By: Rich Fisher
Elaine McGrath walked into a surprise party at South Brunswick High School last week, and was presented with a cake that read GMC, Number 1…We knew it all along.
The sentiment came from the administration and coaching staff at SBHS, who were eager to throw a party for McGrath after she was named the Greater Middlesex Conference’s Athletic Director of the Year.
Now in her third year as SBHS athletic director, McGrath is the first woman to win the award. It is voted on by the GMC AD’s and goes to the person who makes valuable contributions to both the conference and the school they work at.
“It’s nice to know that people appreciate what you do for the conference and the school and that they want to recognize you for that,” McGrath said.
Since McGrath’s arrival, SBHS has added boy’s and girl’s swimming, boy’s and girl’s lacrosse and girl’s volleyball. The new high school now hosts several high-profile tournaments.
McGrath also successfully combined the various athletic booster clubs into one — the Viking Athletic Club; and the SBHS Athletic Hall of Fame has originated under her watch.
“I think all that we’ve done is a compliment to the community of South Brunswick and the administration in the building,” McGrath said. “You can only be as good as they allow you to be. I happened to really luck out. It was the right time, right place.
“Everything is falling into place for the betterment of the students at South Brunswick High School, and that’s really what you’re in the business for. To see those kids get the accolades and credit that they deserve makes it all worth it.”
McGrath graduated from Governor Livingston High School in Union County, and Kean College. She received a masters degree in education at Montclair, then was an assistant principal while coaching basketball and softball at Immaculate Conception in Montclair for 10 years.
Yielding to the call of college athletics, McGrath moved to Rutgers-Newark University, where she coached women’s basketball and softball for three years.”
“I thought I wanted to try the college area,” she said. “But when I got away from the high school scene and seeing the kids day in and day out, I realized I wanted to get back into it.”
She moved on to Highland Park High School as AD for four years before arriving at South Brunswick in the fall of 1997. It coincided with the opening of the new high school and McGrath could not wait to utilize the facilities to full capacity.
“I thought this job was a great opportunity to expand and grow with the program,” she said. “I don’t think another school in the state has the facilities we now have.”
As for Viking Athletic Club — which drew some resistence from organizations who wanted to remain independent — it raised $6000 in scholarship money for SBHS athletes this past year.
“Change is always difficult in the beginning,” McGrath said. “But you realize the benefits that one booster club has when you start seeing the results we’re getting.”
The Hall of Fame has been another successful endeavor, and something McGrath felt was important for a school with the tradition of South Brunswick.
“It’s a way of letting the present athletes appreciate the sports history that was here, and to gain a loyalty to that history, knowing they’re a part of it,” she said. “We have records up there that are still standing for over 20 years, so it’s nice to meet those people. It’s great when they come back and you hear all the stories. It’s an important way to preserve tradition.”
McGrath has added to that tradition by winning the GMC award. It not only bodes well for SBHS, but women in general.
“I think it gives young women something to strive for, to be in administration and be successful,” McGrath said. “You can get into more than just teaching and coaching. You can be running things.”
And at least one co-worker likes the way McGrath runs things.
“She’s the best,” said girls tennis coach Barbara Whitman, who works in the athletic department. “It’s like the cake said. We knew she was number one, this just made it official.”
