Reach Beyond the Gates of Trinity

Spotlight on Justin Cahill

Established by the Rollins family through the Gary W. Rollins Foundation, the Rollins Quest for Excellence Grant recognizes and awards faculty and staff members for excellent performance and loyalty of service. Trinity School’s only two-time Rollins Grant winner, P.E. Teacher Justin Cahill, is sharing his expertise far beyond the gates of Trinity. Cahill, who recently won ThePhysicalEducator.com’s  2018 Best #PhysEd Twitter Account award, holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from George Washington University. Raised in Pines Plains, New York, he spent the first 12 years of his teaching career in Washington, D.C. He joined the Trinity faculty as a P.E. teacher in 2007, a role which he still holds in addition to being an active member of the Fifth Grade Values Team.

In his own words, Cahill’s mission is “to instill a lifelong love of fitness through play and exercise while creating a dialogue dedicated to keeping kids in motion.” Since coming to Trinity, he has created an online community around his passion; initiated the morning movement group Every Lap Counts; collaborated with P.E. Teacher Jedd Austin to introduce the very popular Extended Programs activity Fast and Fit; led and participated in numerous professional development conferences; and more.

Let’s learn a bit more about why “keeping kids in motion” is Cahill’s passion and how he communicates his message to not only the Trinity community, but also the world.

Q: What piqued your interest in physical education, and why did you pursue it as a career?

A: My interest subconsciously developed when I was around 11 years old. I was the boy who was outside playing sports every day, no matter the weather. Starting as early as eight in the morning, I would sift through my rolodex and make call after call, recruiting as many of my friends as possible to head down to the playground. Once at the field, I was called on to form fair teams. Similarly, I was elected as the “moral compass.” Basically, I was the guy that friends would count on to make the close call or settle a dispute. When I turned 16, I worked as a director for my local recreation department. As an instructor, I was presented with my first opportunity to organize games and activities for kids aged three to 12. It was that moment when I began thinking physical education would be an incredible profession.

After graduating from college, I was coaching a summer baseball camp in D.C. One afternoon, a dad approached me and said that he liked the way I worked with his daughter and the rest of the kids in my group and wondered if I would be interested in teaching physical education at his school. I seized the chance and am very grateful that I did.

Q: We enjoy reading your blog, Keeping Kids in Motion (jcahillpe.wordpress.com). What is its purpose?

A: In November of 2016, I created my blog, Keeping Kids in Motion. Although the blog consists of posts with varying topics, the main focus is on physical education and the well-being of children. As a blogger, my main objective is to build community and to connect with like-minded peers. As much as I am sharing with my community, I am also learning from my peers. As a result, I have become more motivated to write. In this regard, Keeping Kids in Motion has become a powerful, consistent form of professional development for me.

I also use Keeping Kids in Motion as a vehicle to share what my colleagues and I are teaching in physical education. I am extremely fortunate to work with three amazing P.E. teachers: Jedd Austin, Brian Balocki, and Laura English. We have been teaching together for 11 years and consistently bounce ideas off each other. Some of the ones we come up with are just too good to keep confined within the gates of Trinity School and must be shared.

Overall, blogging has helped me grow as an educator, a parent, and a professional. It allows me to be myself and share what I have learned with a myriad of people who so kindly share their ideas with me.

Q: Congratulations on your recent Twitter award for @justybubPE! How do you utilize social media to further your mission?

A: Until about three years ago, social media barely registered on my radar. Twitter still felt relatively new, and I honestly thought, why would anyone care what I’m doing at any given time? Then a handful of teachers at Trinity began using Twitter to celebrate what their students were doing in class. I thought that maybe I could do the same. So I set up an account with a silly username and began posting pictures and videos to highlight what happens during a Trinity P.E. class. To my surprise, teachers from across the globe began liking, reposting, commenting, and following me. Now, more than 5,000 followers later, I have developed an abundant professional learning network online. Twitter has become a driving force for communication and an inexpensive and effective method of professional development.

I also formed a Keeping Kids in Motion Facebook group to establish a platform for parents, teachers, and other interested parties to read and share blog posts, articles, videos, books, and anything else related to the well-being of today’s children.

Q: What do you want your children and your students to take away regarding physical fitness?

A: My wife and I have three children: a 15-year-old daughter, Cora, and two sons, Dexter, 13, and Zavier, 12. My goal is for them and all children to understand the positive impact of lifelong fitness on their physical, emotional, mental, and social well-being. Frequently, kids equate fitness with having an exercise regime, going to a gym, or jogging around the neighborhood. I want them to realize that staying physically fit, especially at their age, is so much more. Exercise is going outside to play. It is being active with their friends. It is playing tag or pickup games of basketball. It is going in the backyard, building a fort, and being the superhero in a game of pretend. Ultimately play IS exercise.