Birthdays

Coach Mandy, before she was Coach Mandy!  This was taken during the construction of our dugouts during her senior year.  I thought I would give her a shout out since today is her birthday!

When I started my second semester at Mary Baldwin as a freshman, spending my 19th birthday away from my family was one of the things that I was dreading.  Both my sister and I are February babies.  On February 4, 1996 I turned 3 and on February 9th, I became a big sister!  February was always filled with presents and birthday cakes, using my great grandma’s homemade chocolate icing recipe that is to die for!

So turning 19 didn’t sound too appealing… especially since on my 19th birthday cadets from the Virginia Military Institute were coming to help our team assemble our new dugouts. I knew that I was going to spend that Saturday freezing as we spent the day outside.  In case you can’t tell, construction is NOT my idea of a good time so I knew it was going to be a long cold day.  Don’t get me wrong, I was ecstatic about the new dugouts, just not about putting them together!

While it was a long, cold day I had fun.  It was fabulous watching our dugouts come together and to see how nice they looked. 

Our dugouts were put together with wooden pegs rather than nails.  For a donation, you could decorate one of the pegs.  I am fairly certain that Coach Mandy, an art major, was responsible for the lovely decoration of this peg.  I, however, take all the credit for the photo!

One of the things that I had figured out already is that Coach Shelton always celebrates birthdays.  Now, with a big softball team, it seems as if we are sometimes celebrating birthdays every week or two.  I knew we were having lunch with everyone after our construction, but I did not expect Coach to come out with a huge birthday cake to feed everyone.  It was the biggest birthday cake I have ever gotten in my life.  Not quite my great grandma’s chocolate icing, but it was just as special!

The infamous cake!

The past three years, someone from home has come to visit me for my birthday so I have gotten to taste that delicious chocolate icing.  Instead of losing the traditions that I once had for birthdays, new ones have been formed.  Sometimes, it is the small things—or a huge cake—that makes the day special.

Group photo from construction!

The Coaching Minor

One of the things that attracted me to Mary Baldwin was the new coaching minor.  During one of my first visits here, I had an interview with a couple of professors and while we were talking they asked me about my hobbies.  I told them that I played softball, but also that I helped coach the 10 & under and 13 & under teams in my area.  

The local recreation association where I helped coach when I was in high school always had games on Mother's Day.  One of the teams bought roses to give to all of the players' moms and I was given one because I was the "Team Mama".  Another fun fact--Mother's Day was created by a Mary Baldwin graduate!

With great excitement, one of the professors launched into the spiel that he had heard about the new minor that would launch the following year, my freshmen year at Mary Baldwin.  I knew coming to Mary Baldwin College that I wanted to major in English, but I had never put much thought into minoring in Coaching because I did not even know that it was an option.  With that conversation, I was sold and I couldn’t wait to get into my first coaching class.

One summer I was assisting with the 10 & under All Stars team.  The kids had a long break between games at the tournament and someone had packed temporary tattoos to help keep them busy.  Of course, Coach Amanda got a couple as well.  And yes, I did end up with a suntan line around this.

Even though I had already served as both an assistant coach and head coach for a couple of teams before I came to Mary Baldwin, the coaching minor opened new doors for me.  As part of my coaching minor, I had to do an internship with a team.  I decided to seek out a travel softball team, the Southampton Storm of Courtland, VA, and spent the summer traveling with the 18 & under team, working camps, and interacting with the all of the teams in the organization.  Through the coaching minor, I got some of the education that I need to back up some of the things that I had learned through experience as both a player and a coach.  People who previously viewed me as just a kid who was obsessed with softball saw that the minor was adding credibility and practical sport knowledge to my repertoire of tools and tricks to teach players softball at any level.

Hitting infield!

In my coaching classes, we frequently discussed how much of an impact good coaching can have on players and teams. I am extremely thankful that I had many wonderful coaches who encouraged, supported, and did everything in their power to help our team to win, but most importantly to learn about the game and to improve.  Coaches such as those have inspired me to give back to my community and to continue to teach girls some of the life lessons that softball has taught me.

For anyone who has played a sport and thinks they might want to coach at any level one day, I strongly recommend the coaching minor.  I thought that I was a good coach before I came here, but through the work that I put into my classes, my internship, and building my coaching portfolio I can see the rewards of completing this minor.

For more information about the Coaching & Exercise Leadership minor, please see http://www.mbc.edu/coaching_and_exercise_leadership/.

Requirements and projected course offerings for the coaching minor are as follows:

Requirements for the Minor in Coaching and Exercise Leadership20 semester hours
BIOL 151 – LO1 (N)
CEL 220 Spring 2016
CEL 245 Spring 2015
CHEM 120–LO1 (N) Spring 2015
INT 287
PHE 221 Every May Term
PHE 251 Spring 2016
SGS/WS 245 – LO2 (G)

I couldn't end this post without sharing a picture of me with one of my favorite coaches, my daddy!

Lines

Everywhere I look, I see lines.  I guess as a English major writing her senior thesis, finding deep analysis in ordinary things is something that comes pretty easily to me.

Walking home one evening I could not help but stare at the leaves on the sidewalk.  Bright red and orange leaves, the picture of fall.  As the rain hit the leaves on the sidewalk, I could not help but relate to them in a moment of weather related despair.  I felt as if I was one of these wet, trodden upon leaves on the sidewalk.  However, like these leaves, even though I have been trodden upon and rained on, I am still beautiful.  My color still manages to shine through the muddy footprints and the glistening raindrops only seem to enhance the vibrant color that radiates from within me.

A few days later I found myself on this same sidewalk focused on the lines.  The cracks in the sidewalks, the veiny lines of the leaves, the sharp angles of the buildings, everywhere I looked there was a line.

But then it dawned upon me that lines are everywhere—the line between right and wrong, the line between pass and fail, and so many others, but notably the line between good and great.

Here are Mary Baldwin as the manager of the softball team, I see athletes every day straddle the line between good and great.  I see decisions being made in hopes of moving  from being good to being great.  From upping weights in the weight room to putting in extra time, there are plenty of people who are trying to jump over that line and become great.  I have watched my coaches mull over decisions for the team because they know the impact they will have.  Their decisions can help take our team from good to great, to get over that line.

But I also see some people who are on the line between good and great and they are not doing quite enough to push themselves over the line.  Complacency is a bad thing for an athlete.  With this, you will never be great.  You will never make it over the “hump”, you will never get to take your game up to the next level.  If you are complacent, you have decided that good is good enough.

In order to be great, you have to make a conscious decision to get there.  Only you can decide what side of the line you fall on.  Do not settle for good when you can be great.  Know what side of the line you want to fall on.  If you are not there, take the step over to the side of the line you want to be on today.

Dedication is what gets you over the line from good to great.  It is the very thing that sets you apart—when glancing across the field, you can see who is dedicated, who is really living and breathing for every play.

When your athletic career is over, you want to fall solidly on the great side of the line.  In order to do so, you have to strive to be the best you can be—even when you are putting in the long hours, even when you are tired, even when your coach’s high expectations are proving trying.  The dedication to the sport and the hard work that comes out of that dedication is what pushes people into the next level, what makes people continue going.

What are you doing today to be great?

by Amanda Johnson

Fighting Squirrels Tackle Exams

 

One of the more unique traditions at Mary Baldwin College is our exam week system.  Students get to choose when they take their exams.  Before exam week begins, cards with all of the student’s courses are placed into her mailbox, along with more instructions.  There are two or three exam periods every day and students are allowed to take up to two exams a day, in the order that she chooses.

For many students, our exam system is one of their favorite perks about being a student at Baldwin. For busy athletes, this system works perfectly because it gives students choice.

 

Phoebe Wright, a sophomore on the soccer team, describes her experiences with the exam system, "My freshmen year, I was nervous about becoming a student athlete in college because I was worried that my sport would conflict with my grades, especially around exam time. Mary Baldwin diminished my fears completely because of their sweet exam system, where you can pick and choose what day and time to take your exams. You can personalize your exam schedule tailored the way you will do best."

For Wright, the support of her team and coaching staff has also been extremely beneficial.  Wright adds, “My teammates also study with me, and we encourage each other to keep going even when the going gets tough. It's always fun to get a study group together with the team, because you can schedule study breaks and make Sheetz/Walmart runs then share snacks while you study more."

Wright also offered insight to her personal exam taking strategy, stating that she likes to take exams in the morning because she is a morning person.  By taking her exam in the morning, it gives her the rest of the day to go back to sleep or celebrate the completion of a hard exam.  In addition, Wright also explained that she feels the exam system is a huge reason many students pick Mary Baldwin.
Bridget Lane, a senior member of the soccer team, offered a unique perspective as a transfer student on our exam system.  Before Lane attended Mary Baldwin, she attended two other institutions where they took exams in a traditional way and she had not heard of a school with an exam system like MBC’s.  Lane finds beauty in the system because, "It is a very flexible schedule and allows you to have time in between exams so you do not overload yourself all in one or two days."

Katie Hurlock, the Honor Council Chairwoman, was also willing to share her insights on the exam system.  Katie says, "I would say that any concerns about our nontraditional exam system should be resolved by knowing that well-trained Honor Council reps and student leaders monitor all the exam periods.”  Because our exams are not administered with a proctor watching over us, there are faculty and members of the Honor Council that are watching over the exam rooms, which are filled with students taking exams for various courses.  Hurlock also added, "Furthermore, in my experiences as the Honor Council Chair, MBC students are some of the most honorable and honest out there.”  Hurlock explains that there are actually few instances of cheating because of our Honor Code, which students hold in high esteem.  The Honor Code allows us to have this exam system which is popular with the students, so that is more incentive to abide by the rules so we can continue to utilize this system."

Exam week runs from December 8-12.  Good luck to all Fighting Squirrels as they finish the semester!

Amanda Johnson

 
My name is Amanda Johnson and I am a senior from Southampton County, VA.

I have been in love with writing since I was a little girl.  There are boxes of my old journals at home, tucked away.  My love of writing, as well as reading, led me to be an English major here at Mary Baldwin College.  I also have minors in Education, Coaching/Exercise Leadership, and History.  Along with my passion for writing, my skills behind a camera led to my work with Coach Alanko, the Sports Information Director.
When I am not working for Coach Alanko in the office, I also work at our Writing Center, where all students can receive help (for free!) with papers that were written for any discipline by trained Writing Center tutors.  I have also served as the 2013-2014 Secretary for President’s Society, the group that is responsible for tours on campus as well as hosting overnights.  I am also the manager of the softball team, which keeps me very busy!

Because of my involvements at Mary Baldwin College, I have gotten a unique insight to the life of student athletes.  Through my involvement in President’s Society, I have actively assisted in recruiting many students to come here, including student athletes.  When I talk to prospective student athletes, I feel that I am able to give knowledgable answers about the realities of juggling life as a student, an athlete, and being involved on campus whether through a job, an organization, a club, etc.

Through the start of “In a Nutshell”, I hope to give potential future Fighting Squirrels a unique opportunity to gain an insight into what life is really like here at Mary Baldwin.  I also want you to see what sets us apart from other institutions—what makes us Boldly Baldwin!

My journey at Mary Baldwin has been fantastic, although full of twists and turns.  I have really discovered who I am here and have watched athletes go through the same process, both on and off the field.  I am extremely grateful to be surrounded by such a supportive community of women and am thankful for all of the opportunities that I have had to get involved here at Mary Baldwin College.