By Mace Funkhouser

This is Page Chapman’s 25th year at Collegiate as a Lower School physical education teacher and soccer and futsal coach, and he doesn’t plan on leaving anytime soon. Why? He cherishes and understands the importance of his role in teaching students how to live an active lifestyle, teaching them life lessons in sports, and being a trusted mentor for the students he coaches and teaches. Whether on the athletic field or in the Estes Building, where Chapman teaches PE, he focuses on preparing students to become successful community members at Collegiate and beyond. 

Chapman spent his childhood in Morristown, New Jersey, and attended the Morristown Beard School. In our interview, Chapman said that he looked for inspiration by “noticing who the teachers were that motivated me and that I had a great deal of respect for, and they were all physical education teachers and coaches.” Chapman then attended Lynchburg College (now the University of Lynchburg) with the end goal of becoming a PE teacher and coach, and he started teaching straight out of college. Chapman returned to his hometown for three years to coach at Morristown Beard, and he then came back to Virginia to teach at Stony Point School, now Sabot School, for another three years before he landed at Collegiate. 

As a PE teacher for all Lower Schoolers, and an Upper School soccer and futsal coach, Chapman is an influential figure for many students at Collegiate. When I asked Chapman what traits he found important for teaching and coaching, he noted that a thorough understanding of soccer was necessary, and he stressed the significance of being able to emphasize the life lessons of sports to people of all ages. Whether with Kindergarteners or JV soccer players, he “challenges and supports them in ways that create good athletes and good people.” 

Chapman in a Lower School PE class.

Throughout our interview, Chapman underscored a few of his main goals as a teacher and coach. First, it’s crucial for students to learn “the ability to communicate with their coaches and teachers, and that it’s okay to come to an adult with a concern and let them know how they feel.” Communication is a key part of maintaining mental well-being, building relationships, and strengthening the community. To introduce students to this skill, Chapman makes sure his students and players email him with any concerns or questions, instead of letting their parents do it. 

To Chapman, the other main goal is a sense of community in the classroom and on the athletic field. He aims to instill all of Collegiate’s core values in his students, but he sees community as the most important one. Many Cougars, whether students, faculty, or teachers, say that their favorite part of Collegiate is the community, because it makes students more comfortable in all environments. Chapman adores the Collegiate community and continues to make sure that Cougars learn to take care of each other while “putting their best foot forward.” 

One example of the comradery that Chapman builds was the 2022 JV soccer team, which I was a part of. We lost 6-0 to Benedictine in our first game and then experienced more embarrassing losses in our next games. Throughout this tough stretch, Chapman constantly emphasized the importance of staying together and working as a team. His guidance and support helped us unite, believe in ourselves, and become the team we wanted to be, with four straight wins at the end of the season, including a 3-1 win against Benedictine. Reflecting back on his time under Chapman, former JV soccer player William Andrews (’25) said, “He pushed us to work harder than we were used to and made me strive to compete at the varsity level.”

Aside from the impact he has on these young students, Chapman chose his job because he genuinely enjoys it. When I asked him what he loves about his job, he said his favorite part is “watching young people grow into great people and great teammates, and reconnecting with them when I coach them in high school.” He especially loves Collegiate because of the culture and respect that surrounds everyone on campus. Another highlight that he mentioned was teaching his two children, Page (’28) and Mary Ellen (’27), and recently coaching Page in JV soccer. 

In the years I’ve spent in Chapman’s PE classes and on his teams, I have found that his ideology is effective and transformative. In Lower School PE, I remember him making the class stop talking before we started our activities to teach us to show respect to teachers. On the JV soccer team, Chapman constantly reminded us to be proactive and hold each other accountable. He challenged us in practice and games but taught us to take care of each other and was always there to support us. Chapman always comes over to talk to his former students when he sees them around the school, and he often watches sports events that his former students are playing in. Chapman makes it clear that he truly enjoys his profession and is entirely invested in helping Collegiate students become exemplary people.

All photos courtesy of Page Chapman.