All Around Pennsauken

By Frank Sinatra, AAP Editor

Billy Wright has spent 26 years in public education, serving as Pennsauken High School’s athletic director for almost 16 years. At the end of August, Wright is planning to retire, ending a significant career dedicated to students and the community.

Looking back on his career at Pennsauken High School, Wright spoke about several accomplishments he was particularly proud of, one of which was the updating of the school’s sport facilities.

“We have state-of-the-art facilities here,” explained Wright. “We’ve got a revamping of everything: new bleachers, new gym floor, new track twice times over. We have scoreboards on all the varsity fields. Our facilities are comparable to any other Group IV school. It took a collaborative effort from the Board of Education and the superintendent.”

Wright is also proud of his many coaches, some of which were recognized as Coach of the Year in South Jersey. “That’s a pretty good feeling, to know that you’ve helped nurture some young guys where they end up being recognized amongst their peers.”

Another important accomplishment was the formation of Pennsauken High School’s All Star Booster Club, a group of parents that work together for the benefit of the student athletes and coaches. In the six years the Booster Club has been in existence, the organization has presented over $25,000 in scholarships to Pennsauken High School student athletes. “That’s something we’re pretty proud of,” says Wright, who hopes that the new athletic director continues to be involved with the Boosters.

But the one thing Wright hasn’t focused on was wins and losses. He is proud of the over 20 conference titles, the Big Red football state championship, as well as several sectional titles. However, it’s more about instilling a sense of “Pennsauken Pride” when it comes to high school sports.

“What I attempted to do here when I took over as athletic director was to create an environment where there was a lot of pride from the coaching staff, the student athletes and ultimately the community,” says Wright, who feels that this sense of pride helps spur student involvement and creates a positive image of the high school’s athletic program throughout the community. “I think we’ve accomplished that, through the help of the School Board and the high school administration.”

Wright also spoke about conveying the important life lessons that sports offers young men and women in their formative years. “Our mantra is ‘citizenship.’ We’ve spoken that from day one,” explained Wright. “We tell the kids in every preseason speech that 30 years from now, they may not remember the name of their English or math teacher, but they’ll remember their coaches’ names and they’ll remember many of their teammates. They’ll remember the games and many of the lessons they’ve learned. What we’re teaching here is how to work hard, how to compete, how to win and lose with integrity, sportsmanship, and teamwork. Those are the lessons they learn out there in practice two hours every day and competition. We say that sports are an extension of the classroom and it’s important that they learn from their participation.”

At the end of the day, Wright sums up his experiences as an educator and athletic director in one word: service.

“I’ve always tried to work hard to benefit the kids of this community,” says Wright. “I’ve tried to come up with ideas to make things more positive so that kids would have a positive and memorable experience.”

“I have 46 coaches on the staff. They work for me, but ultimately, I work for the coaches,” adds Wright. “My job is to get them what they need to compete: uniforms, clean fields that are cut and taken care of. For the most part, they’ve gotten what they’ve wanted here. I provide them what they need to compete. You work for the coaches. You work for the kids. Because all of us are trying to come up with ideas to make this more positive in the community and across South Jersey. So your job is to take those ideas and run with it.”

Wright plans to stay active and focus on his running, as he is a national class runner and one of the top five runners in the country over the age of 60. An avid golfer, Wright also plans to go golfing on a daily basis. But his impending retirement is still somewhat bittersweet.

“I’m excited, but I’m a little sad to leave. I’m going to miss it.”

The entire staff of All Around Pennsauken would like to thank Billy for his editorial contributions to our paper and wishes him much success in the future.