TOWAMENCIN – Sometimes when we walk through North Penn’s halls, it’s difficult to picture our lives twenty years into the future. Success is something we all want to achieve, but often the road to achieving it can be difficult to navigate. That’s why on Friday, October 9, Patricia Henry, a 1967 North Penn graduate herself, was invited back to share her message with current North Penn students during a third period assembly. She is currently the Senior Associate Athletic Director at Harvard University and this year’s recipient of the North Penn Athletic Alumni Association Lifetime Achievement Award.

“All that we talk about today is really not about athletics,” Henry began, immediately opening up her presentation beyond the athletes in attendance, “it’s about lessons that have been learned and principles that can be carried across and applicable to any of you that are sitting here today.”

She went on to break down collegiate sports into two levels: the business model and the education model. The business model takes a high amount of interest in the number of wins a team has, the ability of the player, and things of that nature. But Henry claimed to resonate with the education model, the part of collegiate sports that deals with the athletes themselves. She supports the idea of coaches as educators, dedicated people who are concerned not only about the win but also about helping their players grow as people and athletes. The teachers who coach have a unique understanding of the word ‘success,’ and it’s why Henry has worked with them for so long.

Success, failure, success is a chain of events with which most students, whether athletically or academically, are extremely familiar. Henry explained how coaches and teachers understand that the two ideas are intertwined, that though most of us may strive only for success, failure is just as necessary in the learning process.

“They really work together because they support one another,” Henry said. “You will become more successful and grow in your life as you take a look at your failures – look at them in the eye – admit your responsibility in the whole thing, and move forward.”

She shared the life story of Isaiah Kacyvenski, a Harvard graduate and retired member of the Seattle Seahawks whose past certainly did not speak of the privilege some may associate with Ivy League students. But what he lacked for financially, he made up for in personality. She described him as the embodiment of resilience and accountability, two factors that are primarily responsible for success.

“Those people who have resilience, the active rebounding and springing back, you’re going to meet adversity throughout your life. You’re going to meet it in school, you’re going to meet it in your relationships, you’re going to meet it in sports… you’re going to meet it everywhere. For those athletic teams that are successful, they’re the ones that have the most resilient kids.”

“The other thing that coaches mentioned for athletes’ success is accountability,” she continued. “Being responsible for answering to yourself, to your teammates, to your teachers, to your parents – owning every single thing you do and not blaming it on other people – is a huge lesson in life to learn… When you own your mistakes, you empower yourself to be able to move forward from success to failure back to success, and that’s how you’re able to grow.”

But even resilience and accountability can only take people so far. Students and athletes must be aware of how they present themselves both in school and out, on the field and off it. High school is the time when kids begin to build their reputations – online or in person – and because of social media, they’re on display for anyone to see.

“Whatever you’re going to be doing next in your lives, whether you want to get a job, go to college… you’ve got to prepare,” Henry warned. “When the opportunity comes along, and you’re not prepared, the opportunity actually isn’t going to be there for you.”

Much of that preparation can be done through all the social media outlets that teens are already familiar with. Whether or not we care to acknowledge it, colleges and coaches can be counted on to do their research to find out just whom they are accepting. Every day students “build their brand” when they post about what goes on in their lives. To present ourselves in the best light is to know that our audience isn’t limited to friends and family.

“How other people perceive you, at some point in your life, that’s going to be really important,” Henry insisted. Our digital footprints are the modern day paper trails of the people we were, to the people we are, to the people we eventually want to be. Nothing is private when written on the Internet, but this fact isn’t meant to intimidate. Henry brought along Harvard level statistics that showed 79% of coaches believe social media to be a positive factor in recruitment. On the other hand, 80% of coaches have also received negative impressions from potential players.

“If you want people to know who you are, put those topics of interest out there,” advised Henry. “Be of value, be accurate, be respectful, and be a cheerleader, which means there isn’t a place for negativity.”

Despite being pressed for time, Henry also managed to quickly review the college application process, reminding students to consider not only their major but also the institutional fit as they make their decisions in the next few months.

“This is why I’m still doing what I’m doing,” she concluded, pleased to have coached the audience through success and to have taught them how to get there.