My Year As Head Lacrosse Coach at Hempstead Part 3
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A 1975 team photo courtesy of Al Hodish. Photo contains Rutgers University lacrosse All American James Ford
. click to enlarge the image.
At my first public school physical education job in Danbury (86-88), I taught classes alone in my own facility. But at Hempstead in 88-89, I team taught with four other teachers all seemed to be looking for the least resistant path to retirement. Here I was trying to instill principals, respect for adults and each other, and discipline. I must have been a pain in the butt carrying on like supper teacher on steroids! It was a big mess and my contempt for them was growing each day. By the spring of 1989 I decided to leave Hempstead and get a graduate degree which was a requirement for a permitting state of New York teacher’s license. I was at a cross roads and I called Hank Janyzck at Gettysburg College (G-burg) who I met through the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Lacrosse ministry. He made some calls and to try and secure a graduate assistantship (coaching in exchange for graduate tuition and a stipend) at a notable institution. I had just had a great Club lacrosse year and made the 1990 world team. At the time, I thought about a divinity degree, law school, masters in history, or a job in college coaching. I had recently taken a career exploration course at a public library that showed I should be teaching history at the college level. I had started reading allot of history books on my own and got excited about the opportunity of getting a masters in history and also trying out college coaching.
