WHITEHALL – Christian Subdon is Whitehall through and through. He was born and raised here, a 2010 Whitehall High School alumnus. He and wife Sarah, also a Whitehall alumna, knew they wanted to ultimately raise their family here.
CJ Van Wieren is not a Whitehall native, but he and wife Lindsay have chosen it as a place where they could lay down roots and raise their family.
Christian Subdon and CJ Van Wieren believe they’re in positions within Whitehall District Schools to continue making positive change for not only their children, but for the community as a whole.
They’re both taking on new roles within the district: Subdon will be director for middle school athletics and activities, leaving the classroom setting; Van Wieren will be assistant superintendent and leader of athletics in the high school after serving as middle school principal.
Brian Beebe, who has served as Whitehall’s athletic director for the past two years, is leaving for AD, high school assistant principal and girls varsity basketball coaching positions at Mason County Central.
“The No. 1 thing is we have to get people that love Whitehall in the positions that can make change. I think that’s what we’re doing,” Subdon said. “I know that I’m a Whitehall person through and through. There’s nobody we talk to that says that’s untrue. I’ve never thought about wanting to leave here for greener pastures, whatever. This is where I want to be.”
Subdon, 31, has spent the last five years teaching fourth grade and, for a bit, third grade as well at Ealy Elementary. In March, he completed this second season as Whitehall’s boys varsity basketball coach after serving as junior varsity coach for three years.
Van Wieren, 38, recently wrapped up his 10th year with Whitehall District Schools. He spent the last seven years as middle school principal. In the coaching realm, he’s been offensive coordinator for Whitehall’s varsity football team for a decade.
“Moving back 10 years ago, coming back to Michigan from Colorado, luckily (we) landed in a place like Whitehall,” Van Wieren said. “There was absolutely nothing to complain about from the get-go. For teaching for three years over at Ealy, it was just always about, ‘How do we make this place better?’ And ‘How do we get involved?’ And not just me. My wife, too.
“It was very accepting in terms of someone that had never lived there and never been a part of this place. Honestly, it’s that mentality that we carry on right now. It’s why we can (be attractive to potential teachers and staff). It’s why people, when they get here, they stay. It’s not just me. It truly is how we treat people in Whitehall and in our school district that makes people want to stay.”
Whitehall superintendent Jerry McDowell noted that the district is not hiring an AD specifically. He said that the district is moving some of its financial and fund-raising efforts to the business office from a leadership perspective.
McDowell said that duties such as fostering relationships with high school coaches along with leadership, scheduling and related responsibilities will belong to Van Wieren, a Holland native and former multi-sport standout, who played football and basketball at Ferris State University.
CJ and Lindsay Van Wieren, whose sister Amy is married to Whitehall head varsity football coach Tony Sigmon, have three young children.
Christian and Sarah Subdon have two young daughters.
Both the Van Wieren and Subdon families live in the district.
“The big piece is just the commitment and the passion to be a Whitehall Viking, you know,” McDowell said. “We have excellent coaches. I’d put our coaches up against any of them out there. I think those two guys are part of that system and they have relationships built with the head coaches and others at different levels and know what it takes to be an effective head coach and assistant. They know the district, they’re from here, they love it here. They really just have it all.”
Photos by CatchMark
Subdon said he will miss the daily interactions with students and families that he encountered in the classroom. At the same time, he believes he’ll be able to form connections and impact even more students and families in his new role.
As McDowell sees it, the notion is to create a continuum of participation and engagement in which opportunities are expanded from the lower grades through high school.
“We believe at Whitehall that getting kids involved in activities is going to help further their academics, it’s going to make them more well-rounded individuals. Activities doesn’t just mean sports,” Subdon said.
“Obviously, I have the role of athletic director at the middle school, but the other side of it is just getting kids involved. So after school instead of getting out and running around Whitehall doing God knows what, doing other things they shouldn’t be, they’re here with us and hopefully we can make an impact on them after the school day.”
Photos by CatchMark
Van Wieren firmly believes that students involved in extracurricular activities tend to be more engaged in school and perform better academically.
Van Wieren said that he and fellow leaders at Whitehall intend on empowering coaches to teach and operate in the way they know is best for student-athletes.
The No. 1 goal for the district, he said, is to provide more opportunities for its young people.
“The way I look at it from a personal standpoint is, my kids are in third grade, first grade and not even in school yet. Of course, I want this to be the best possible place for my own kids personally. I don’t want to ever waver from that,” Van Wieren said. “I want to make it a better experience for them and give them every opportunity that they can have.
“But, on top of that, the reason we go into education is it’s not more about our own kids, it’s about every kid. How can we make this the best possible place there is? That’s what we’re dedicated to.”
