Join Konos Academy for an Open Gym/Konos Sports Day on Saturday April 19 from 10 a.m. to 12 noon at Kedron Fieldhouse, 202 Kedron Drive, Peachtree City.
Konos Academy of Fayetteville sports programs for 2014-15 are open to all area home schoolers in middle school and high school. Konos is an accredited homeschool-hybrid academy offering an academically rigorous liberal-arts core program, supplementary classes in math, science, foreign language and the arts, and sports and PE. Konos is a member of the Georgia Independent Christian Athletic Association (GICAA), Division 3. GICAA offers a full team competitive schedule for Christian schools and homeschool education centers.
Whereas in other states, home schoolers can play for the public schools in their districts, Georgia athletes have been shut out. Independent leagues like GICAA give homeschoolers opportunities to play sports and compete for college scholarships. Home school centers in the north metro area often have 200 or more students show up for tryouts in their competitive teams. Konos is on its way to building that type of sports program on the south side.
“Middle school is the time to teach basic skills,” said basketball coach Richard Schmidt. “By JV, we expect our players to be trained in the basics and ready for successful team play. Students who try out for our teams can expect to have to work for a slot. This isn’t a league where everyone gets to play. If you want to play with other talented players with aspirations to play college basketball, you should consider Konos.”
According to Schmidt, freshman team co-captain “Ben Spears is a playmaker who finds a way to score. He’s averaging 18-20 points a game and can play every position. Ben never gives up.” Freshman point guard Alec Schmidt is also a play-maker. “Alec has a great basketball IQ,” says his proud coach and dad. “It’s not just God-given talent. He worked for it, studying training videos and attending camps with top coaches.”
Coach Schmidt and his son came to Konos because of the potential they saw in the sports program and the availability of varied academic options. “It’s nice not to have to make a choice between academic excellence and the opportunity to play,” says Schmidt. “As a homeschooler, Alec had been moving at his own pace and was a grade or more ahead. The schools we looked at wanted to make him repeat classes he’d already completed just because he’d been home schooled. His mom and I weren’t okay with that.”
Cross-Country coach Michelle Villars was a runner who wanted her sons to develop that same love. The Cross-Country team doubled in size this year, but Villars managed to keep it both fun and competitive. “The team ran against some strong teams this year. Our runners showed amazing improvement and after the season was over, they formed their own running club.”
Sophomore Caleb Villars was the consistently fastest cross-country runner last fall. He especially enjoyed beating his twin brother Josh. According to Villars, another up-and-coming runner is 7th grader Emma Futch because she is “very focused and dedicated, practicing on her own beyond what was required by the team.” Another future star is Hank Worley, only 9 years old. “Hank grew to be a strong young runner with a big heart,” said Villars. He trained with the team, though he wasn’t eligible yet to compete.
Families often train and compete together at Konos. Emma, Katie, and Sarah Futch; Andrew, Josh, and Caleb Villars; Kailey and Christian Waltermire; and Sam and Hank Worley all ran on the Cross Country team. In basketball, brothers Josiah and Elijah Lee were joined by first-cousin Seth Lee. Multi-age involvement is an important Konos value.
Parents at Konos are happy with what sports participation provides for their children. Basketball parent Kim Pollard puts it this way, “We originally joined the Konos Condors a couple of seasons back to help the team, but we had no idea how many benefits we would receive: camaraderie, pursuit of excellence, growth, discipline, loyalty, and fun were some of the benefits. Plus, seeing the whole family cheering on their brother and his team is a joy.” Basketball dad John Lee says, “It was so encouraging to see these boys grow in their skills. By the end of this season, they were a completely different team largely due to a job well done by Coach Schmidt.”
Though tryouts at Konos are open to all homeschoolers, players are expected to be committed to the GICAA philosophy of leading students toward Christian growth. Konos and GICCA both understand homeschoolers and work to increase opportunities for athletes to excel, but never at the expense of character. Coach Villars was most proud of her team’s attitude and their reputation among the other teams. “We were known to be the team that would line the finish corral and cheer for each teammate until all had arrived. They worked as a team, not individual runners.”
The athletic director at Konos, Bron Rutkowski, played college football at Rutgers University. He believes that sports participation builds character by teaching teamwork and helping students strive for excellence. He’s excited at how the program has grown since Konos joined GICAA. According to Rutkowski, “Konos plans to offer girls volleyball, girls and boys cross-country, and girls and boys basketball for middle school and high school” during the 2014-15 academic year.
“We’d like to explore fall soccer and possibly spring baseball or softball, since those sports are strong in the Fayette County area,” said Rutkowski. “Families interested in soccer, softball, or baseball need to contact us now about next year. If we have enough interest, then we will offer other sports sanctioned by GICAA.” Young athletes were allowed to participate at the JV level this year as long as they were in 6th grade or older. Next year, GICAA hopes to expand the middle school program and let even younger students compete.
For information on sports at Konos and how to try out, contact Coach Rutkowski at bron.rutkowski@gmail.com. For more information on Konos Academy, go to their website www.konos.org, email the staff at info@konos.org, or call 770-632-0771.
