Student-Athletes Enjoy New Development Program

Eric Lay, JK-8 Physical Education Dept. Chair/Director of Fitness & Athletic Development, reports that we have had many positive changes to our athletic development program.

Perhaps the most visible is ensuring that Upper School students can now use the north campus weight room during the school day. With flexibility in their schedules, in-season athletes can get in workouts that help improve performance, decrease risk for injury, and help with learning since sitting for seven-plus hours a day does not help the brain work optimally. This flexibility means that student-athletes no longer have to find extra time outside of the school day.

MICDS now offers software called Teambuildr that allows students to pull up their prescribed workout on an iPad positioned on the rack where they perform most of their exercises. Students can also access their workouts on their phones.

Any and all off-season athletes can participate in workouts after school throughout the school year. These workouts are led by Lay and Middle School P.E. Teachers Everett Goldberg and Rachael Maurer, all of whom are certified strength and conditioning specialists. Most schools don’t have resources like these!

MICDS has teamed up with Sparta Science which uses software that gathers data from a force plate. This data helps our staff know specifically what each athlete needs to improve. It can also measure if students are improving performance, reducing risk for injury, and if they are too stressed to exercise (and learn).

“The amount of students that have taken advantage of these changes in these first weeks of school has been amazing,” said Lay. “We need a bigger weight room!”