Mark Cossarin - Principal at Lindsay Collegiate & VocationaI Institute

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I did my undergraduate degree with a major in physical education and a minor in sociology at York University. I grew up ten minutes away, so it was nice to save money and live at home. I was a starting power hitter on the men’s varsity volleyball team for four years and I was also an assistant coach with the women’s program for one year. I moved on to Western University for grad school to complete a Master's Degree in Kinesiology. I taught undergraduate practicum courses in volleyball, badminton and physiology. I was also the teaching assistant for my thesis advisor’s Canadian Sport History course, which all first year kinesiology students took. During my second year there, I became the head coach of the women’s varsity volleyball team. The Centre for Olympic Studies at Western was just opening as well, and I had an opportunity to work very closely with the founder who was a member of my thesis committee. After graduating, I moved back home and attended U of T to earn my B.Ed. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I was very fortunate during my post-secondary education to be involved in many programs that allowed me to interact with a variety of leaders. Whether it was a professor, coach, teaching assistant or administrator, I always valued my experiences under their tutelage. It made me understand that working hard and sharing your passion for your subject area with others, has a tremendous impact on the development of meaningful programs. In the area of volleyball, we held numerous skills camps for younger athletes as well as the National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP), where coaches, many of whom were teachers, attained their volleyball certification. During this time I became a certified NCCP instructor for indoor and beach volleyball, the Spikes Program, which introduced volleyball to younger kids and the provincial officials’ certification program.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">My teaching career began with an LTO at LCVI two weeks before I