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AN UNEXPECTED PATH: MR. LEAHY REFLECTS ON A LIFETIME OF EDUCATING

Rushing in and out of meetings and oneon-ones every hour, advising teenage boys, and constantly taking phone calls is not what Bill Leahy was expecting his career to turn into “I grew up in Cockeysville, Maryland, which was the hotbed of youth lacrosse, so I just got lucky my dad said why don’t you go down and see what this is all about,” Leahy said When Bill was five years old, his father took him to the nearby sporting goods store, Bacharach Raisin Sports, to get his first lacrosse stick and quickly picked up the game he would fall in love with From his local public school to the prestigious Calvert Hall High School in Baltimore, Bill always loved playing lacrosse with his hometown and high school friends

After graduating high school, Mr Leahy attended Loyola University in Baltimore, Maryland, where he continued his lacrosse career Staying close to home was ideal, since Bill could stay in touch with family and friends

I didn’t know what I wanted to major in going into college, but I knew I wanted to be majoring in business after my freshman year So, I majored in marketing, and I had a minor in religion,” Leahy remarked

One day Bill went home to do laundry and visit his parents He was not expecting the conversation he would have that night At the time, the president of La Salle College High School, Brother Rene Sterner, was close friends with Bill’s parents and happened to be in Baltimore visiting While eating dinner, one conversation turned into another and eventually led to Brother asking Bill what his plans were At the time, Bill was working for Kodak Brother Sterner brought up the idea of Leahy teaching and coaching lacrosse at La Salle College High School in Philadelphia Bill explained that he would be graduating later than usual since he was taking an extra half year of courses Brother said that he could wait and that they would be in touch

“I forgot all about it, until eight months later, and my phone rang in my dorm, and it was Brother Rene ” Bill picked up the phone and Brother said, “Are you ready to move to Philadelphia?” Though he was terrified to leave Baltimore since it had been his hometown for twenty-two years, Mr Leahy took Brother up on his unexpected offer and using his minor in religion to his advantage, joined La Salle College High School as a religion teacher and head lacrosse coach in 1992

Living in a new area, Bill wanted to take advantage of opportunities that presented themselves In his first year in Philadelphia,

Mr Leahy decided to try out for the professional lacrosse team, The Philadelphia Wings During his first tryout, Bill played great “I don’t know who took over Bill Leahy’s body, but that guy was good,” Mr Leahy joked Unfortunately, the Wings informed him that he did not make the cut Bill tried out the next two years, and in 1994, he made the team under head coach Tony Resch, who would eventually become a colleague and friend of Bill’s at La Salle For three years, Mr Leahy weaved through defenses, shot the ball as hard as he could, and ran with the best players in the country It was a dream come true

Although it is a professional sport, lacrosse did not take up too much time This allowed Leahy to continue teaching and coaching at La Salle Over the next ten years, Bill would take classes at La Salle University for counseling and his MBA “Going from La Salle to taking graduate classes it seemed like I was always in school,” Bill said In 2004, he officially became a counselor and never looked back

As he developed into a fantastic counselor, Mr Leahy dominated the coaching sidelines

In his twenty-eight-year coaching career, he led five state champion teams in 2004, 2008, 2009, 2014, and 2019 Mr Leahy misses the game because of its team aspect They would win together and lose together, but under Coach Leahy, there were not many losses In 2016, Coach Leahy was selected to be an assistant coach for Team USA in the World Games in Vancouver Team USA went on to win a gold medal that year to which Coach Leahy says, “ was a fascinating part in the journey ”

Since his last year coaching in 2019, Mr Leahy has been inducted into the La Salle Hall of Fame for his prestigious coaching efforts while continuing to be an excellent role model for young men He is always available to chat and lend a helping hand From not knowing where his path was leading him to assisting over 290 teenage boys daily, one could say that things panned out perfectly for Bill All it took was one short phone call from Brother Rene and Mr Leahy found what he was passionate about Many people have Mr Leahy to thank while talking about their success He has left a lasting presence in the counseling center and left an imprint on La Salle history

-Matthew Millevoi '23

ROBOTICS PROGRAM’S 2023 SEASON BEGINS WITH HIGH EXPECTATIONS

Championship at Lehigh University in April Such competitions typically host “around 30 teams ” at the district level and “ over 60 teams ” at the regional level, Chris explained In past seasons, La Salle’s robotics program has seen great success, winning awards such as the FIRST® Impact Award, which recognizes robust robotics teams with “outstanding community involvement ”

The robotics team ' s success is not only due to its bot-building capacity, but also its business skills and commitment to education via service

Preparation for the team ’ s competitions, which spans from early March to April this season, is a “multifaceted” endeavor that takes weeks of “building, planning, and programming,” he added Members from every division of the team, “from the Software Team to the Public Relations Team,” dedicate hours of their schedules to perfecting every aspect of the team This commitment, however, is imperative considering the “rigorous” scrutiny the bots are subjected to during the judging process of each competition based on their performance in overcoming various obstacles

This season, within a time “constraint of only 8 weeks,” the team must develop a robot that can fulfill various tasks, from “picking up cones and cubes and placing them on certain nodes” to “balancing on a tilting platform with other robots ” In addition to drivercontrolled tasks bots must face certain challenges autonomously, relying solely on their own equipment and coding Each bot's performance lasts only “2 and a half minutes,” according to Chris, meaning a wasted second could mean the difference between first and second place Upcoming competitions include two district competitions at Hatboro Horsham High School and Springside Chestnut Hill Academy, both of which occur in March of this year If the team ranks highly at these competitions, it will advance to the Mid-Atlantic Regional

Chris added that the robotics team is recognized for its “exemplary commitment to STEM education” by “expanding access to science and technology” within the local community and abroad They have “created 18 robotics teams at local elementary schools and support programs in Kenya, Nicaragua, and Brazil,” recalls Chris, as it is part of the mission of De La Salle to provide “quality educational experiences” to everyone In addition to engaging in extensive service, the team has also secured sponsorships with 15 sponsors who allow us to purchase state of the art equipment and offer our members internships and real-world experience in business, engineering, and programming ” Commitment to service and business skills are “ core components ” of the team that have facilitated its success

Explorer Robotics looks forward to its season for the year of 2023 By “strategizing, building, programming, and practicing” and “providing quality, comprehensive robotics experiences to people from all backgrounds or circumstances,” Chris knows that the robotics program will continue to cultivate minds and contribute to communities worldwide, “distinguishing [itself] from the competition ”

-Jacob Crowell-Alvarez '24

OPPORTUNITIES WEREN'T HANDED TO HIM, HE CREATED THEM

It only took a bit of motivation and inherent intelligence Jason Jiang was determined to create a new life for himself

“I made the decision to attend La Salle, knowing that I would not fit in I was just a boy from Kensington who had seen the worst of poverty, gun violence, and drug abuse It is hard going through life constantly hearing a pop, seeing the disheveled and poorly dressed people on the street, and watching people close to you fall into the wrong crowd and fall victim to addiction Making the shift from an underprivileged school to a wealthy, private school was a big decision to make, but I was motivated to get my way out of the city and make a better life for myself ”

Jiang is a current sophomore at La Salle His glasses illuminate his face and make him stick out in a crowd His laugh and smile are contagious, and he can turn anyone ’ s day upside down with his positive mindset Frequently wearing his sport coat, Jason is always welldressed and ready to tackle the day

On the first day of freshman year, Jiang was welcomed by Brother James and Mr Fyke He had received the Buckley scholarship, which covers half the tuition at La Salle for students showing motivation, good grades in middle school, and good character, all of which Jason strongly attains He walked the halls during orientation and further explored the campus, realizing that he made the right choice Hearing the music from the music department and seeing the paintings in the art studio, he knew that he was going to be involved in many clubs and activities

“On the second day of school, I met with Mr Norman and told him of my interest in choir,” remarked Jason “I also told him about my desire to join small ensembles, and he was very welcoming and listened to my interests, placing me in the program fit for me ”

During the first week of classes, he met with his new teachers Mr Quinn, his math teacher, met with Jason after class to introduce himself From that point on Jason looked to him as a role model He inspired him to push himself and try his hardest

“Mr Quinn motivated me like no one else had before He held me accountable for my shortcomings yet congratulated me when I succeeded He is the reason why I developed such a hardworking and dedicated attitude towards school and school activities ”

When Jason went down to the cafeteria for the first time, he met the women who work for CulinArt They introduced themselves and talked to Jason, asking him about the activities he was involved in and how his time at La Salle had been going Jason never forgot their kindness

“I was nervous going to the Glaser Center for the first time The mob of people throughout made me feel like a needle in a haystack, yet the women were kind enough to take time out of their day to make sure I was welcomed ”

Later in the week, he reached out to Mr McCabe, eager to join the speech and debate team Jason describes how he felt approaching Mr McCabe:

“I was shaking, and my teeth were chattering I had never been so nervous in my life to talk to someone about joining the club I thought about everything that could go wrong if I did not make the right impression The sounds of students exiting their fourth period classes made it even more nerve-racking, and the world seemed like it was spinning ”

However, after a long conversation with Mr McCabe, Jason was on the invited to many competitions, including Princeton and Yale Jason was horizons quicker than he could have imagined because of the strong motivat terms of his grades, they were impeccable

“I work many, many more hours than most people on homework, projects, an sit in my room, bound by my four walls, from practically the time I get home go to bed Last year, I poured my heart and soul into my academic work belonged and could do great things I did not want to be viewed as a stereo boy from the city ”

His grades reflect his extremely hard work An A+ in Biology, Religion, Worl and Chorus are only where it starts In the cafeteria, while others were eat watching the television, and checking Snapchat, he intently focused on studyin he would get an A Others would criticize him for studying too much, bu accomplish his goal

“I still remember the time when a teacher came up to me in the cafeteria, tell and enjoy lunch,” said Jason “It let me know that I made the right decision Salle where I could thrive and explore the opportunities that I could carve for m Fast forward to late May of 2022 Jason finished with an astounding 4 2 G P perfect Ranked within the top percentage of the class, he exceeded his expecta He had done it He set his mind to branching out and making opportunitie that he could succeed

“I went into the summer feeling like I was on top of the world,” Jason proudly mentioned “My parents were so proud that I was able to accomplish my goal My parents, who immigrated from China, believe that I resemble what the American Dream stands for ” Jason has come such a far way from his freshman year He is widely known around the school by nearly everyone and is admired for what he has done Coming from a very poor neighborhood in Kensington, he was not set up for success early in life, and no one would have expected him to come this far It is a true underdog story of resilience and perseverance – one that shows that motivation and hard work will get one where they want to be in life

“La Salle is like a hobby for me because it lets me into a whole new world by learning different subjects, participating in many different clubs, and making relationships with new people There is no other place I would rather be than La Salle It has gifted me the opportunity to make a name for myself and succeed in life, something I have always dreamed of I am proof of being able to do what the La Salle motto says I can do: choose your path ”