BOCES deaf and hard of hearing student is co-captain of Guilderland's cross country team
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| Nathan Scott with his educational interpreter, Pamela Vooris. |
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| Nathan Scott (lower right) running during a cross country meet. |
Senior Nathan Scott now has another accomplishment to celebrate from his high school career—this fall Nate was tapped as one of the team captains for the Guilderland High School cross-country team. In this role, Nate helps inspire and provides guidance to his fellow teammates, particularly those who are just starting out. This is something his team, coaches and teachers all say he does well.
Nate, whose home district is South Colonie, has attended the BOCES deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) program based in the Guilderland school district since he was a young child. Read more about Nathan and the D/HH program.
Throughout his school career, Nate has had the opportunity to work with teachers of the deaf and one-on-one with his educational interpreters as he has learned with his peers in mainstream classrooms. As a seventh grader, Nate also had the unique opportunity to join the high school cross-country team at Guilderland. With the assistance of educational interpreter Pamela Vooris, he has been able to excel as both a person and a runner—this year Nate is among the top seven runners on the varsity team.
Although Nate has some hearing while wearing his hearing aides, he does not wear these when he runs. In addition to helping interpret what teammate and his coaches are saying during practices, Vooris helps pre-set Nate at the starting line, can often be found cheering him on throughout his course (yes, she gets a workout keeping up with the pack!) and provides "secret signals" to let Nate know if there is another runner gaining on him as he nears the finish line.
"I am so proud of the advances he has made with cross country...he was so quiet and shy when we met in middle school," said Vooris. "He has grown into a confident and really great young man. It has been such a privilege to work with him and all of the other runners on the Guilderland team throughout the years."
Pride for Nate and all he has accomplished as a student and runner—and a large amount of gratitude for the support Vooris gives to both Nate and the other members of the team—is also something the Guilderland coaches express.
"Cross country has been a wonderful experience for Nate because he has been able to interact with other athletes in both an athletic and social setting," explained Coach Dana Doak, who began working with Nate when he joined the team as a middle schooler. "Nate has been a tireless worker and supportive teammate since seventh grade. He has also worked himself into becoming an exceptional varsity runner and a wonderful young man."
"Too, Pam has been an important part of the coaching staff over the years," Doak continued. "We don't know what we'll do without her next year."
The team's hope is there is another budding runner—or two, or
three!—at the middle or high school, perhaps from the D/HH program,
waiting to hit the trails with the team and Vooris next school year.
