Finding His Way Back to East Hampton

It doesn’t always work out this way, where someone earnings to learn during a high propagandize they graduated from.

That is what happened to Parker Strong, however. The Class of 2000 connoisseur of East Hampton High School returned in Mar as a long-term substitute, afterwards a full-time member of a expertise training Algebra, Trigonometry and Probability and Statistics. It was where he wanted to be, and from there his 2011 usually got improved – a lot better.

“It’s been a good year. Thankfully married my wife. Able to come behind to where I’m from … we don’t know if we can pull it adult any better,” Strong said. “I have no complaints. we am unequivocally happy where we am. When we went to college it was ‘I wish to learn here’ and ‘I wish to manager here,’ yet we accepted that wasn’t unequivocally realistic. That’s not how it always works. we feel sanctified to be in this situation. Thankfully we held a break, was means to come home, means to stay on house as a teacher. Talk about ideal timing for me, a basketball pursuit opens adult as shortly as we get here.”

Strong played for a Bellringers, assisting them to a 13-7 record his comparison year. When a conduct coaching position for a boys’ basketball group non-stop up, he was hired over several other candidates.

Before a finish of a propagandize year, Strong had been hired as a clergyman and coach, yet a highway behind to East Hampton did have a twists and turns.

Strong went to executive Connecticut State University to investigate Actuarial Science, yet switched majors to Physical Education, graduating in 2006.

“Actuarial Science was high modernized math and we suffer doing that stuff,” he said. “Being a math clergyman was kind of healthy for me. It was always math and PE. we finished adult selecting PE first. Honestly it was close. we wasn’t unequivocally certain that one we wanted.”

His initial training pursuit was during Har-Bur Middle School in Burlington, yet after 3 years, that doubt between math and PE began to take reason again.

First, Strong looked into coaching basketball during a college level, looking to see if he could land a connoisseur partner job. It was an eagerness he indispensable to scratch. When it did not vessel out, he left Har-Bur in 2009 and went behind to propagandize to get cross-endorsed in Mathematics.

Whether as a manager or teacher, wanting to work with immature people was something he never wavered from.

“I’ve always favourite operative with kids,” Strong said. “I worked a lot during summer camps where we was a girl counselor. So, operative with kids was kind of natural. we always did good in math category and a lot of teachers told me to be a math teacher. It’s kind of humorous how that incited out. “

While operative on removing approved as a compare teacher, Strong landed his initial high propagandize conduct coaching pursuit as a girls’ basketball manager during Housatonic Valley Regional in Falls Village. He led a Mountaineers to uninterrupted 10-10 unchanging seasons in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

During his brief time there, his girls did yield some noted moments, including holding Portland into overtime in a initial spin of a 2010 Class S tournament. The Highlanders prevailed and went on to play in a championship game.

“We were unequivocally happy with how we played that day,” Strong said. “I got propitious shaped on scheduling. we was means to see them play in a Shoreline tournament. So, we had a good review on what they wanted to do. We gave them a genuine run. We had a lead in overtime, yet we couldn’t reason on.”

That wasn’t his many noted game, however.

“My initial diversion we mislaid by 27 to Nonnewaug and afterwards after in a year we finished adult violence them [45-39]. If we had to collect one game, it would substantially be that one given they were so many improved than we were,” Strong said. “We continued to urge and by diversion 9 or 10 we played them again and dissapoint them. They had dual All-Leagues and a third child that was equivocal and we only had one. We only executed unequivocally good that day and took caring of a basketball. It was an implausible diversion given we weren’t unequivocally ostensible to stay close.”

Certified in math, Strong began a 2010-11 propagandize year as a math training partner during Conard High School in West Hartford. It was while he was there that he found out about a long-term surrogate training position accessible in a math dialect during East Hampton. The rest, as they say, is history.

“I finished adult cross-endorsing in math and thankfully I’m here, behind home,” he said.

A new pursuit can exam anyone’s nerves, yet a fact it was informed vicinity authorised Strong to quick adjust.

“At initial we was a small shaken about it,” he said. “There are copiousness of teachers that were here when we was a student. I’m informed with a whole school. we unequivocally suffer being in town. we know some of a students’ family members from when we was in school. If we could learn anywhere, I’d rather learn here. It’s a comfort zone. And we unequivocally suffer being here.”

Among a hurdles when he initial arrived was holding over classes in March.

“The kids were great,” Strong said. “They were vehement to learn, that was good for me given we missed a lot of stuff. So, we came in and we went right during it and a kids were with me. we was grateful for that. They were peaceful to get to work instead of perplexing to seashore a rest of a year. That finished my pursuit easier that they wanted to be concerned and work with me.”

It was also a assistance that a expertise was there to support with his transition.

“The teachers were unequivocally warm, usurpation and helping,” Strong said. “A lot of them knew me, some of them didn’t. There was a lot of people who helped me. Sherry Banack did a good job. Laura Martin in a math department. They were unequivocally useful removing me started.”

It helped, too, that Strong had dual other Class of 2000 graduates on a training staff, Jared Demick and Karen Oliva.

“I’ve famous Jared and Karen perpetually almost,” he said. “Working with them has been great. It creates things a lot easier when we have expertise operative together instead of shying divided from any other. We have unequivocally good expertise dignified and togetherness and assistance any other out. That always creates work a lot some-more beguiling when we have people operative together.”

The surrogate position, combined when a clergyman in a math dialect left, supposing Strong with an event he was means to spin into a full-time position.

“I’m unequivocally happy to have Parker on board,” Principal John Fidler said. “I coached him approach behind in a day when we was coaching and he was in a program. It’s always good to see somebody come behind home and wanting to give behind to a community. He’s finished a good pursuit as a math clergyman for us. Very vehement about a theme and kids unequivocally report to him.”

To a indicate where Strong has quick determined himself as a “popular” teacher, yet he won’t use that word to report himself.

“I don’t know that we would go that far,” Strong said. “I have problem observant that. we consider we have a lot of kids who can report to me and we have good relations with kids. we have shaped a lot of good relations with a lot of opposite kids and I’m happy to be means to assistance them grow and that’s given we wanted to be a teacher. You wish to assistance kids grow into a peculiarity adult. Coaching goes along with that, too. We’ve already had a few opposite group manners damaged and we’ve had to postpone kids for opposite amounts of time. I’m anticipating a kids are removing a summary that they have to act scrupulously in propagandize and out of propagandize and what they do reflects on everybody on a team. We’re anticipating to learn those ethics with a team. That’s what we wish we execute when we learn and when I’m around school, that we should do things a right way. That we should honour to your elders, and honour to your teachers and honour to a students and that’s what we try and do when I’m in school.”

His players, though, don’t mind regulating a word renouned to report Strong, during slightest those who have had him as a teacher.

“He’s an easy-going guy, easy to get along with,” Spencer Daly, a senior, said. “You only know he cares, though him even revelation you. He’s a good guy.”

Sophomore Colin Parks had a somewhat opposite explanation.

“I consider it’s given he’s immature and fun to be around,” he said. “He knows what kids like and stuff.”

Whether he’s training X’s and Y’s in a Algebra classroom or X’s and O’s on a court, there is no denying a kids do report to him.

Just as his youth, Strong is 29, competence be a reason for his ability to report to a students, it also was a offered indicate when he practical for a boys’ basketball coaching position.

“I felt Parker had a good brew of enthusiasm, energy,” Athletic Director Shaun Russell said. “I consider he had some sundry practice in his credentials – he’s been a high propagandize beginner coach, a high propagandize JV manager a high propagandize varsity coach. we suspicion that as a immature coach, this would be a good fit for him with a group he could grow with. We suspicion he was a right man for a pursuit and we am anticipating we finished a good 10-year decision. We feel unequivocally good about a event for his ability to build a module and his longevity to stay in a program, and I’d contend those were dual of a many poignant factors in us creation a decision.”

Strong was a East Hampton boys’ Junior Varsity manager in 2003-05 while he attended Central. Also while during Central, he was a group manager in a 2001-02 season, earning a ring when a group won a Northeast Conference tournament.

”That’s where we schooled a lot of my details and outs we theory we could say, with Coach [Howie] Dickenman,” Strong said. “So that’s how we started out flourishing in a coaching ranks. … we schooled so many from Coach D. To lay on a dais and examination what they’re looking during and what they see, and fasten mangle down, and scouting, we learn so many and it was a lot of fun.”

Strong’s initial sequence of business as a boys’ basketball manager is to change a enlightenment around a program. The group has not won 13 games given Strong’s comparison deteriorate in 1999-2000 and has not had a winning record given 2000-01.

“That’s what we’re anticipating to change, earlier than later,” Strong said. “I still feel unequivocally good about my team. Even yet we’ve had some tough spots … there’s going to be a day where we spin that corner. We consider once we spin that dilemma we could take off and we’re anticipating to do that soon.”

Fidler, who coached those winning teams, thinks Strong competence be a one to get things incited around.

“Very ardent about basketball,” he said. “We had a good opening diversion opposite Cromwell that people kind of counted us out of, yet he never gave adult on a group and a group never let adult and fought back. He’s unequivocally got them personification a fast, concerned diversion of basketball where they have to know a game, conflict to a diversion and know a game. We’re unequivocally happy with him in a classroom and what’s function on a court.”

Three games into a deteriorate a Bellringers are 0-3, display glimpses of what a group could be. Strong is optimistic, yet honest about what a group needs to do to comprehend a potential.

“We have things to work on,” he said. “I’ve been flattering happy for a many partial with a offense. we consider will be means to measure on many teams. We have a lot of descent talent with [Matt] Vasquenza and we got [Kyle] Adams and [Jeff] Pratt on a inside and we have a lot of three-point shooters on a wings. We don’t have any passed spots, where we have to play 4-on-5. What a deteriorate is gojng to come down to is either we can urge anybody. As confident as we am, it’s all going to be tangible by a invulnerability and rebounding. If we can get stops, we have a larger possibility to win a lot of games.

As if removing a training position he always wanted, not to discuss being named a boys’ basketball manager during a same propagandize wasn’t adequate good news for one year, Strong recently became a husband. Strong married Alicia McCain on Dec. 17. The new integrate will take their honeymoon this week, definition Strong will have to skip Thursday’s game.

“I have been unequivocally grateful with a administration and Coach Russell being unequivocally understanding of my blank time for a marriage and honeymoon,” he said. “They’ve been unequivocally supportive.”

With a year like 2011, what can Strong presumably wish to accomplish in 2012?

“Get some wins,” he said.