This season, an impressive high of 62 percent of the Castilleja Student Body is participating in fall sports.
Behind the scenes, ensuring every team runs seamlessly, is Sara Shaughnessy, Castilleja’s new Director of Athletics. Overseeing both Middle and Upper School sports, Shaughnessy views the involvement in sports as an extension beyond the classroom, filled with life lessons of collaboration, goal setting and leadership.
Shaughnessy previously worked in the athletics department at the International School of San Francisco for 13 years before joining Castilleja. Shaughnessy was immediately drawn to the sisterhood and supportive nature of Casti teammates, which she hadn’t seen “on my girls’ teams at my other schools.”
Shaughnessy explained that the majority of Casti students feel empowered to join a sports team, even if it’s not their top priority.
With just a season in, Shaughnessy has already made an impact on Castilleja’s athletics program. Shaughnessy has introduced the “Captain’s Council,” a space for all seasonal junior varsity and varsity sport captains to collaborate and develop their leadership skills.
In these bimonthly Captain’s Council meetings, Shaughnessy organizes topics of discussion such as nutrition intake, goal setting and structural feedback. Shaughnessy explained how often student leaders are appointed the title of “captain” with minimal guidance in non-technical leadership. But amidst the busyness of the athletic season, Shaughnessy aims to create space for conversation between students and the athletic department.
Notably, one of the many honors and privileges of being a Senior at Castilleja is being celebrated at Sports Senior Night. However, Shaugnessy raised concerns about past inconsistencies among Senior Nights across the different sports. As a result, Shaughnessy has initiated a shift away from additional purchased gifts for Senior athletes and instead towards handmade presents on top of the typical school-provided poster, picture frame and bouquet.
The future policy of team retreats also remains unclear as Shaughnessy seeks to eliminate inequity across different sports. Shaughnessy appreciates the team bonding aspect of retreats, especially those at the beginning of a season, as they help integrate new team members and build team traditions. However, she acknowledges that organizing retreats is a significant commitment for coaches and staff, often requiring time away from their families. “Retreats are a big investment,” she said. “It’s not something that we take lightly.”
If done right, Shaughnessy sees sport retreats as “something so beautiful and so wonderful.” As for now, Shaughnessy continues to collect data encompassing a wider spectrum of people’s experiences to redefine the expectations surrounding Senior Nights and Sports Retreats, aligning them more consistently across all sports at Castilleja.
Shaughnessy was born into a sports household: From early morning ESPN on the television to dinner table conversations, sports made up a large part of her childhood. Playing competitive volleyball, cross country and track taught her to be intrinsically motivated and set goals: “It’s just you against the clock a lot of the time,” she said. “With volleyball, it really is such a collaborative sport that you are put in situations where you have to work with people who get things done differently than you, but you all have the same goal.”
Outside of leading Castilleja’s Athletics Department, Shaughnessy is a devoted mom of two boys, ages 1 and 4. Taking after their mother, her young kids are already exploring the world of sports, enjoying gymnastics and swimming.
When asked about a sport she has never tried but wants to, Shaughnessy picked golf. She recalls loving Topgolf and the possibility of “pick[ing it] up here [at Casti] and in the next phase of my life.”
Shaughnessy gives the Castilleja community one piece of advice: Focus on the small, everyday wins, rather than the big outcomes or goals. She encourages all student-athletes to acknowledge and “be proud of all of their progress throughout an entire season.”
Ultimately, Shaughnessy believes that the league records or state scoreboard is something students are “probably not going to remember.” Rather, she emphasizes that the most memorable moments of high school sports will be “playing and achieving things with their best friends.”
When Shaughnessy reflects back on her own sports career, her happiest moments come from the pockets of joy in team dinners, the bus rides to tournaments and meaningful team traditions. As the new Director of Athletics, Shaugnessy brings that same positive leadership and sense of community to Castilleja.
