athletes were not competing with focus and discipline. The runners simply did not feel that they could be successful. Today, the same program has won nineteen of the past twenty Midwest Conference titles, has been ranked in the national top-20 many times in those years and has been a model of consistent success. This is combined with the fact that the team has been Academic All-America as a team every year the award has been offered. I will not take the credit for the changes.
The Philosophy behind the program
While there are many models of coaching that have proven effective with distance runners, many begin with the coach as an all-knowing authority-figure who should not be questioned. Several years ago, when I began to realize that I did not have all the answers, I was inspired to return to school and seek a Ph.D. in Sport Psychology, the motivation being that I wanted to better help my athletes achieve success. With my masters work in the quanititative world of biomechanics, I just didn't feel that I had the tools to successfully deal with the demands of coaching. Through this process, I began to see that we really do not make the most of our best resource in coaching--the athletes themselves! My coaching philosophy has grown to include the athletes in the process, in fact they are ethe center of the process, not the coach. Since it is their program, why shouldn't they be the center of it?
Once I made the decision to let this change occur (and many coaches don't for fear of losing control), this program began to snowball. I am still amazed at how much the runners have to offer to the program. The synergistic effect that occurs as a result of this input is far more than any one coach can give a program alone. Most importantly, by allowing for real input from the athletes, the coach is creating the necessary and critical trust between him/her and the athletes. By seeking input from the athlete the coach is in effect saying I trust your input as important--it is a real shot in the arm for the athlete to become proactive in determining their own future as a runner (and as a person).
In our program, self-responsibility is at a premium. We want the experience to teach our student-athletes to take charge of their lives, to be proactive in decision-making and to offer their special gifts to the team. The program is designed to inspire input and proactivity. The focus is on the process of improving as a runner. The team titles and national rankings are nice, but they are really only indicators that the process is working. Long after the running experience is over, the wins and losses will be forgotten. The value of the process and what was learned in that process, however, will stay with the runner. Finally, the experience is FUN! We do everything possible to make it fun. When it stops being fun, both growth and motivation stop.
