Knightly News

At Episcopal, new traditions are sparking up left and right. From the All-school Eucharist to the Steam Knight and the lower school math tournament, the school continually creates new, meaningful ways to build community. One of the newer traditions, started last year by the Knights Football team, is Teacher Appreciation Night. Senior athletes are able to select a member of the faculty or staff to wear their number and be presented alongside them at the game. After football kicked it off, other teams started to have their own Teacher Appreciation Nights, and the tradition has continued to pick up steam this school year. Upwards of twenty faculty and staff members have been recognized so far this year alone. When talking to Athletic Director Brent Broussard, he said, “It is one of five nights I’ve told every coach we need to have.” 

As a student athlete, academics and athletics can sometimes feel like two separate islands. Each is important, but it takes commitment in the classroom to have the opportunity to compete. Even as the Athletic Director, Broussard recognizes that “education is our first priority.” Although wins and late-night practices can sometimes make us forget the real reason we come to school every day, our coaches recognize the importance of building well-rounded athletes. The truth is, these two areas work together to build a complete student.

I also spoke to Episcopal English teacher Melissa Easley about her experience representing soccer player Sadie Brien at her Teacher Appreciation Night. When asked how it felt to wear the athlete's number, she said, “The first word that came to mind is special.” This was Easley’s first time being chosen for the new tradition. “It feels like they see you,” she says when reflecting on the moments when Brien invited her. The English teacher remembers huddling up with her colleagues in the cold as they watched the first half of the Episcopal girls' soccer game. She says they smiled with excitement as they waited to be presented at halftime. The tradition has become a powerful way to connect two major pillars of the Episcopal community and has opened the door to further collaboration. 

Our teachers are part of the strong foundation that has been built at Episcopal. Not only do they teach us integral knowledge in subjects like math and English, but they also teach us how to manage our time. After-school activities are one of the biggest time consumers, but our teachers recognize how important they are to a student’s health and well-being. Our athletics are also a part of that same foundation. “It is always important to have traditions and moments to connect athletics and academics and show that they can enhance each other and not the other way around,” says Easley. “A strong athlete has support both athletically and academically.” 

The theme for this school year has been “Building Community”. Community is defined by a feeling of fellowship. To create this, we must continue to make space for different areas to overlap and share experiences. Teacher Appreciation Night does just that. 

Anne Bradley Ewing is a senior at Episcopal and is currently enrolled in an independent study in sports journalism. She aspires to be a sports broadcaster in the future. Alongside covering and writing on sports programs at Episcopal, she is also a member of the varsity soccer and volleyball teams. She recently found a passion for theater, which has influenced her desire to be behind the camera. Her primary goal in her writing is to help inform the Episcopal community about the behind-the-scenes aspects of sports at her school. 

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