By FRED KRONER
Mahomet-Seymour’s longest current-tenured high school head coach is no longer Nathan Seal.
He officially lost that designation on Thursday, his first day on the job at Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond High School as the assistant principal and athletic director.
“I have a lot to learn,” Seal said.
For the past 20 years, Seal served as the Bulldogs’ girls’ basketball head coach. He also taught social studies at the high school.
He is the winningest girls’ basketball coach in school history and finished the 2019-20 school year four wins shy of reaching 300 for his career.
Seal put himself in position for his move 12 years ago when he finished his Type 75 certification, which enables him to accept an administrative position.
The fact that Seal remained in the M-S district for more than a decade thereafter was an indication of what he thought about the only district where he has taught and coached.
“When the end of the school year came, I wasn’t expecting this,” Seal said. “We did some summer workouts (at M-S) and there is a talented, young and great group of kids coming back.”
Seal said he hadn’t actively been pursuing jobs, but saw the opening at Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond – where former M-S principal Shannon Cheek is the superintendent – and found it “intriguing.”
Within the last month, he applied, was interviewed and was hired on Wednesday (July 15).
“One thing I wanted, if I was leaving teaching and coaching is to stay involved with extra-curriculars,” Seal said. “There were a lot of pull factors to that community.”
Both Seal and his wife, Adrienne, were raised in communities much smaller than Mahomet, where they have lived for more than two decades.
He is from Weldon and Adrienne Seal is from DeLand. They started dating while in high school.
The Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond communities offer a reminder of the past for the Seals.
“I’m familiar with the small-town atmosphere,” Nathan Seal said. “It’s different. That’s the best way to describe it.
“I like the community feel and the way everyone interacts with each other.”
In his new position, Nathan Seal will have a variety of duties, none of which will involve teaching or coaching. He will handle teacher evaluations, discipline and oversee an athletic department which offers 12 sports at the high school level.
“There will be a whole different look to my day every day,” he said.
His departure from Mahomet-Seymour creates two voids in the district. Adrienne Seal is a fifth-grade teacher and has taught in M-S for 15 years following a four-year stint in Monticello.
Last year, she was one of 10 fifth-grade teachers at M-S. For the upcoming year, she will be the only fifth-grade teacher at Lovington.
The communities that feed into the consolidated Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond High School (which had an enrollment of 297 last year) all maintain an elementary school.
“There are bittersweet feelings,” Adrienne Seal said. “The change lends itself to adventure and excitement, and now we’ll be making a new home, but we’ve called Mahomet home the last 22 years.”
Five years ago, they built a home in southeast Mahomet, in Whisper Meadow, which they now need to prepare to put on the market.
Like her husband, Adrienne Seal also completed work on her administrative degree years ago and is Type 75-certified.
She is not yet ready to pursue opportunities in that realm.
“I really, really enjoy being in the classroom,” she said. “The fifth grade is when kids start to figure out who they are and the things they like.
“It’s a neat type of discovery for them and a real creative age group. They still love coming to school and want to do well.”
Additionally, her colleagues were a primary reason she has stayed with the fifth-grade for so long.
“You won’t find a better group of people who love children, education, each other and are always going above and beyond to make Lincoln Trail a positive place for students,” Adrienne Seal said. “My fifth-grade family, Ben, James, Kari, Sandy, Jenn, Amy, Dana, Sarah, Bridget and Vickie are the best group of people to work with.
“Definitely going to miss them.”
Adrienne Seal said she felt fortunate that an opening occurred at A-L/A-H in an area where she felt most comfortable, but added, “I was willing to take a different position within the district, but it just so happened that this came about.”
She faces the uncertainty of starting the school year teaching students she knows nothing about while not being able to interact with them in the classroom.
“It will make getting to know students difficult,” she said, “and that’s the most important part of my job.”
The Seals have two children, both of whom will be in high school. Clayton is an upcoming sophomore. Claire is an incoming freshman.
Adrienne Seal said for them to make new friends might not be as daunting as it might seem.
“That’s one of the things about social media and interacting remotely,” she said. “They’ve already had kids from Arthur reach out and say they are excited to have them join the community.
“We’re already starting to feel part of the community.”
The teen-agers have also had experience interacting with student-athletes from other districts through their travel-ball experiences.
Clayton is a baseball player and Claire plays basketball. She led the 15-8 M-S eighth-grade team in scoring in 11 games last winter, including the team’s final six. She had the team’s best single-game scoring output, hitting the 20-point mark twice.
“The last couple weeks have been a whirlwind,” Nathan Seal said. “It will be a big adjustment. They (Clayton and Claire) have seen the (high school) building and met some people.
“Everyone has been super-welcoming.”
Nathan Seal said the timing seemed right to make the move.
“I enjoyed coaching and teaching,” he said, “but after 22 years, personally I wanted a new type of challenge.
“I wasn’t actively seeking it, but I thought if the right opportunity presented itself, I would throw my hat in the ring.
“Mahomet was my first – and until (Thursday) – my only stop. I’m a loyalty guy. It was never about this being a stepping stone.
“I never saw myself leaving, but you never say never.”
He said he kept in touch with Cheek, who recently finished his first year as the A-L/A-H superintendent.
“He definitely made me more interested in the community part and I feel a little more comfortable with the area,” Nathan Seal said. “He’s a good leader and has a vision for what he wants to do, and I’m on board with that.”
As he adjusts to his new duties, Nathan Seal anticipates plenty of support.
“I don’t have to do it alone,” he said. “There’s a good team of administrators and they will help me along.
“I know I made the right decision.”
The principal at A-L/A-H is Steffanie Seegmiller.
During his time at M-S, Nathan Seal worked with girls’ soccer, boys’ cross-country and boys’ track and field as an assistant coach. His overall record in girls’ basketball was 296-266.
He guided the program to a school-record 25 wins and a regional title in 2004-05, the first of three consecutive 20-win seasons for the Bulldogs. The ’04-’05 team was led by Area Player of the Year Kendra Donley, and was ranked 12th in the state in Class 2A.
His final Bulldog team was 18-14 (the most wins in the past 13 years) and featured a varsity roster that included two freshmen and three sophomores. Those five players – Cayla Koerner, Savannah Orgeron, Haylie Orton, Nichole Taylor and Durbin Thomas – combined to lead (or share the team-lead) in scoring in 26 games and in rebounding in 31 games.
Adrienne Seal said she has enjoyed her time at M-S outside of the classroom as well as inside.
“Our social life has revolved around the school and the activities going on around the school,” she said. “I’ve enjoyed being the coach’s wife.
“We’ve made great friendships, watched kids grow up and then go to weddings and baby showers.”
With her children active in athletics, she will still be around the sporting arena for a while longer. She’s hoping to do more than be a spectator.
“I’ll have to let the basketball coach know that I know how to keep a book,” Adrienne Seal said. “That may help keep me a little calmer.”
With Nathan Seal’s departure from M-S, the longest current tenured high school varsity head coach is Neal Garrison in boys’ cross-country. He will be entering his 19th year with the sport.
