Figure 1
Fiona Ryan and Meghan McNamara-Giacona, head varsity softball coach.
Photograph taken by Fiona Ryan, April 25, 2023.

A Coach’s Perspective: An Interview

Sports is one of the many things Curtis High School, a major public high school on the north shore of Staten Island, is known for. As a former student, much of my time at Curtis was spent on the softball field. Playing softball gives you a unique outlook on the mental states of your peers. From just the interactions with others on and off the field alone, it is clear there are seemingly ever increasing mental health struggles in youth. I took the time to ask a longstanding figure in the high school athlete world, my old coach Meghan McNamara-Giacona, some questions about the prevalence and treatment of mental health issues in high school athletes.

Curtis High School

Figure 2

Curtis High School.

Photograph taken by Fiona Ryan, March 2022.

Day in and day out Mrs. McNamara, more commonly known as Coach Mac, has students running in and out of her office: the Forward Pass Room. It is a home for student athletes, the atmosphere being one of community and respite. Her doors are always open to those who need it, which is exactly how she sees the reality of many of her students’ mental health journeys. When asked how to describe the mental health climate at Curtis, Mrs. McNamara responded, “Students have to want help in order to receive it. There is help, but they don’t seek it out on their own.” According to Coach Mac, the school provides a variety of services to the students, including having in house social workers as per New York City Department of Educations multi-tiered support plan. Yet, as she pointed out, even though students may be in need of mental health services, they often don’t seek them out. “Teens don’t want to admit that they have mental health issues,” she says. She poses the question, “are they worried about what their peers might say if they need help, or just need some fresh air?”

Curious about the steps to getting students help, Coach Mac illuminated, “if they are identified as needing support, they are sent to their guidance counselor who connects them to a licensed social worker within the school.” And, that social worker then provides and connects the student to services if they want them.

This begs the question, if students were more aware of the services, would they take greater advantage of them? While this is outside the scope of this interview, I asked Coach Mac if students were aware of the mental health services available to them. To her best knowledge, she says that they are, but also recognizes that if the students are not paying attention, they might not know about them. “The school says sign up for the health center,” a center located inside the school on the way to the cafeteria, providing a range of services from immunization, physical examinations, to mental and behavioral health services, “but even though we advertise it, students don’t take advantage of it until there is a pressing issue.”

Aware of the importance of these services, Coach Mac supports her athlete’s mental health in a variety of ways. “We have a mental health coach on staff, we have guest speakers come in to talk to students about taking intentional actions, and we have our athletes think about how their responses to situations controls the outcome they get.” In a similar light, Coach Mac adapts to each student’s respective situation. Maintaining a positive attitude irrespective of who she works with, but knowing which kids to be tougher with, versus a more relaxed approach, in tackling their mindset is a part of the way Mrs. McNamara supports her athletes. Getting to know students and what they respond to is an effective tool in supporting their overall wellness.

Figure 3

Mac carrying one of her injured athletes out of Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

Photograph taken by Fiona Ryan, April 7, 2023.

To wrap it up, I asked her if she’s seen a change in the school’s approach to handling student’s mental health has evolved over the years, particularly within the athlete realm. She responded with a resounding: “Absolutely.” 

“We have more services than we did in the past, We have more people on staff than just one person to work with them. We make sure that they are okay, talk to them about what’s going on. There’s a mental health coach, a safe space, and broad range activities inside and outside the classroom [like the guest speakers who give kids a chance to see that they are not alone, there are others out there who understand them].” She noted that when she first started coaching Curtis High School did not get the same funds from the city that it does now. With that increase in funding, there has been a large improvement in the programs available to students.

Conclusion

In the conversation about mental health services in high schools, the spaces that people like Coach Mac create for students are invaluable to addressing mental health challenges students may face. Her office has seen each facet of a student’s life, from breakdowns to moments of success and joy. As Mrs. McNamara identified, sometimes students’ usage of services is not an issue of awareness, but something more. So, looking to the future, I question: if we can make sure services are available to students, what step do we take after that – how do we further support students in making use of those services? I think Coach Mac is on the right path to answering that question.

References

Ryan, F. (2022, March). Curtis High School [Photograph]. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1F3n7XKLl8EnvZzkd5HAQnEiQ9QoL3ofl/view?usp=sharing

Ryan, F. (2023, April 7). Mac carrying one of her injured athletes out of Sherri Parker Lee Stadium [Photograph]. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rh7sU-5QnSg50j63nBl-yzVKp1ZgNJR1/view?usp=sharing

Ryan, F., & McNamara-Giacona, M. (2023, April 25). Fiona Ryan and Meghan McNamara-Giacona, head varsity softball coach [Photograph]. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iJIBvYSPW7HI6xly5wMsbxGpYdKDMXaE/view?usp=sharing