From Trainer to Director: Ghee's Journey to Becoming New Prep AD

Prep athletics are one of the many things that make the Prep special. This was made abundantly clear in my interview with new Athletic Director Mr. Bryan Ghee. The Prep is renowned for its athletic programs that have achieved consistent and remarkable success over the years. Recently, Mr. Ghee took control of our gigantic athletic program which contains more than 20 varsity sports, and is participated in by over 75% of our student body. I had the privilege of sitting down with Mr. Ghee to discuss our successful athletic program, and what the future looks like for Prep sports. Mr. Ghee has worn many hats during his time at The Prep. He initially came to the Prep as an athletic trainer, though shortly thereafter stepped up to become the interim Assistant Dean. After transitioning to a permanent position as the Assistant Dean, Mr. Ghee also became the Director of Transportation at the Prep. He told me, “Then for the last couple of years, I was the Director of Transportation, Director of Activities, and then Associate Athletic Director, and then recently dropped transportation, it was just the Activities Director and Associate Athletic Director”.

Mr. Ghee has served the Prep in many capacities throughout his time here. From his experiences being around the Prep’s athletic programs, he says that our athletics are “another avenue for our kids to be part of and engage in and see out the mission of the school. You know, our coaches are just an extension of the mission of the school, and so, I think it's just another avenue to meet kids where they are, and use their passion for whatever it may be”. As Prep students, we live out the school’s mission everywhere we go. Athletics are no different, they are just another way in which we find ourselves doing so.

As Mr. Ghee puts it, Prep athletics use “whatever a student's passion is to use that as kind of like a foil to develop them. Hearts, mind, spirits, character.” At the Prep, athletics are one of the many ways we live out our mission. Athletics are a core part of our school because they are one of the main ways in which we live out the “Grad at Grad” values. The athletic field is yet another place in which we strive to be more open to growth, intellectually competent, religious, loving, and committed to doing justice.

The Prep’s athletic programs are immense. Over 75% of Prep students participate on at least one of our numerous athletic teams. Still, over the years, the Prep’s athletic program has grown in size greatly. New programs such as Ultimate Frisbee have been created, expanding Prep athletics to students. Mr. Ghee explains, “In terms of offerings, I think that a lot of those things happen rather organically… you've seen things like Ultimate Frisbee that were a club and is now a varsity sport. It used to be in activities, now it's under Athletics. Same as mountain biking.”. New offerings bring new people into athletics at the Prep. New programs such as Ultimate Frisbee and Mountain Biking have become new opportunities for more Prep students to get involved with athletics. Even within our existing programs, growth is constant.

Mr. Ghee explains, “Football's numbers, especially freshman football, are the highest that they've been in quite a while. Fall crew right now is gigantic… cross country right now has 35 freshmen on it, which is a large proportion of the freshman class… I think a lot of that is because of engagement being offered in these sports that whether or not they’re running on varsity, they’re still getting something out of it.”

One of the main points Mr. Ghee spoke about was the value of personal growth in athletics. He told me that the portrait of a Prep athlete is someone whom “at the end of four years in a sport are still open to the idea of growing, that they're not the best kid to ever play the sport, that they're still open to the idea that they can grow in that sport, grow in their how they can utilize their passion to serve others, grow in their ability to see the world in a different way.” Athletics are another way in which Prep students learn how to grow as individuals. Growing as a person is difficult. It requires courage, self understanding, and a lot of patience to grow as a person, athlete, or a student. Great athletes are not great simply because they can perform well—though performance is certainly helpful—but because they are willing to grow. They are willing to, as Mr. Ghee puts it, “understand how teamwork happens”.

Mr. Ghee told me very succinctly about the value that athletics adds to the lives of Prep students. He told me, “if you want to learn how to manage your time properly in a real world setting, how to work in group dynamics, to work for effectiveness and success. While possibly having a lot of fun and being around your peers. There's no better place than St. Joseph’s Prep”.

The Prep’s athletics programs are consistently successful because we strive to grow, to work for excellence, and to have fun. Mr. Ghee will work to help Prep athletics convey the mission that the Prep espouses, and to make Prep athletes into men for and with others.