Under the baobab: What do we want from our sports programs? Franklin’s firing leads to questions
James Franklin, the second winningest football coach in Penn State history, was fired in midseason. It was not a unique event.
The winningest coach in PSU history, in effect, the winningest coach in all of Division I college football, Joe Paterno, was also fired in midseason. Coquese Washington, three time Big Ten coach of the year in women’s basketball, was also unceremoniously terminated. These days in big time college sports you are expected to win it all or you are considered a loser.
Coach Paterno built Penn State football into a nationally recognized program. Washington rebuilt the women’s roundball team after troubles. So did Coach Franklin. All three of these coaches emphasized the importance of scholarship, integrity, teamwork and personal dignity while training young people. Paterno used to say there may be four or five members of a team who go on to the pros, but there will be a hundred who will go on in life.
We, as fans, teachers and parents must ask ourselves: Do we want athletic programs that prepare our children for life as they will live it or to learn to win at any cost? Franklin is one of the best young coaches in the country. He will land on his feet. His Herculean efforts rebuilt the reputation of our football team, while maintaining the integrity of the program. Thank you Coach Franklin, and Godspeed.
Around town
Coach Carolyn Kieger and the women’s basketball team kicked off the new season in historic Rec Hall, where they will be playing several games this season, with a blowout scrimmage. They scored more than 100 points against California University of Pennsylvania. Both the women’s and men’s team begin their regular season on Nov. 3.
The Paul Robeson Cultural Center sponsored the 17th annual Stoop performances in Lion’s Lair with poetry, song, and dance.
The Centre County Commissioners declared Oct. 24 United Nations Day, recognizing the UN’s mission of promoting peace, human rights and sustainable global development. The United Nations Association of Central Pennsylvania will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the founding of the UN by hosting a dinner and panel on Sunday. The panel theme is “The Hard Way Home: A Conversation about Global Migration,” and includes Storai Jalali, editorial assistant at the Penn Stater magazine and a women’s rights activist from Kabul, Afghanistan; Samuel Kolawole, assistant professor of English and African Studies at Penn State and author of “The Road to the Salt Sea,” and urban historian Andrew Sandoval-Strausz, director of Latina/o Studies at Penn State and author of “Barrio America: How Latino Immigrants Saved the American City.”
The State College Borough and the Community Diversity Group will host a Multicultural Unity Fair at the Municipal Building on Saturday from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
The School of Theatre presents “Crazy for You” at the Playhouse Theater, directed by Christine O’Grady, and choreographed by O’Grady and Michelle Dunleavy. Performances run from Oct. 24 until Nov. 1.
Jenee Mateer’s photographic exhibit “Entropy” opened at the Art Alley in the HUB and runs until Feb. 16.
On Saturday, Tempest Productions, with VanDance, will present the Edgar Allen Poe Crawl through downtown State College.
This is also Media Literacy Week. On Oct. 27, Media Literacy Day, the Penn State News Literacy Initiative in partnership with NAMLE, Poynter Institute and MediaWise are hosting a workshop/lecture from 9:30 a.m. to noon at the Bellisario Media Center.
Finally, the resistance continues. “No Kings,” the largest organized protest of its kind ever in the history of our country, attracted over 7 million people nationwide in 2,700 cities, towns and villages. Nearly 3,000 folks gathered on Old Main Lawn and marched through the Borough. The demonstration was peaceful, nonviolent and sometimes joyful. It was exhilarating to realize that we are not alone. Thompson Tuesdays continues at Congressman GT Thompson’s Bellefonte office. Candles for Peace at the Allen Street Gate is on Mondays from 5-5:30 p.m. Ubuntu!
Charles Dumas is a lifelong political activist, a professor emeritus from Penn State, and was the Democratic Party’s nominee for the U.S. Congress in 2012. He is a Lions Paw honoree. He lives in State College with his wife and partner of over 50 years.