When Molly Tomlinson, assistant athletic director at Deerfield, reflected on being hired as Glenbrook North’s first female athletic director, the first word that came to mind was “pride.”
“I’m very proud,” said Tomlinson. “I think it’s hopefully a position where I can motivate and inspire not only female athletes and coaches, but male athletes and coaches too. I’ve got two sons, nine and six years old, and it’s cool for them to see Mom transitioning into this role, and being the first is pretty neat.”
Tomlinson will betaking over for John Catalano, assistant principal of athletics at GBN, who is retiring this year.
“When I got hired, I think I said it was the best job in the school building,” said Catalano. “And I still think that. So I think once [Tomlinson] gets adjusted and kind of learns the ropes of GBN, she’ll enjoy it a great deal.”
During the hiring process, Tomlinson presented a five-year plan, which included intentions to celebrate student-athletes through state send-offs, recognizing seniors and appreciating athletes who go above and beyond both in the classroom and as teammates, she said.
“Maybethat’s[accomplished] throughmore of a social media presence, or maybe that’s through some student internships that I’ve really been eager to look into starting because students know social media like the back of their hand,” said Tomlinson. “So I think just figuring out how we can tap into the expertise of everybody here, including thestudent-athletes, is something I’m very eager to begin.”
Tomlinson also wants toincrease communicationbetween the athletics department and the community, she said.
“[Making sure the community knows] what we’re hosting every week, they know when our teams win conference and when we make the playoffs and we’re sent to state, all those positive things,” said Tomlinson. “And the things off the field, too. Are there community service things that are going on within our programs that we canhighlight? I think it’s important to keep everyone connected.”
Junior Jenna Cheung and a group of GBN athletes got to meet Tomlinsonat the EmpowerHer conference Tomlinson hosted at Deerfield in February.
“We said hi to her, and as soon as she found out that we were from GBN, she was super happy and energetic and she gave us all hugs,” Cheung said.
The EmpowerHer conference included guest speakers, breakout sessions and vendor stations.
Tomlinson created the conference to bring female athletes together and give them tools to succeed, including resources for continuing their athletic careers after high school, increasingtheir self-confidence and educating them on nutrition, she said.
Tomlinson helped start the flag football program at Deerfield, which did not exist when she attended high school there.
“I played three sports pretty much consistently, even through high school, all four years, basketball, volleyball and softball,” said Tomlinson. “I wonder if I would have played flag if it existed.”
Tomlinson coached those three sports at Grayslake North before becomingthe assistant athletic director atDeerfield.
“I’ve enjoyed the opportunities and the exposure to athletic administration, and I think [that] experience really has just set me up for this excitement I have to be the head of the department here at GBN,” Tomlinson said.