Though no longer a classroom teacher, Latonya Salley-Sharif, M.Ed., can often be found walking the halls of Nazareth Prep, connecting with the students she serves as Director of Athletics at the independent, Catholic high school. She also is an advisor to seniors where she supports their post-secondary planning. Since assuming the position three years ago, just a year after the school opened, she has worked to ensure that the athletics department offers enriching opportunities for all students.
As the only African American woman in charge of athletics at a co-ed independent school in the region, Salley-Sharif is a pathbreaker, and she’s made sure that her department is as well. While most other schools of its size have small athletics departments or none at all, Nazareth Prep now offers students a substantial and growing variety of ways to experience the benefits of team sports. When Salley-Sharif arrived, the school had three sports and four teams. Now it boasts eight sports and 10 teams.
Nazareth Prep’s current athletic offerings, which adhere to a no-cut, all-play policy, consist of cross country (boys and girls), golf, football (through a cooperative sponsorship with Cornell High School), basketball (boys and girls), cheerleading, bowling (boys and girls) and baseball. Under Salley-Sharif’s leadership, the school has also become a member of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) and the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL).
A former Division I scholar-athlete and coach, Salley-Sharif aims to connect the student-athletes at Nazareth Prep with opportunities in collegiate sports. “In our first graduating class, we had two students who now play collegiate football, and because of their athletic participation and ability to maintain our high academic standards, they earned financial support,” she says.
She also notes that the school currently has two players who compete in Division III football and that the boys’ basketball team made the WPIAL playoffs within two years of joining the league. There have been subtler victories as well. Salley-Sharif points out that introducing bowling has brought football players, golfers and students who would never consider themselves “athletic” together in support of one another—and that support has blossomed into friendship.
“The students of Nazareth Prep have found a common ground in athletics and have taken the time to appreciate the person in the corner of the classroom working alone as much as they appreciate the three-sport athlete.”
As the athletics program continues to grow, Salley-Sharif is working toward increased participation, especially among girls. She also hopes to enhance support for student-athletes striving to participate in, and receive financial aid for, collegiate sports. Additionally, she would like to build connections between athletics and the school’s physical education and fitness curriculum, to encourage a lifelong enthusiasm for healthful physical activity among all Nazareth Prep students.
“I’m dedicated to building a legacy of confidence, a legacy of overcoming, a legacy of loving who you are and fully accepting people for who they are,” Salley-Sharif says.
Enrollment for the 2019/20 school year is now open.
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