A busy summer for Athletics

Considering how bustling student athletes’ academic years are, you’d expect us to take our summers rather easily. Instead, as another summer comes to a close, it’s clear athletes from Mount Holyoke have been as busy as ever. We’ve been across the globe, attending activism summits and coaching youth. Instead of resting, we’ve turned our downtime from competing into a chance to better ourselves and the world around us.

My summer began with a trip to Portland, Oregon, where field hockey sophomore MJ Owens ’28 and I attended the Athlete Ally Activism Summit. We arrived June twelfth to begin a powerful four-day experience aimed at building the necessary community, knowledge and skills to support and defend LGBTQ+ athletes. Accompanied by Mount Holyoke assistant field hockey coach and Athlete Ally Vice President Anna Baeth, we spent the first night getting acquainted with our peers — an incredible group of collegiate athletes from institutions around the country. When I settled into bed that breezy summer night, I knew I was in the midst of something special.

What followed were three days of intense learning; a mixture of small group seminars and plenary panel sessions (including special guest speakers such as former WNBA player Layshia Clarendon, University of Washington Rower Cillian Mullen and content creator Coach Jackie!) made sure of that. More importantly, they were also three days of healing, loving and queer joy. The theme of the summit this year was “spirit,”and it was woven throughout every experience and was constantly redefined and reexplored by attendees. Be it through connections to our mental health, our teams or our communities, “spirit” took center stage in our conversations.

This idea was best exemplified in one of MJ’s biggest takeaways from the summit: “Sport isn't just about competition, it’s about building community through a shared love of athletics. I realized that athletes make powerful activists because we are used to perseverance, teamwork and pushing through challenges.” This perfectly encapsulates the message of the summit; every workshop highlighted the strength we had to create the change we want to see in the world. At the end of the four days, the two of us left the summit full of newfound confidence, ready to advocate for a world where LGBTQ+ athletes in our communities and across the world share the same rights and protections as their cis, straight counterparts.

Approximately the same time I departed for Oregon, a group of 30 athletes from colleges around the country such as Mount Holyoke, Harvard, Princeton and Indiana University, made their way to Vietnam to participate in the Coach for College program. Sachi Robinson ’28, a sophomore at Mount Holyoke and my cross country teammate, spoke with me about what the experience meant to her.

While the days could be long and tedious, “I was constantly in awe of the unbelievable intelligence and resilience shown by the students,” Sachi said.“They have inspired me to do better in all aspects of life from academics to simple displays of empathy and kindness.” I found it so beautiful the way she described the children she had the pleasure of teaching.

Days consisted of teaching two classes, one with seventh graders and one with ninth graders. Each “Coach” (student teacher) taught a sport, a life skills course and a school subject such as math, science or English. Classes were instructed by two “coaches” and two Vietnamese teachers. Sachi emphasised the importance of “community” in not only the classroom, but during meals or free time. It reminded me of the Activism Summit’s theme of “spirit” and its resulting energy. It demonstrates the impact that expanding your world view can have, how different lenses for seeing the world can challenge and invigorate your current way of life.

After all this hard work over the summer, it seems fitting that the student athletes got something in reward. Luckily, the renovations in Kendall continue to move forward this year, though delay has slowed the process of getting our athletes into these new spaces. Volleyball sophomore Sonja Gray ’28 described to me the team's excitement to be in the newly renovated Mildred S. Howard Gymnasium, which will have a ribbon-cutting ceremony on September 17 in a home volleyball match against UMass Boston. Despite needing to drive to Amherst for practices all preseason, Sonja said it was all worth it for the additional bleachers, updated athletics branding and modernized locker rooms. It’s not just the varsity sports who are benefiting from the construction, as major updates to the fitness center have brought updated equipment for anyone on campus looking to get some gains this winter.

As the academic year arrives in full swing, it’s great to look back on all the amazing things accomplished this summer!