I liked this article a lot; I love the idea that a small, liberal arts college can have a coach who creates a program where “…with about 500 men at Haverford, Tom has to get 1 percent of the male student body to be among the country’s best 50 runners. That’s insane.”

For teachers, though, I’ll use these comments as a starting point for a discussion:

“I was one of those far from exceptional high school runners who arrived at Haverford and was swept along by the program and Tom’s teachings,” said J. B. Haglund, who as a senior in 2001-2 won the Division III championship in cross-country, 5,000 and 10,000 meters. “I remember one day seeing Marcus O’Sullivan on the track doing a Tom workout, and I remember that Tom spent as much time working with the slowest kid on our team that day as he did with Marcus.

“Whoever you are, if you want to come and work hard, Tom has time for you. He says this over and over: ‘The team is only as strong as the commitment of the least-accomplished person on the team.’ ”