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Audrey Graham

Brian Strong begins the event. For the morning shift, all middle school girls either walked or were bussed over to McHale, where they were met with the panelists and event organizers.

On Feb. 4, Athletic Director Brian Strong invited all girls grades 6-8 to gather in McHale from 9-10:30 a.m., and all girls grades 9-12 gathered in McHale from 12:45 to 2:10 p.m. This convocation focused on both girls’ athletics and school involvement. There was a panel of four guests for the high schoolers and five for the middle schoolers. Considering that almost all girls in LCSC had to miss an hour and a half of school, there were some mixed reviews on the event.

“The genesis of this idea was created when I found out at a conference I attended that women are paid 84 cents on a $1 compared to their male counterparts in that same position,” Strong said. “It struck me that athletics and extracurriculars could play a role in closing that gap. Young ladies are taught soft skills in athletics such as teamwork, overcoming adversity, and time management to name a few. They also develop confidence, and I hope these skills can help them one day to approach a future employer and articulate why they would deserve a pay raise and be paid by their worth and not their gender. My goal was to show the value of athletics and promote to all females in grades 6-12 why it is so important to be involved in all activities.”