Spring sports including baseball, softball, lacrosse, swimming, track, boys volleyball, boys golf and boys tennis begin on Monday, January 28th.  All student athletes must have a College Park Sports Engine Account and have completed our online registration on this site .  Registration requires a completed physical downloaded from the site and proof of insurance.  Students may not tryout for a spring sport until registration is completed and you receive notice of clearance from our Athletic Department.  If you have already received clearance for another sport at College Park this year you will not need to create a new clearance.  Just be sure to include your new spring sport on your current clearance following the directions on the registration page.  Coaches emails for our spring sports are included on the individual team pages. Thank you and have a great break!

Swim coach Monty Randall was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer in December of 2018. Since then, Monty's determination has shown everyone how serious he is about overcoming this obstacle.  Monty's parents, Matthew and Diane Randall, are both alternating taking time off work to ensure that Monty is able to get to his appointments, eat a healthy diet, and receives the care he needs.  Please help support Monty by visiting his Go Fund Me page here.

Young people learn a great deal from their participation in interscholastic athletics.  Lessons in sportsmanship, teamwork, competition and how to win and lose gracefully are an integral part of each team in our athletic program.  Athletics play an important part, too, in helping the individual student develop a healthy self-concept as well as a healthy body.  Athletic competition adds to our school spirit and helps all students – spectators as well as participants – develop pride in their school and maximize individual potential.

The MDUSD Governing Board recognizes that the district’s athletic program constitutes an integral component of the educational program and helps to build a positive school climate. The athletic program helps also to promote the physical, social, and emotional well-being and character development of participating students. Within the District's financial and personnel constraints, the athletic program shall be designed to meet students' interests and abilities and shall be varied in scope to ensure wide participation.

Participation is a privilege, not entitlement, and student athletes are expected to represent themselves, their team, school, family and community in a manner that demonstrates the highest standard of conduct, academic achievement and commitment to their fellow students.

The Mission of College Park Athletics is to provide a fun, challenging, and safe environment, where students athletes may work hand in hand with the coaching staff to learn and achieve their goals in their sport, classroom and in life.  With input from coaches, teachers, parents, school staff and the community we will build on College Park’s successes of the past as we strive to produce strong young adults who exhibit character, intelligence, and the ability to contribute to our community now and in the future.
 
Our Vision for College Park Athletics is to create quality programs for our student-athletes, with knowledgeable, caring coaches and exceptional facilities.  Our programs will instill pride in our school, respect within our community, and continue our tradition of Courage, Pride, Honor, and Sacrifice.

29th Annual Crab Feed February 2, 2019.

Beat the lines, purchase your tickets for Football and Basketball here.

It Has Been A Year
A year has gone by and looking back, it has exceeded all expectations by far! It seems like a lifetime ago, but last year on January 10 we were mostly concerned with these top three items:
• Breathing
• Talking
• Eating
Thankfully, Ryan has checked those items off his list and is now working hard on the mechanics of walking. As strength and signals return, things just get easier. Perfect? Nope, but improving every day!

What’s Next?
More Therapy! 
Specifically, Ryan is strengthening his glute medes (part of the gluteal muscle family) that will help to flex and rotate the hip, which is a major part of walking. Most days you can see Ryan walking barefoot in the therapy corridors using a variety of walking aids including platform walkers, regular walkers and even using a shopping cart some days for stability. Each method challenges him in a different way, and his therapists use a variety of methods to assist with getting each step right. Some days he might be walking with electrical stimulation to give his muscles cues or he may have just had a “dry needling” session to relieve/reduce muscle tension/tone in his legs or core to get a better response to therapy. Ryan is also working on finger flexibility and getting his hands and fingers to work better. He has some movement, but more movement is always helpful. All the little improvements lead to the larger ones. In addition to the physical aspects of this injury, we have learned that attitude is everything, and Ryan remains positive, hopeful and strong.

School! 
Ryan starts school at Engelwood High School today. MDUSD was not able to keep him on the books to continue his classes through College Park, so Ryan is enrolled at Engelwood HS and will participate in classes while still in therapy. We are very optimistic, the Engelwood team has been very welcoming, creative and flexible in their approach to his education and we are looking forward to a great first day. He will physically attend school for Honors Chemistry and Honors Algebra II and then coordinate with his Engelwood and Craig teachers for English and AP American History. It is a packed schedule for sure, but he is determined to keep up with school.

Home? 
We don’t have a specific date in mind yet to come home. We have been gauging home on Ryan’s progress, and as he has continued to move forward, our date to come home has been extended. We have been told that the first year or two are the most critical in terms of rehabilitation as the body heals and signals are regained. We have a unique opportunity to be at the one of the best spinal rehabilitation facilities in the country and we are taking full advantage of what they have to offer.

Thank you!
This year we have been the recipients of great kindness, support and love both large and small, and ALL very much appreciated. It can be easy to feel disconnected from things at home since we are away, but we have a very dedicated group of people who have made sure that does not happen, and we can’t thank you enough for that. Ryan has never been a big social media guy, and the accident has not changed that. He reads all the messages and appreciates them very much.

We are looking forward to another great year of progress!
Love, The Joseph Family
Kristin, Tom, Ryan & Haley

H
ere are a few more links:
https://www.dropbox.com/…/VID_20190109_163812085%20%281%29.…

https://www.dropbox.com/s/4lvtt…/VID_20190108_134228994.mp4…

https://www.dropbox.com/s/mk8g93…/2019-01-08%2013.51.44.jpg…

Update - September 3, 2018 - From Team Joseph

Still Working Hard in Colorado!

Ryan missed the start of school, but he is still working hard 5 days a week at Craig Hospital in Colorado.  He has been participating in the NeuroRecovery Network (NRN) founded by the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. The program has two parts: physical therapy using a treadmill, harness, walker and therapy mats focused on walking and mobility, and occupational therapy using electrical stimulation and adaptive tools to activate nerves in his back, arms and hands and improve his functional independence. Ryan was originally scheduled for 60 sessions of NRN, but he is making such great progress that he was extended to 80 sessions ending mid-September.

Many people saw Ryan’s video using a walker to walk out of Craig Hospital for the first time in early August. He has continued to use the walker during therapy and has a walker for practice at home.  Ryan now is focused on improving his steps, concentrating on foot placement, improving his gait, keeping his core straight and gaining strength. After NRN, Ryan will transition immediately into more outpatient therapy at Craig toward his ultimate goal of walking and regaining full use of his hands. The first 1-2 years following a spinal cord injury are a critical window of time for recovery, and Ryan and his therapy team are doing all they can to make the most of it.

Ryan attends school at Craig using adaptive software and tools, and he is working hard to catch up on the classes he missed so he will be ready when he returns to College Park. Thank you to Ms. Haider, Mr. Phan and Ms. Aiello for helping Ryan with classes from afar this semester, and Mr. Nolan and Mr. Gayle last semester!   Ryan’s sister, Haley, has started her freshman year at College Park, and parents, Tom and Kristin, will be going back and forth between California and Colorado. Being separated as a family is a difficult part of this journey, and we look forward to all being together again during the holidays.

Thank you to everyone who keeps us in their thoughts and all of you who continue to reach out to support us.  We would not be where we are without you.  Falcon parent, Angel Lara, connected us with the Contra Costa Association of Realtors Helping Hands Committee and they generously donated toward power-assisted wheels for Ryan’s manual wheelchair, which will make it much easier for him to get around school.  We are so lucky to be part of this community, you are all such amazing people!

https://www.gofundme.com/help-our-teammate-ryan

The family may be contacted through Ryan’s uncle Mike Halket at helpryanjoseph@gmail.com