WESTMINSTER, Vt. – Bellows Falls Union High School (BFUHS) recently announced the hiring of a new athletic director (AD), as former 2016 Oxbow High School (Bradford, Vt.) graduate Connor Bean takes over the position after former AD Ian Fraundfelder recently accepted an AD position at Harwood Union High School in Moretown, Vt.
A 2020 graduate of Union College in Barbourville, Ky., Bean studied sports and recreation administration, and first worked at Northeast Sports Network (NSN) in Essex Junction, and then at the Clara Martin Center in White River Junction, before taking a position as the part-time AD at Craftsbury Academy in Craftsbury Common, Vt.
“I was previously the AD at Craftsbury, and I also currently direct the entirety of high school bowling in Vermont and have done that since 2022. I’ve also worked as a sports information director at Gameday Manager.”
As the part-time AD at Craftsbury Academy for grades K-12, Bean gained some experience at the position, while also teaching for a year. As it turned out, during his stay at Craftsbury, Bean was mentored by Fraundfelder. The two talked a lot at AD meetings, and developed a good rapport.
Bean and Bellows Falls Union High School got thrown a curveball recently when it was discovered that areas of the school contained high levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which are toxic chemicals. The levels are so high in the gymnasium and adjoining auditorium that neither will be able to be used for the upcoming school year.
“The issue has affected the sports schedule by not allowing us to use the locker rooms, so we’ve had to get creative with the tents and other spaces in the building,” Bean said. “As for winter, if the gym becomes totally unusable, we are working on a contingency plan.”
Another early task for Bean was having to hire a new girls’ soccer coach, Holly King, with interviews taking place a few weeks ago. “Holly is a great addition. She’s enthusiastic, fun, and energetic. She really wants to build a strong girls soccer program here, and I believe she has the ability to do so. It will be a multi-year project, but she’s in it for the long haul.
“My short-term goal is to stabilize and build up all our programs, doing this through adding and supporting sports at the middle school level, and try to consistently bring in and retain talented coaches to help that process,” Bean concluded.
“I’d also love to bring in a student athlete leadership group, as I’d like student athletes to have more of a voice, and keep our student athlete graduation rates high. Long term, I have some visions of an entire renovation of Hadley Field and updating it for future use.”