director of cross country and track and field
associate professor of education
Education 105: Human Development and Learning
Liberal Arts Seminar: Positive Psychology
We have 117 student-athletes on our track roster right now and 52 of them are on the cross country team.
I'm hard enough on my body, so I don't eat too much junk.
I began coaching at NWU as a part time assistant in 1982 and began teaching in 1990.
This is my first entry for the web blog I am doing during this next school year. I hope to post something every week or two through out the year. I am sure some of the entries will focus on my coaching and what is going on with my teams and other entries may focus on the classes I am teaching or maybe something interesting happening on campus. Whatever the topic, I hope that you find it worthwhile.
I have spent this week getting organized for the start of school. I have hired a new full time assistant track coach. His name is Derek Frese. Derek will be assisting me with recruiting, meet management, travel, equipment and will be coaching our throwers. This week has been Derek's first week on the job so we have spent some time just getting him set up in his office and orienting to the workings of the athletic department. I am very excited to have Derek here, I can tell already that his going to be a great addition to our coaching staff.
The cross-country team reports to campus next week. Both our men and women's teams have a chance to be very strong this fall. We will have a nice blend of some talented experienced runners as well as a great group of new freshmen. I cannot wait to get started!
I always enjoy the first week of the new school year and this past week was no different. It was great to get my classes started. I like meeting the students in my classes and getting to know them a little bit. The Education class I teach (Human Development & Learning) has primarily sophomores in it. These students have made the decision that teaching is the career path they are pursuing and this class is really the beginning of their course work specific to teaching. I talked with these students this week about the importance of the decision they have made and the tremendous opportunity they have in a few short years to begin having an impact on young people in their own classrooms. They are pretty fired up about that opportunity!
Cross Country is off to a good start. We host our own Nebraska Wesleyan High School Invitational this Saturday before our first competition next week. Saturday looks to be a busy day for me. The morning will be taken up with the High School meet, I am helping my brother Dan with some work in early afternoon, having a little birthday party for my nephew later in the afternoon and then hitting the Wesleyan football opener in the evening. Lot's of fun!
A couple of thoughts today:
1.) We had our annual Alumni Cross-Country meet yesterday. Over 30 past Wesleyan runners showed up to run or cheer on their old teammates compete with the current teams. After the race, both the team and our alumni always come to my house for a picnic. I really enjoy these events. It is very cool to see the interaction between our current runners and the alumni. The alumni are very up to date on the current team and the athletes enjoy hearing the stories that the alumni love to tell about the history and tradition of our program.
2.) My LAS class, Positive Psychology is off to a great start. I believe that I have a pretty special group of students. I have been very impressed by the level of discussion and interaction in the class so far. My students seem to be bright, ask great questions, write well and offer well developed insight on what we are reading. They have made my job pretty easy so far! I am very much looking forward to working with them this semester.
This past weekend we hosted the annual Woody Greeno Cross Country Meet. The meet is always one of the largest meets in the country, this year we had 28 colleges and universities attend. While it is a big job to organize and direct I enjoy putting on a meet that coaches and athletes enjoy want to keep coming back to. Our women’s team showed that we will be force to reckon with this year as we won the meet. Our men’s team was 5th overall. It was a good positive first meet for us.
Our next cross country meet will be the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto, California on October 29th. The 50 runners traveling are pretty excited to be taking a trip like this. We fly out on Friday morning and will return late Sunday night. Besides running in the meet against teams like Stanford, Arizona and California we will be enjoying sites like the Golden Gate Bridge and Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. Should be a memorable weekend!
I think this is the 10th year that I have taught an LAS (Liberal Arts Seminar) class. While I have enjoyed every single year and all of my LAS classes, I must admit that this year has gone extra well and I have truly an exceptional group of freshmen students. It has been remarkable how comfortable the class seems with each other and the dialog and discussions have been outstanding. We are reading the book Authentic Happiness by Martin Seligman. Today we discussed his concept of signature strengths and how using our own personal signature strengths leads to a more fulfilling and satisfying life. I really enjoyed hearing my students discuss their own strengths and the ways that they use those strengths in their lives.
Teaching an LAS is one of my favorite things to do. My two previous class topics have been The Modern Olympic Games and Baseball and American Culture. The LAS class is a time to not only learn a bit about a hopefully somewhat interesting topic but also to learn what it takes to be successful in a liberal arts college. Maybe the best part of an LAS class for both my students and me however is getting to know each other on a personal level. The class size is only 16-17 students, which allows us to really develop a close working relationship.
Our cross-country trip to San Francisco and Stanford University was a great experience. On Friday, September 28th 50 of our cross-country runners, my assistant coach Ann Ringlein and I boarded a plane and made the trip to San Francisco. After boarding our bus, eating and checking into our Hotel we made our made our way to the Stanford campus. After touring the beautiful campus we did a light easy run on the surrounding grounds before heading back to the Hotel and enjoying a nice dinner.
The meet itself on Saturday went very well. We were running against mostly NCAA division I schools including Stanford, Arizona and California. Both the men and women’s teams finished right in the middle of the pack. Not too bad considering the tough competition and the strain of travel. After the meet we spent a great evening enjoying the food and activities at Fisherman’s Wharf. On Sunday we had a fantastic run in Golden Gate Park that ended up with a quick dip (the water was cold!) in the Pacific ocean. We then visited the Golden Gate Bridge before our flight home.
While competing in the Stanford Invitational was great, the part of trips like this that I enjoy the most is getting to know our runners better and seeing them develop even closer bonds as team mates. We were a bit tired for a few days but the team seems to be feeling fresh again and we are looking forward to the big championship meets looming on the schedule.
My Positive Psychology students are well into their research paper process. It seems to be going pretty well for most of the students. Some of the topics chosen are pretty interesting. One student is researching the relationship between positive attitude and cancer survival rates. Another is looking at the benefits of “flow” in athletic performance and if there is a benefit, how does one more easily get in the “flow”? First drafts are due in a week or so; I am looking forward to reading them!
This past weekend both our men and women’s cross country teams defended their GPAC conference championships. I am very proud of both teams. The women were running without one of our top girls as she is nursing a slight injury and yet were still able to win by a good margin. The men’s team is really rounding into top form. Our top guys finished 1-2-4 in the 108-man field. Both teams will be running in the NCAA Central Region Championship @ St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN on November 8th. It is here that we will hopefully qualify for the NCAA National Championship the following week.
I write this on the eve of the NCAA Cross Country Championships here in Northfield Minnesota. Both the men and women’s teams qualified for the championships at the Central Region Championship last weekend. The men were able to win the meet and the women were 2nd. I was very pleased with how both teams ran. There are 24 colleges in our region (Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota) so finishes 1st and 2nd is a pretty significant accomplishment. The NCAA Championship experience is a fabulous time for our student-athletes. We just got back from the banquet that the NCAA puts on every year the night before the competition. It is always fun to see and talk to runners and coaches from all over the United States at the banquet. Earlier today the team received their NCAA Championship gifts. The main gift this year was a nice travel bag. The athletes always look forward to seeing what the gift will be each year.
That’s all for now. Time to get some sleep before the big day tomorrow!
Wow. Here we are at finals week already. It seems like things have been pretty hectic since Thanksgiving. My LAS students are finishing up the semester with their individual class presentation of their research papers. The papers were really pretty strong this year and the presentations have been very good as well. I am very impressed with the freshmen I am working with. They are bright, speak well, are motivated and anxious to learn. I know they will do great things during their undergraduate years here at Wesleyan.
We wrapped up our track team fall training on Friday with an Intra-Squad meet. This is an annual event that is a lot of fun. The seniors act as captains and we have a draft among the team members and then have a Black vs. Gold team competition. We had some good performances and most importantly everyone had a lot of fun.
I am actually writing this from Phoenix, AZ as I am at the United States Track Coaches Association Convention. I have to admit the 70 degree temps and sunny skies are pretty nice! It is good to network with my coaching colleagues and help with the governing of our sport.
This will be my last port of the fall semester. I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and I look forward to possibly writing a few entries again in the spring semester!
We are three weeks into second semester already. Seems like it was just Christmas time! My classes are off to a good start. I always enjoy meeting new students, getting to know them and beginning a new semester of class.
The track team is off to a good start as well. We are excited about our meet this weekend as we are traveling to Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa. We will be competing with some other NCAA III powers in track & field. Wartburg, UW-LaCrosse and UW-Platteville are all among the very best programs in the country. Traveling with 100 track athletes and coaches requires some pretty detailing planning concerning food, buses and hotels but I enjoy doing that sort of thing. My main goal is to create a positive experience for our student-athletes.
I better get going for now as our bus leaves in about 45 minutes!
The last few days of warmer weather have been very much welcomed! It seems like it has been a long, cold winter, especially for our distance runners who run outside everyday. They have been on cloud nine all week running in the 40-degree sunshine.
We have just two weeks remaining in our indoor track season. We will be traveling to Ames, IA on March 8th for a big meet on their huge 300-meter indoor track. Our athletes are looking forward to taking advantage of the big track and turn in several NCAA qualifying times. The NCAA championship is on March 14-15th. We are really excited for the championship as several of our athletes are ranked very high in the NCAA and have a chance to possibly win some national titles.
After the NCAA meet we are on spring break. My break this year will be a little out of the ordinary for me as my wife; son and I are traveling to London, England where my daughter is studying this semester. It should be quite a trip. I will report back when we return!
The past couple of weeks seem like a blur to me. Our men and women’s track teams competed in the NCAA Indoor National Championship on March 14 and 15 at Ohio Northern University. The meet went well for us as we brought home five All American awards. The NCAA Championship meets are always a great experience for our athletes. It is a fantastic opportunity to compete against the very best from all across the country.
The day after we returned from the NCAA meet, my wife, son and I boarded another plane and traveled to London, England where my daughter is studying abroad this semester. We had a wonderful time in London as well as in Edinburgh, Scotland. We saw all the sites and also enjoyed some great family time.
As tremendous as the trip was, I am glad to be back and am ready to finish up this semester. I am looking forward to a good finish of my classes and the outdoor track season holds much promise. It will be a good April and May!
I love this time of year! My students are bearing down with great intensity as projects are being completed, papers finished and preparation for finals beginning. My track athletes are getting into great shape as the outdoor season is nearing its conclusion. Now if the weather would just cooperate!
As busy and hectic as this time of the year is, it also gives me time to reflect on one of the things that I enjoy so much about Nebraska Wesleyan. Our students have the opportunity to not only engage in a truly outstanding academic environment but also pursue their passion outside the classroom. Whether that passion involves athletics, music, drama, student government or a myriad of other clubs, groups and activities, the opportunity to have such a full experience make Wesleyan a place that I truly appreciate.
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Here is a shot of me that I took when I was figuring out the camera on my new computer. |
| This is me and my wife, Denise, and our two children. |  |