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Kory Craighead named Merrol Hyde Athletic Director




Kory Craighead has accepted the role of Merrol Hyde Athletic Director. Craighead will still serve as the boys basketball coach. FILE

Kory Craighead has accepted the role of Merrol Hyde Athletic Director. Craighead will still serve as the boys basketball coach. FILE

Merrol Hyde boys basketball coach Kory Craighead has accepted an additional role in the school as he takes over Athletic Director duties.

Craighead replaces Will Duke, who will still teach at the school. 

I am excited about this new opportunity,” Craighead said. Rising to an administrative role was something that I expected to do at some point, and I think seeing the Merrol Hyde athletic programs grow over the last several years made the decision easy.” 

Craighead will now take on new challenges, but it will not be new to him. 

As a teacher, coach, and now Athletic Director, Craighead also oversees as lead chaperone of the schools 8th-grade class trip to Washington D.C. and serves on the PAIDEIA and Executive Committees at the school. 

Whenever you accept new responsibilities, you have to find a balance between work time and family time,” he said. All the old clichés of keeping work at the office are true. I will continue to work on keeping that balance while trying to create a new schedule for our new normal.”

The new normal as of now may include distant learning for the kids at Merrol Hyde, but the school will be prepared according to Craighead, who says he was very impressed with the schools ability to think on its feet this past March and beyond. 

We will have plan A through Z when it comes to what we can do, how we can do it, and where we can do it,” he said. We take in everything we hear from our leaders and use that to create our many different scenarios. I was very pleased with our effort this past school year in our digital learning, and I am confident in our ability to teach our kids even if that means they are not allowed on campus next year.”

Taking on the new administrative role has left Craighead thinking of other career moves on the administration side. 

That is possible, but I have come to the conclusion that I am pleased in the classroom and on the court,” he said. I do think this will give me a new opportunity and experience and show me the admin side of things to know so that I can do that if that is something I want to pursue later.” 

While Craighead takes on more responsibility, he says there is no need to worry that Athletic Director duties will cut into his time of preparing his basketball players. 

The longer you do something, you realize some things that used to take time to plan become more second nature,” he said. My daily schedule will change a little, but I will be able to balance that fairly quickly after getting used to it – especially after my first year.”

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