Track and Field Toolbox

Cory McCarthy Uses the Power of Athletics to Transform This Urban School

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Cory McCarthy shares how he used athletics to bring a brighter future to his students and turn this urban school into a city powerhouse.

Cory McCarthy’s younger life revolved around one thing: a single pair of pants. As a child, he used his $5 weekly allowance to turn that one pair of pants seemingly into five pairs. On Monday, he wore black pants. That night he would turn them blue using dye he purchased with his five dollars. By Wednesday, they faded to gray, on Thursday they appeared stone-washed, and on Friday he would dye them back to black.

From a young age, McCarthy had a knack for building something out of nothing. And that’s exactly what he did for New Mission High School.

Life Before New Mission

McCarthy was born on the sunny island of Barbados where he spent the first few years of his life. At the age of seven, his family relocated to the U.S., settling down in the small neighborhood of Dorchester.

After losing his dad a few years later to a sudden brain aneurysm, McCarthy started playing sports. But he quickly found himself hanging out with the wrong crowd. It wasn’t until coming home one night that he saw how much the stress and pressure of single-handedly managing a family had aged his mother. At that moment, McCarthy decided he wanted to do better—to do more.

He began working for a tutoring program, learning, making friends and staying out of trouble. The teachers and mentors at that program would catapult McCarthy into who he is today. They gave him the inspiration and intent he still carries with him.

Even after walking the stage as a UMass graduate, McCarthy continued working closely with the boys of the tutoring program and wound up coaching their basketball team. Little did he know at the time, but that coaching experience would help him propel a no-name high school into one of the most powerful public schools in Boston.

Unfortunately, the following year, the program lost its funding. But that paved the way for McCarthy being offered a job as a substitute teacher at New Mission High School.

At New Mission

It was the school that no one wanted to touch. It was a tired, rodent-infested facility with no gym, no cafeteria, no elevator—it was barely recognized by the city. But they did have a girls’ basketball team, one that had never won a game, didn’t have a coach and barely had a roster.

That’s where McCarthy came in. After his short stint coaching the boys at his tutoring program, McCarthy agreed to take on the girl’s head coach position.

On his first day, he came in, took charge and kicked two of the best players off the team because of their poor attitudes. He knew it was going to be an uphill battle then and there, but he continued to show up and take care of those girls as if they were his own.

“We’re used to people just leaving us, and it feels like you’re not going anywhere.”

But McCarthy’s dedication showed no bounds. After their first game, with no school busses available, he got them on public transportation and made sure each athlete got home safely. What McCarthy showed them at that moment was something they never experienced before. McCarthy still remembers one of his players telling him, “We’re used to people just leaving us, and it feels like you’re not going anywhere.” after that night.

That was all he needed to hear. He vowed to continue pushing New Mission from nothing into something. Just like he turned that one pair of pants into five.

Building New Mission into a City Powerhouse

Ironically, clothing continued to play a vital role in McCarthy’s life. But this time it was t-shirts. He bought 300 with his own money to start branding the school and his program. He didn’t know how powerful those t-shirts would be, but when he started seeing them around the city he had a feeling this was going to be good.

The buzz he started with those t-shirts led to New Mission’s first taste of success. Shortly thereafter, McCarthy coached their girl’s basketball team to a charter league championship. A team that hadn’t won a game had just won it all. This was huge—their momentum was growing, their reputation was growing, and that first championship put New Mission on the map.

But there was more to be done. New Mission still wasn’t recognized in the Boston Public School league. So McCarthy, along with his principal, went straight to the athletic director and superintendent of the Boston Public School system. After much debate, they finally gave in and allowed New Mission to be part of the league, still telling McCarthy his team would never win a championship there.

The next hurdle? New Mission was still unrecognized as a college prep school, which meant that none of their athletes could receive scholarships to NCAA schools.

The school had to keep growing its success. So he bought more t-shirts. Another 250 New Mission branded t-shirts hit the city of Boston and the buzz got bigger.

The girl’s basketball team continued to thrive, making it to the city championship at the TD Garden, home of the NBA’s Boston Celtics. Surrounded by nearly the entire city, that championship win pushed New Mission even further towards becoming a recognized institution.

With the success of the girl’s team, McCarthy took on the head coach position of the boy’s team. They lacked drive, determination and motivation. But McCarthy stuck with them, just like he had with the girls.

He built rapport by taking them on college visits and to summer tournaments. These trips led to more formative relationships and enabled them to play better as a team. Soon the boys started seeing success on the court too. Their achievements resonated with the city and the community started paying even more attention.

New Mission Today

Coming off the success of their athletics, New Mission changed its academics and became a college prep school. Their students now had an opportunity to receive athletic scholarships to NCAA schools. As of today, they’ve sent 71 boys off to college with over a dozen receiving athletic scholarships and countless more receiving academic and merit scholarships. Over 48 have graduated and the remaining still working on their degrees. As for the school itself? Applications have grown from 100 per year to more than 1100 per year.

McCarthy nearly single-handedly built New Mission into one of the top public schools in the city of Boston. The t-shirts, his relentless dedication to his athletes, it all helped transform a run-down school into a powerhouse of opportunity and success.

Today, New Mission is one of the top public schools in Boston and continues to see success in both athletics and academics. McCarthy’s achievements echo through the streets of Boston and you can feel his impact when he’s greeted by former friends and colleagues.


Four Things You Can Do Today to Start Building Your Athletic Department Brand

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Building your athletic department brand is the first step in creating state cham­pi­onship-caliber programs. These principles can help you get started.

This article was written by Tad Tokarz who has been a high school administrator for 18 years, working his entire career in an urban district. He also teaches adjunct classes focused on educational leadership, special education and professional development at American International College.

Seventeen years ago, when I started at Springfield Central High School as an assistant principal, we had one of the lowest performing athletic programs in the Western Massachusetts region and one of the largest student bodies in the Commonwealth. 

There’s plenty of proud history at this inner-city school—our gym not only displays state title banners, but also the jerseys of past alums who made it to the NBA and MLB. However, the school was in the midst of a dramatic downturn in athletic success and there was little to boast about when I arrived.

Fast forward nearly two decades. Across the board, our teams are some of the most competitive in our state’s highest level. Our boys’ and girls’ basketball teams routinely reach the final weekend of postseason. Our wrestling program often wins state championships, and our football team is now considered one of the most powerful in New England. During live recruiting periods, coaches from the Big Ten, ACC, Ivy, and Patriot Leagues visit our school. 

In 2018 our football team became the first to win a statewide MIAA football championship in Western Mass.

The turning point? Our brand. Building it has been a slow, methodical process with many bumps along the way, and we continue to work hard at it every day of the year. But it’s also been a tremendous learning opportunity, with the benefits far exceeding our expectations. 

If you’re about to start your own brand-building journey, keep these principles in mind.

You can’t do it alone.

A team of like-minded people working alongside you is key to your initiative. I was lucky to have an administrative colleague share my views about the potential of our brand. 

Together, we systematically made decisions that helped us gain traction towards our ultimate goal. We scrutinized every hire and tried to find individuals that were excellent in the classroom and accomplished coaches.  

As a rule, we hire people, not resumes. Some of the most successful, effective, and influential people in our building started off as uncertified teachers working towards their advanced degrees. And any time we get a chance to hire an alumni, we do. We believe they have an intrinsic loyalty to the school and can relate to our current students. Our goal is to create a family atmosphere.  

Bottom line—it takes a village. Find someone with like minded views to help you kick-start your goals. 

The best ability? Repeatability.

We created a school motto that we could take immense pride in, “Home to Scholars and Champions.” Years ago, we noticed a school from the West Coast had a similar motto and was extremely successful for its area. Their students were no different than ours, so we thought, “If that school could manifest their own destiny, why not us?” Our motto was born and we never stopped pushing it.

Seventeen years later, “Home to Scholars and Champions” is what people know us by. We’ve tagged it everywhere we could—our stationary, our hallways, our gymnasium wall—and every time students underperform, we point out our motto is the expectation. 

This catchy, repeatable motto is relative to almost anything in life. A scholar-athlete is more specific to the classroom, but a champion is a champion in life. 

Combine consistency and creativity.

As part of our process, we realized our school’s logo needed an upgrade. Two of our most dynamic coaches came up with the solution.

Our current football coach took over a decade ago and wanted to create a unique identity for us. He created our “C” logo, an inverted two-tone twist on the University of Miami’s iconic “U” logo. All of our sports teams use the “C” in their uniforms. When anyone sees our gear, they immediately know it’s Springfield Central. 

Meanwhile, our wrestling coach had been toying with another logo with our mascot, the Golden Eagles. So we combined that eagle with our “C” to create a fierce logo, a singular identity. This new logo will adorn our newly-renovated basketball court starting in the 19-20 school year.

One logo for all the teams strengthens our brand.

Rally the community.

When you’re an inner city school, everything that goes wrong in the city gets equated with the school system. It’s a tough reputation to shed. As hard as we tried, people just didn’t find academic success that interesting. It’s hard to get the attention of the media from a positive perspective. 

But when you have an athletic win, they’re almost forced to put it in the paper. And our brand could be out in the community in a positive way.

It’s amazing how many people will stop you on the street to say, “Hey, you’re having a great year.” They have no idea what you’re doing academically, but when they see your name in the paper for athletics, it connects positive thoughts to your school.

I recently researched how many times our athletic teams garnered headlines in a local news outlet versus how many times we were mentioned for academic reasons. The ratio was 97 to 1. When we quantified this with a projected advertising cost, it equated to tens of thousands of dollars.

We’ve been fortunate to get the full support of our city’s political community. They want to see us be successful academically and socially, and our positive identity allows us to get the support we need. 

You’ll see them at games—our mayor, our superintendent, school committee members, city councilors—cheering for us, proud of us. It drives home that what we do as an athletic department is important. 

We also try to bring back alumni as much as possible. Travis Best, who was a McDonald’s All-American a quarter-century ago at Central and went on to great success in the NBA, can always be found in our stands when he’s in town. His jersey is the only retired number for any of our athletic programs. 

Every year we hear stories from students who have dreamed about becoming a Central High School Golden Eagle. It’s a great feeling to know your school is providing amazing academic and co-curricular opportunities for students who are historically disadvantaged. We’ve even had students turn down full-scholarship opportunities from prep schools to become part of our community. 

We don’t have all of the answers but we hope to continue to improve, grow and develop. Resources like this blog can help us, and other schools across the country, share ideas and best practices to ensure positive experiences and future opportunities for student-athletes everywhere.

 


The Power of an Athletic Department That Focuses on Culture, Relationships & the Extra Mile

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Former coach and athletic director Cory McCarthy shares how focusing on three main priorities made a huge impact on New Mission High School — and how they can do the same for your school.

Basketball transformed my school, New Mission High School (Boston, Mass.). We were once an alternative education school with low student growth. Our basketball teams had jerseys with numbers made of tape. We had to take public transportation to the games. Practice was running two miles to a train station and back. Having gym time was about as impossible as shaving while skydiving.

But we had players who believed this chance to play was their opportunity to survive. I remember sitting in the back of a bus from Somerville fielding questions like, “Cory, you think I can make it? Can you tell us about college? Why you still here man? We’re terrible.” We weren’t talking about basketball, we were talking about life.

Two years later, that same team was in the state championship game with only six players, one just eight post-op from hernia surgery. Our small alternative education school with the taped jerseys won a state championship, and our entire school was there to witness it.

Two state championship teams in two years.

Another year later, we had attracted even more students and clinched another state championship. And finally, when a school on the other side of town closed, we got a gym of our own.

Because of sports, we cemented our identity. Because of sports, I began to see more parents at games and meetings. Coaches can easily see the inherent value of sports—our challenge is to get kids to believe in themselves, change their course and inspire others.

Throughout my years as a five-time state championship coach, I’ve learned there are three major components in building a program that will provide student-athletes the best experience and character development possible.

Culture

Not only do coaches need to do whatever it takes to help players believe in their own value to the team, they must also understand that it’s not always the game plan that wins the game—it’s the team’s identity and philosophy.

Think of culture as a loose ball. You gotta dive for it. My focus is on making sure my players handle the honorable variables of being an athlete, like time on task, engagement, random acts of kindness and, most importantly, the two “extras” that help you win in the classroom—extra credit and extra help.

There are so many things coaches can do to build a strong culture. I spent my first paycheck as a basketball coach on making 300 t-shirts with our team logo and mantra. I handed those out to anyone who would listen. Months later, many of our freshmen showed up to school with New Mission t-shirts already on their backs. These kids had never played for me, but they were already connected to our team culture. They were Titans.

My focus is on making sure my players handle the honorable variables of being an athlete.

Relationships

If you have no idea what your players’ home situations or backgrounds are, how can you expect to coach them? Player development is not exclusive to skills and drills anymore.

It’s the conversations that happen after practice. It’s the bus ride to or from games. It’s the impact a coach can have on a player in their most vulnerable moments. You don’t even have to talk—it’s more important to listen.

Relationships help players buy in. I always kept an identity chart of my players so I could help them understand the value of being their best self even when it was hard. Be the example—teach them how to show who they are by showing them who you are.

The Extra Mile

Coaching is a job where when you win, someone else gets the credit, and when you lose, “It’s on you bruh.” It’s full of ups and downs. But when all else fails, trust in your players.

As coaches, we need to remind ourselves of the impact going the extra mile can have. It matters if I drive the 20 miles to take a player to a college visit or show up to a parent meeting. It might be the difference between life or death if I don’t check up on a kid in the summer to make sure drugs or violence hasn’t swallowed them whole.

How to Get Started

  1. Build relationships with all of your players.
  2. Have the NCAA qualifying conversation with them in 9th grade, and use the guidelines to help them in their academics.
  3. Create an environment that reflects success and family. Develop mantras, post quotes about your program philosophy or create incentives—whatever it takes to help them understand that who they are on the court is who they are off of it.
  4. Be intentional about your goals. Every step forward is a step closer to a championship.

Everyone seems to hate the phrase, “Ball is life.” But from my experience, it is.

 

Cory McCarthy spent more than a decade coaching basketball. As Director of School Culture and Climate at New Mission High School, he has helped lead the school to being named the 2012 EdVestors’ School on the Move, 2013 National Blue Ribbon School for Improvement, and the 2017 Title One Distinguished School. McCarthy has represented Boston Public Schools at conferences such as ASUGSV Technology Summit in San Diego and COSEBOC in Boston, MA and New York, and has been a guest lecturer at Emerson College and UMASS Boston.


5 Tips for Dealing with Difficult Players

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Use these ideas to help manage players who challenge your team culture.

Most athletes do their best to avoid being disruptive, but every coach has encountered their fair share of challenging players. Next time this happens, consider using these tips to improve the situation.

Make sure everyone on the team is engaged

Kids, particularly younger ones, have a lot of energy and short attention spans. Keep your practices active and get every player involved. When running drills, aim to pair or group together players of similar skill levels. Every player will feel challenged, but not intimidated.

Also consider including small group work in your practices. This can bring shy players out of their shell while ensuring disruptive players are kept busy.

Every player is unique—your behavior expectations shouldn’t be

Getting to know your players is an important part of coaching. Everyone has different on-field and off-field strengths, motivations and unique personalities. But when it comes to behavior, your expectations should be standard across the board.

“You have to be consistent in your messaging. If that is your core principle, your core value, then everything has to be in alignment with that,” Gabe Infante, head football coach at St. Joseph Prep (Pa.), said. “I think it’s very easy sometimes to lose focus. Sometimes you become emotional about things and you lose the consistency of the message. It takes practice.”

It’s no secret good players sometimes feel like they can get away with subpar behavior because of their skill. At the same time, weaker players may take a lazier approach because they don’t feel like they’re contributing. It’s important everyone on the team understands how you expect them to behave. Be consistent, no matter who breaks the rules.

Reward good behavior with positive reinforcement

When players act out, it’s often because they want attention. So the best option might not be to call them out for it or make them run laps. Instead, pull them aside and have a one-on-one conversation to address their behavior. They won’t be the focus of attention, but you’re still addressing the situation.

You’ll also want to avoid only scolding players, unless they’re putting themselves or others at risk. Try pairing compliments with constructive criticism. Encouragement is often more effective than doling out punishment.

“A lot of young people can be resistant to coaching. They mistake coaching for criticism when in reality what the coach is trying to do is just help them get better. It’s really a partnership between the coach and the player,” Shaka Smart, head basketball coach at the University of Texas, said. Punishment has its place, just be sure players understand exactly what they did wrong so they know how to avoid it in the future.

We’re the first time that a parent hears that their son isn’t good enough. How you deliver that and how you handle your players and how you develop respect and trust with your players is where it all starts. Gabe Infante, head football coach at St. Joseph Prep (Pa.)

Don’t forget about the parents

Make sure your players’ parents understand the rules and expectations you have for the team. While parents can help keep their kids in line, you might find difficult parents just as common as difficult players.

Kids pick up a lot from the adults in their lives, so encourage the parents on your sideline to be good sports. Don’t be afraid to tactfully tell them if their behavior is a negative influence on your team. “A coach’s job, in my opinion, is very much the same as that of a parent—to prepare your children to live life without you,” Infante said.

The other key to strong parent-coach relationships is open lines of communication. Set ground rules such as ‘wait 24 hours after a contest to talk to me about it,’ but let them know you’re available to address their concerns.

Keep your cool even when you’re frustrated

Staying calm is easier said than done, but it can go a long way when it comes to dealing with difficult players. You’ll be able to make better decisions on behalf of your whole team.

Try to understand why the challenging players on your squad might be acting out without letting them monopolize your time. Listen to their concerns and consider the challenges they may be facing at home or at school. You may not be able to fix their problems, but they’ll appreciate your effort to meet them halfway.

And when it’s time to focus on the team, they’ll be ready. “We had a team meeting in the locker room and I said, ‘Guys, from this point forward we clear the mechanism,’” Steve Specht, head football coach at St. Xavier (Ohio), said.

“I don’t want to worry about what your grade in biology is or the issues you’re having with your girlfriend or any problems. When we set foot on this field, for two hours we clear the mechanism and we have fun.”

Want more tips on how to ensure players buy in to your coaching philosophy? Check out our comprehensive guide to reaching full program alignment.


A Flawed Reality: When it’s Time to Reflect

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Two years after landing the head coaching position he so badly desired, Coach Jones (not his real name) was quietly fired. The administrative staff realized they’d made a mistake hiring Jones. They weren’t quite sure why he didn’t work out. They did their homework.

Well, enough to consider him a solution to their coaching needs. However, what they couldn’t see is what did him in. After spending a month analyzing Jones, here are the flaws I uncovered:

  • Is overly demanding
  • Doesn’t listen
  • Is intolerant of dissent
  • Takes the credit for success
  • Blames others for mistakes
  • Is untrustworthy—doesn’t do what he says he’ll do
  • Is aloof—seen as arrogant
  • Has a dictatorial style
  • Is abrasive

It’s fairly obvious, after the fact, that Coach Jones has some serious flaws related to interpersonal interactions (he is comfortable with a transactional style of conversation) and relationship building. Nowhere in his flaws will you find a glitch in his knowledge of the sport. He has a great command of the X’s and O’s. But he has some serious team building flaws.

The two primary blind spots that emerged are: 1) his need to be right in all situations, and 2) avoiding accountability to his players and staff. Coach Jones’ “I know” attitude produced such flaws as taking credit for success and his unwillingness to listen. The desire to avoid accountability (to the stakeholders) produced his blaming of others and his dictatorial leadership style and abrasive attitude toward relationship building created cool relationships between him and his staff and players.

The prognosis for Coach Jones is not good. If he fails to discover his fatal flaws his coaching career will never recover. As a prominent coach told me, “We’re pretty good at directing our players to change, but not so great at changing ourselves.”

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New to the Second Edition of Coaching for Leadership!

We are pleased to announce a new chapter to the second edition of the best-selling Coaching for Leadership. The chapter, The Big Shift: Unlock Your Team’s Potential by Creating Player-Led Teambuilding, connects the previous edition of this book to its origin, as well as to the future of team sports.

The new chapter sets forth a practical and applicable agenda for change and improvement. The reader is introduced to seven vital elements of change; seven shifts of traditional mental models that lead to the new core principles necessary for creating a player-led team culture. Click here for more information about Coaching for Leadership

About Cory Dobbs, Ed.D.

Cory Dobbs is the founder of The Academy for Sport Leadership and a nationally recognized thought leader in the areas of leadership and team building.  Cory is an accomplished researcher of human experience. Cory engages in naturalistic inquiry seeking in-depth understanding of social phenomena within their natural setting.

A college basketball coach, Cory’s coaching background includes experience at the NCAA DII, NJCAA, and high school levels of competition.  After a decade of research and development Cory unleashed the groundbreaking Teamwork Intelligence program for student-athletics. Teamwork Intelligence illuminates the process of designing an elite team by using the 20 principles and concepts along with the 8 roles of a team player he’s uncovered while performing research.

Cory has worked with professional athletes, collegiate athletic programs, and high schools teaching leadership and team building as a part of the sports experience and education process.  As a consultant and trainer Dr. Dobbs has worked with Fortune 500 organizations such as American Express, Honeywell, and Avnet, as well as medium and small businesses. Dr. Dobbs taught leadership and organizational change at Northern Arizona University, Ohio University, and Grand Canyon University.