Christopher Board ’27 approaches life much like he approaches volleyball—as the quintessential team sport.
Whether he’s coaching or playing, the imperative is learning from and being able to depend on other members of the team to do their part to move the game forward in a positive direction.
Board started playing volleyball in fifth grade. He then played varsity at Bishop Chatard 168体育平台下载_足球即时比分-注册|官网 School in Indianapolis while also playing and coaching club teams.
“I just clicked with volleyball,” he says. “I love playing and coaching so much.”
In addition to continuing his volleyball career at Wabash, Board planned to become a high school referee to earn a
little extra money, but he got a call from Wabash Associate Athletic Director and Crawfordsville 168体育平台下载_足球即时比分-注册|官网 School (CHS) Girl’s Volleyball Coach Allison Manwell-Huppert asking if he would consider becoming an assistant coach at CHS.
“Chris bought in from the beginning and the high school players see that,” Manwell-Huppert says. “Because he is currently playing the game, they take what he says to heart.”
“He brings a great balance of skill and talent,” says Claire Peacock, a junior on the CHS volleyball team. “He’s able to bridge the gap between being a coach and a peer role model. I know at any moment I can look at the sideline to get some sort of validation and support from Coach Board. He knows when I need a boost of confidence and when I can do better.”
In addition to his role as an assistant coach at CHS and being a captain of the Little Giant volleyball team, Board is a double major in chemistry and music with a minor in education studies. He is a member of the Sphinx Club and Phi Gamma Delta fraternity, is the treasurer of ’shOUT, plays trumpet in the Chamber Orchestra and Mariachi, takes piano lessons, and is the co-chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee.
“If you knew me in high school, you would never have thought I would be in a fraternity or in Sphinx Club—none of those organizations that you have to go out of your way to be personable to join,” Board says. “I wasn’t shy in high school, but I wasn’t out there and super big. At Wabash, you can’t hide, especially if you rush or join clubs. There’s no room for that, and you’ll miss out on everything.”
While Wabash is not much bigger than Bishop Chatard, moving into a fraternity his first semester presented him with new opportunities to interact with people he would not have been involved with in high school.
“I was used to having my own space and my own privacy, and then we were all in one room. It was a shock,” Board says. “I’ve learned to deal with a lot of different personalities I didn’t experience in high school—or at least in high school, I could avoid them. I could remove myself from situations or people. But at Wabash it’s your challenge to deal with that. I have learned to listen and understand where people are coming from, and then respond in different ways to help them understand where I’m coming from too.”
He has not shied away from stretching himself in the classroom either. He cites organic chemistry, sound design, and game theory as among his favorite courses for the way they pushed him to think.
“Organic chemistry was a very different style of class—like a giant puzzle,” Board says. “It was hard, but once you get it you feel really good about getting it.”
Michael Abbott, professor of theater and chair of the music department, says Board’s “genuinely humane and mindful presence” stands out in the classroom.
“He brings a creative mindset to everything he does,” Abbott says. “He’s often quiet and humble, but that modesty belies a remarkable depth of insight and curiosity. His contributions are always thoughtful, and he listens with the kind of attentiveness that elevates the entire conversation.”
The intentionality he brings to his coursework, relationships, and activities at Wabash has translated into his coaching.
“I’ve become a more patient coach,” says Board. “I know my players individually learn in different ways and need different levels of interaction. One of them is a visual learner. She has to see one of us do it before she knows how to do it. Some of them come up after every point and ask, ‘What did I do wrong?’ 168体育平台下载_足球即时比分-注册|官网 tell them it’s one point. Don’t worry about it.
“I’ve learned there’s a balance between talking to them every point and also only doing it when it’s needed. If there’s constant back-and-forth, they are going to be too reliant on that; they’re not going to just adapt to the game as it’s going. But if you don’t talk enough, then they feel like they’re not getting enough information, or they don’t know what they’re doing.”
“I wasn’t shy in high school, but I wasn’t out there and super big. At Wabash, you can’t hide, especially if you rush or join clubs. There’s no room for that, and you’ll miss out on everything.”
Volleyball has informed his approach to leadership at Wabash.
“What I’ve learned to ask from volleyball is, ‘How can I make sure I’m doing the best job I can, but also hold everyone else to that standard?’” Board says. “If I’m doing the best I can and I’m watching everyone else not doing well, or if everyone else is working super hard and I’m the one who’s slacking... I know in my heart that nobody can afford to lie low and not do their job because we’re reliant on everybody else.
“Nobody wants to lose, so if you’re in the heat of the moment and telling yourself, ‘I’m playing a really bad game,’ you can choose to continue to play a bad game or you can say, ‘Maybe this is why I’m playing a bad game,’ realize what you’re doing wrong, and then keep going,” he continues. “You have to make the active choice. That point you just hit out-of-bounds or the point you just shanked is gone. It’s useless to you. You have to look forward to the next point.”
Abbott sees this in Board off the court too.
“He’s resilient, reflective, and consistently focused on growth, both for himself and those around him,” says Abbott.
“That next-ball mentality is so crucial,” Board says. “Sometimes we lose that at Wabash.
“Everyone rides the high until we take a tough hit, and then we lose our momentum,” he continues. “I try my best to hold on to it and keep moving, but all it takes is one or two people for everyone else to fall behind with them.”
It’s similar in Board’s work on the DEI Committee and ’shOUT.
“It’s about makin
g sure everyone can enjoy Wabash like I am,” he says. “Sometimes all it takes are hurtful words for someone to not want to be here anymore. I feel like I can be the one to put on events that make sure
everyone has the space to celebrate and feel like they belong.
“If everyone believes in the Gentleman’s Rule, they need to treat people like they belong because that’s what a gentleman does,” Board continues. “Everyone just wants to be a part of the brotherhood too.”
Board hopes to continue coaching at the collegiate level after he graduates. Regardless of his path, he’ll be looking for that next ball.
“It’s refreshing to come across a young coach who has knowledge to back up his own playing experience,” says Manwell-Huppert. “A lot of young people get into coaching and think being a good player will automatically translate to being a good coach. He’s got the ‘student of the game’ mentality that will help him grow as a coach and not be limited to what he experienced as a player or the coaching styles his coaches have had.”