Every passerby in the
halls hears the moaning and
griping about the staggering
workload, but how many
complaints are only to let off
steam and how many prove
true in reality? On Aug. 31,
after listening to tales of late
nights and insurmountable
homework loads from her
Varsity Volleyball players,
Coach Shari Sakamoto decided
to spend the day
sitting in on classes.
“I kind of knew
what the girls had told
me, that it was intense,”
Sakamoto said. She
insists that to run her
program well, she has
to be aware of the other
aspects of the athletes’
lives. “I believe
in balance, quality over
quantity on both sides,
academics and athletics,”
she said.
As for the day
spent in classes, Sakamoto
said she found it “draining,
both mentally and physically.
You never know until you
live it, a whole day of seven
classes.” With a better sense
of the girls’ academic lives,
she said she can now build a
more balanced program.
Varsity Volleyball player
Catherine ’14 said
she appreciates the effort.
“[Sakamoto] came on her
day off. She’s pretty considerate
when it comes to making
it easier,” Catherine said, adding
that Sakamoto, with her newfound
knowledge, makes it a
point to end practice a little
earlier to ease the stress level,
especially for those who have
to make a long commute after
late-night practices.
Fellow Varsity Volleyball
player Anya
’13 also
values Sakamoto’s concern.
“None of my coaches
have done that before. She’s
very conscientious of our
workload.”
Athletic Director David
Collicutt said he highly recommends
coaches take the extra
step and immerse themselves
in the students’ world. “When
we hire a coach, most of them
have not worked at a
School like ours,” he
said. “It’s different in
culture.”
After a day of
witnessing the AP
courses and dialogue
between
teachers and students,
Sakamoto assesses
that Marlborough
“has very high
standards, [and] it
sticks to its standards,
and not many
schools do that.”
