After a successful first season, with a majority of our teams medaling, it is time to say thanks to those who allowed the season to be a success. Congratulations to the athletes, but we are talking about the club that works purely behind the scene: Athletics Council (AC). As a result of their work, the Taipei American School Athletics Council is one of the overlooked clubs at our school. Students do not exactly know their impact, other than that they “help out with sports and stuff”, according to Claire J. (10). From the stands, the members of AC look like they just need to push a few buttons, but their importance is much greater than what it appears to be in the TAS community.

The first job of club (scorer) is the one that the TAS community sees around the school. Whenever there are sports games or events, whether it’s in the gym or the outdoors, they are the ones manning the scoreboard. Scoring games can be both busy or relaxing depending on the sport. In all her years scoring, Jenny H. (12), [Co-President], says that “scoring volleyball is pretty chill, but basketball is very intense.” However, Games Head Audrey K. (11) gives a taste of the complicated and various tasks that they need to do for basketball. “They need to constantly look at the refs and know hand signals. The stat keepers need to keep track of player points, team points, missed free throws, player and team fouls, and they have to remember to remind the coach when a player records 4 fouls”. There is obviously more to scoring than just pushing a few buttons.

The other half of the Athletics Council that less students know about is made up the students who run the grill, which is known for its  delicious hot dogs and cheeseburgers. Seeing the easygoing workers have a good time listening to music while working always boosts game day vibe. However, the magic behind it all isn’t always as carefree as it seems. As only four to five members run the grill, there is always a lot to do. Co-president  Andrea W. (12) recounts that “Working at the grill…has been both busy and relaxing. It would always [varies], as some customers would go from waiting five minutes to even a whole hour for their order. Though at times I have gotten stressed from it, knowing that the team has my back has helped me through the busy services.”

Despite all of the work the club does, Athletics Council appears to be underappreciated by a majority of the school. Perhaps it is because “there are times when people forget that we are not professionals at scoring or with food services, but we volunteer to help out and we do our best to ensure that we can please everyone” Andrea says. The members of the club are commonly disrespected from the TAS community as a whole. “One time a parent threw a mop at us and told us to mop the floor during the game. Sometimes basketball parents yell at us about the score when we’re correct and the team sometimes forgets to thank us after games,” says Audrey. Although outdoor sports such as soccer or baseball may not require much effort to score, members spend a lot of time scoring for the athletes no matter what. Yet, outdoor teams tend not to thank the scorers like the gym sports. Audrey notes that “it would be nice if the teams thanked us at least once at the very end of the season”.

The people behind the burger cashiers and scoring machines and aren’t as different from the shining athletes as they seem. It’s mostly about being part of a smaller and more unique community: a team. Andrea states that “being able to work with the people I do, not only from members of the grill but the club as a whole, has made my experience in Athletics Council worthwhile.” Similarly, Jenny acknowledges “the amazing people that you get to meet” by joining the club. The members of Athletics Council genuinely love helping out the athletics program and being part of the club itself.

Maybe it’s because the athletes are always the ones in the limelight when people think about the athletics program, but the athletics program would not even exist without the Athletics Council. Club sponsor and athletics director, Ms. Kawamoto, says that “Because there is a high cost to hire scorekeepers, timers, ball chasers, etc., it saves the athletic department a lot of time and resources  to have the Athletics Council assist with our competitions in those capacities. Many times, our athletics council volunteers do not get the appreciation and recognition they deserve, and they do not get thanked properly for working games and investing an extraordinary amount of time to provide support to our athletes and teams. They are sometimes on the receiving end of negative comments or scoldings from excited coaches, players and fans when there is an issue with the clock or scoreboard.” The members of Athletics Council are the backbone of the Athletics program. Without them, we would not get to watch our weekly games on Fridays. Without them, athletes would not have the opportunity to play the sport that they love. Without them, there would be no IASAS. The Athletics Council has a bigger impact on our community than any of us realize and it’s about time they got their recognition.