Souths Athletic department is the mastermind behind the coordination of South sports and the overseeing of all Physical Education (P.E.) and Health classes, Athletic Director, Tom Mietus said.

South’s Athletic Department is in charge of 31 sports: 14 boys’ sports and 17 girls’, along with 99 levels, (Junior Varsity and Varsity): 48 boys and 51 girls. The athletic directors hold a lot of responsibility balancing all the sports, P.E. classes, Athletic Trainers Department, and athletic facilities, Mietus said.

“My main roles are to hire and evaluate coaches and trainers, [as well as] budgeting for all the sports,” Mietus said.

The athletic directors have a lot of crossover in terms of their duties, Mietus said. There are responsibilities which the athletic directors and assistant athletic directors have that support all the sports offered at South. These duties include social media, online ticketing, postseason letters, diversity, equity, and inclusion training provided by the Central Suburban League, and score table templates, Mietus said.

“My goal is to give student-athletes the best experience possible, so being able to see them compete is always what brings me the most joy,” Mietus said.

Mietus’ duties also overlap the Assistant Athletic Directors in the department, including Courtney Middleton. Jobs include scheduling all the facilities for each sport and physical education class, so all have equal access to these facilities, Mietus explained. In order for all physical education classes and sports to gain equal access to these facilities, the athletic directors oversee the scheduling for each sport or class, Middleton said.

“We look across the board and see all of our different sports and make sure that they’re getting access to the spaces they want when they need them, but balancing that with the needs of other programs,” Middleton said.

The touch pro is an interactive video board near the Athletic Department office which showcases South’s sports and student-athletes, Middleton explained. The facilities available to the students at South by the athletic department include two pools, three gyms, a fieldhouse, fitness center, power room, spin room, and indoor track, Middleton said.

“We’re looking to try and provide some equity across the use of all the different spaces that are best for each of those different programs,” Middleton said.