Motivational Speakers at H.C. Crittenden Build Excitement for Athletic Program

High-fives, big smiles and cheers filled the auditorium at H.C. Crittenden Middle School, as motivational speaker Angie Erdley brought her high-energy positivity to encourage students to seize the extracurricular opportunities at school and enjoy the benefits that come through participation.

In a session with the seventh grade girls in late February, Mrs. Erdley asked the students to imagine the auditorium was filled with presents. “You pick one up and you open it up,” she said. “That’s an opportunity. It’s a gift.”

She encouraged students to discover the gift that’s awaiting them, whether it’s playing a sport, competing on an academic team or joining the band. “Be involved, take any opportunity that you have and make the most of it,” she urged.

Mrs. Erdley, who held similar presentations with sixth and eighth grade girls, came to the District as part of a two-day effort to raise awareness of the Byram Hills athletic program.

The middle school boys met with Rod Mergardt, a former Athletic Director at Byram Hills who is also a motivational speaker. He stressed the importance of teamwork, encouraging each other through tough times and knowing that it’s OK for them to branch out, try something new and not be locked into a single sport or activity.

The athletics-focused assemblies at HCC came as participation in several girls sports has fallen at the middle school and high school levels in recent years.

“We wanted to create some energy around athletics, but also encourage the students to be involved in their school community in some way, even if it’s not through athletics,” said Rob Castagna, the District’s Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics. “It was to encourage the students to use their talents and to take a chance. We want students to really believe in themselves and have the self-confidence to know that it’s OK to come out and try something new, and it’s OK to fail.”

Mrs. Erdley discussed her student years, when she played basketball and volleyball, sang in the chorus, performed in musicals and was her freshman class president.

She stressed the great relationships she made decades ago that are still strong today, and urged students to participate “because of the relationships, because of the amazing things you can gain from it - all the good times, all the friendship, all the support. It’s an amazing thing.”

But sometimes, she told the girls, we get in our own way. She asked the girls to imagine a stunning room decorated with a gorgeous chandelier, beautiful wall tapestries, a giant-screen TV and a suede couch. Sitting on the couch, though, is an ugly pillow.

“This is very synonymous with our flaws, with our mistakes,” Mrs. Erdley said. How often do we look at something, like a huge zit, she asked them, “and it’s the only thing you can think about - the mistakes, flaws and failure,” rather than focusing on our accomplishments.

“Just like this ugly pillow, you forget the beauty of the room and you forget to see how awesome everything else is,” she added.

In later presentations, she stressed the need for students to make mistakes and get comfortable with failure in order to succeed.

“We’re all supposed to fail, often, all the time,” Mrs. Erdley said later in the day. “If you don’t, if you don’t take any chances, you stay here at this level. You’ve got to shoot for something that’s a little uncomfortable, and for yourself, is a little out of reach, because then you can achieve greatness.”

Mrs. Erdley introduced six female Byram Hills coaches, who spoke about how they got involved in athletics and the role that sport has played in their lives.

“Through sports, I made new friends, I learned how to be a leader and I learned how to manage my time,” said Julianne Marinaro, the varsity girls head soccer coach and a special education teacher at Byram Hills High School. “I learned about health and wellness, but most of all, I learned how to be a teammate and how to work with others.”

“Playing a sport gives you so much more than just running around the field,” she told the seventh grade girls. “It doesn’t matter if you are the best player or the worst player. It’s being part of a community and empowering yourself as the next leaders of our generation.”

During Mrs. Erdley’s presentation, the girls were asked to dance to “Celebration” by Kool & the Gang, they watched inspirational videos including one saluting the female American athletes from the 2016 Summer Olympics and conducted a high spirited team-building exercise.

Mrs. Erdley asked half of the girls to leave the auditorium and to re-enter and give high-fives to all of the remaining girls. They reversed roles and repeated the fun. “That’s what it feels like to be part of a team, to be cheered and to be celebrated,” she told them.

“My thrust is self-confidence,” she explained afterward. “Giving them exercises to do that, the dancing, the high-fiving, it’s so they can feel like part of a community and something that’s bigger than themselves.”

She concluded her presentation to the seventh grade girls with inspiring words: “You’re all meant to be extraordinary. It’s up to you how you decide to utilize those opportunities.”

A big high-five goes to the Byram Hills Education Foundation, the Bobcat Boosters and the Byram Hills Parent Teacher Student Association for funding these events.

Motivational speaker Angie Erdley high-fives seventh graders at H.C. Crittenden Middle School during a high-energy team-building exercise.