With the 2020-2021 OCAA season at a standstill, the Mountaineers had to get creative to keep athletes engaged during the school year while continuing to help them grow as athletes, student leaders and human beings.
One of the solutions came in the form of the Mountaineers Student Athlete Leadership Program (MSALP). This program gives student-athletes the ability to interact with leaders in the community and sports world. The MSALP consisted of two components: a Speaker Series and an Education Series.
The Speaker Series focused on having our student-athletes engage with prominent figures in sport and life, including successful Mountaineers Alumni. In contrast, the Education Series focused on equipping student-athletes with tools that assist in navigating important societal issues.
Michael Kong, a fourth-year Men's Volleyball player, says the MSALP was important to the athletes to keep the sense of community during a year in which they couldn't assemble in person.
"The MSALP series proved that our athletic program understands how impactful the pandemic has been on the mental health and well-being of athletes. It was amazing to see how eager Mohawk Athletics was to support athletes through these tough times," explains Kong. "The MSALP allowed us to better ourselves even in the absence of physical training."
It was important to the Athletic Department to keep that sense of community for the athletes but the MSALP proved to provide far more than that. The program puts an emphasis on development of life and leadership skills both on and off the court, preparing each Mountaineer athlete to be Future Ready.
Some highlights from the Speaker Series were Mountaineers alumni Manny Campbell and Chris Spack, as well as Hamilton Tiger Cats head coach Orlondo Steinauer and Rachel Balkovec, a hitting coach for the New York Yankees who has been breaking barriers in baseball for years.
Mihai Raducanu was an integral piece of the MSALP, serving as a Program Advisor. A Hamiltonian, Raducanu is a successful sports business entrepreneur. He is distinguished in the sports leadership landscape in addition to being an internationally acclaimed basketball trainer. He delivered sessions to open and close the Speaker Series.
The Education Series collaborated with several prominent Mohawk figures such as Sean Connors, Lara Hof, Nicholas Petrella and Sean Sydor. The focus of these important conversations included mental health education, gender-based violence education, female empowerment and male allyship training.
The mental health education and surrounding conversations were a huge priority for the MSALP. First-year Men's Soccer athlete Epiphane Ahouo says it was the perfect environment to tackle such an important topic.
"I believe mental health was one of the most important topics on the Education Series," says Ahouo, a Brampton native. "Creating an awareness and support from everyone from the top to the bottom of the school is huge for us and also providing a safe space and environment to be able to share some challenges we are facing in our daily life. We are grateful for everyone who cares about our well-being."
The Mountaineers program took a leap forward this year in creating a culture led by podium relevance, student-athlete academic success, community engagement and leadership development. The MSALP was an important piece in creating that culture and unity within the program.
We believe the MSALP will continue to be a driving force in molding student-athletes who can also succeed in the classroom, in the community and in life after Mohawk.
Click here and take a look at the entire lineup of guests that joined us during the 2020-2021 MSALP.
