Calling All
Good Sports

The PEA Summer Sports School Program offers weeklong programs for boys and girls, ages 10 to 17, in soccer, ice hockey and basketball. Overseeing the programs are Dan Morrissey (right), director of summer athletics, and Elaine White (left), assistant to the director.

Daniel J. Morrissey, who joined the department of physical education in 1994 as an athletic trainer, is preparing for his first season as director of the summer athletics, supported by longtime assistant to the director Elaine White. The Academy's Summer Sports School Program has honed the athletic skills of thousands of young soccer, hockey and basketball players since the programs began as sports camps in 1970. Designed for young athletes, ages 10 to17, the weeklong programs begin July 8 and offer three separate practice sessions a day under the watchful eyes of experienced coaches, teachers and physical educators.

Administrating the programs requires the all-around skills Morrissey has demonstrated with such proficiency. He is Exeter's strength and conditioning coordinator, as well as a physical education instructor. Six years ago, he was named associate dean of the Exeter Summer School, where his specific assignments included discipline, attendance and residential curriculum initiatives. He is, as well, resident faculty in Bancroft Hall during the regular session.

Morrissey's plans for the summer athletic programs follow the prescript of his predecessor, Alan Estey, who viewed the summer sports programs "as a classroom with a mission to develop thletic talent, provide a knowledge of the game and promote an awareness of teamwork." The Academy's fine facilities and professional-level coaching staff support this philosophy and keep participants returning summer after summer. Because the programs are often a youngster's introduction to living away from home, Morrissey wants "to continue to strengthen the curriculum while ensuring that residential life is as strong as it can be."

In 2000, the summer programs enrolled 1,300 young athletes,
619 of whom were ice hockey players. A third of these were boys or girls back for a second, third or fourth time. For information about the sports programs and for applications, click here for the Exeter Summer Athletic Program website .

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