Mt. Lebanon AD recognized
John Grogan considers himself a lucky guy. He has a fabulous family, his own and the clan he manages at Mt. Lebanon High School.
For 25 years, he and his wife, Bridget, have nurtured three children, Jordan, Haley and Meghan. For 17 of those years, he has also shepherded the Lebo student-athletes as its athletic director.
The Pennsylvania State Athletic Directors Association (PSADA) recently honored him for the latter as Grogan has been named the 2017 Pennsylvania Region IV Athletic Director of the Year.
“It’s certainly nice to be recognized by your peers,” Grogan said. “but the reality of it is that I have been fortunate to work in a place where I have great support from the school administration and community and I work with tremendous athletes, coaches and staff members. It’s certainly a team effort and that’s what makes it all the more rewarding.”
Thanks to Grogan, Mt. Lebanon has reaped its own rewards. During his tenure, the Blue Devils have won 53 WPIAL championships and eight PIAA titles. However, Grogan is proudest of the “positive culture” that he helped establish within the programs. Through athletics, Mt. Lebanon stresses the many life lessons the students learn from their participation in sports.
“One of the most important roles as an athletic director is to try and create that kind of atmosphere,” Grogan explained. “At Mt. Lebanon, we are able to attract good coaches and good strategies that will benefit the student athletes. All of the coaches and the people within the department work hard to create a positive experience for the players. Their actions and what they try to do is always for the benefit the kids.”
While he jokes that his goals are just to “survive” each day, Grogan’s honest hopes are to continue doing good things for the student athletes and the athletic program. “We want to continue to make the school district proud of the student athletes that we produce and to promote our programs and students in a positive manner. We want to keep the culture positive for the kids,” he said. “All those things are possible.”
They are attainable because Grogan has gone the extra mile for the school district. He sits on the WPIAL AD executive committee as well as the basketball steering committee. He is president of the Big 56 Athletic Conference and president of the South Hills Athletic Directors Association. A mentor to new Ads with the district, Groan serves as a member of the Delegate Assembly of the PSADA.
Grogan has also worked as a national trainer for the Positive Coaching Alliance. He has conducted national and international workshops on coaching and parent education, leadership and developing positive cultures within an organization.
Throughout his career, he has hosted many district and state-level playoff games in multiple sports. He has served as president of the Quad-A Conference and Southwest Conference AD Association as well as on WPIAL track and cross country committees. He has participated as a featured speaker at the WPIAL/UPMC Student Leadership Academy.
Finally, Grogan, who has served his community as a youth basketball coach, was recognized by the Eastern Interscholastic Football Officials as Administrator of the Year in 2012.