Every passerby in the

halls hears the moaning and

griping about the staggering

workload, but how many

complaints are only to let off

steam and how many prove

true in reality? On Aug. 31,

after listening to tales of late

nights and insurmountable

homework loads from her

Varsity Volleyball players,

Coach Shari Sakamoto decided

to spend the day

sitting in on classes.

“I kind of knew

what the girls had told

me, that it was intense,”

Sakamoto said. She

insists that to run her

program well, she has

to be aware of the other

aspects of the athletes’

lives. “I believe

in balance, quality over

quantity on both sides,

academics and athletics,”

she said.

As for the day

spent in classes, Sakamoto

said she found it “draining,

both mentally and physically.

You never know until you

live it, a whole day of seven

classes.” With a better sense

of the girls’ academic lives,

she said she can now build a

more balanced program.

Varsity Volleyball player

Catherine  ’14 said

she appreciates the effort.

“[Sakamoto] came on her

day off. She’s pretty considerate

when it comes to making

it easier,” Catherine said, adding

that Sakamoto, with her newfound

knowledge, makes it a

point to end practice a little

earlier to ease the stress level,

especially for those who have

to make a long commute after

late-night practices.

Fellow Varsity Volleyball

player Anya

’13 also

values Sakamoto’s concern.

“None of my coaches

have done that before. She’s

very conscientious of our

workload.”

Athletic Director David

Collicutt said he highly recommends

coaches take the extra

step and immerse themselves

in the students’ world. “When

we hire a coach, most of them

have not worked at a

School like ours,” he

said. “It’s different in

culture.”

After a day of

witnessing the AP

courses and dialogue

between

teachers and students,

Sakamoto assesses

that Marlborough

“has very high

standards, [and] it

sticks to its standards,

and not many

schools do that.”