If you ask Craig Shymanski what he does, he might tell you he’s a girls’ basketball coach. Or an eighth-grade history teacher. Or the athletic director for both Central and Shepherd Middle Schools. But ask anyone who knows him, and they’ll tell you: Craig Shymanski is a culture builder.

For nearly three decades, Craig has poured his energy into teaching, coaching, and leading in Ottawa’s schools. He’s spent his career shaping not just athletes and students, but a larger culture of community, respect, and pride—one that extends far beyond the walls of a gym or the pages of a history book. I ask Craig how the classroom differs from the locker room. “Your pep talks are a little different in the classroom than in the locker room,” Craig laughs. But the truth is, his approach to teaching and coaching isn’t all that different. Both are about storytelling, about helping students see beyond the moment in front of them and understand the larger lessons at play.

“I tell my students, history is just a collection of stories—you just have to sit back and listen,” he explains. That same idea carries over into coaching. Whether it’s basketball, volleyball, or track, every team has its own story to tell, its own unique journey. “Every coach has their own way of doing things,” Craig says. “And every athlete has to buy into that coach’s story for the program to work.” That buy-in is everything. And it’s what Craig has spent years working to cultivate—not just on his own teams, but across all 25+ sports and activities he oversees as athletic director.

For Craig, athletics are more than just wins and losses. He wants every student in the district to feel valued, seen, and part of something bigger than themselves. That’s why he believes game nights shouldn’t just highlight the athletes on the court—they should be a full-school celebration. “When you come to one of our games, you’re not just watching basketball,” he says. “You see the cheerleaders, the dance team, the music program—all of it. Because it’s not just about one sport. It’s about our whole school culture.”

And that culture isn’t something Craig takes for granted. “I’m just the guy people come to if there’s a problem,” he says humbly. “But the success of this whole thing? It’s because of the coaches, teachers, and students who put in the work every day.”

One of the most defining things about Craig is his presence. He’s not a behind-the-scenes leader—he’s everywhere. “I try to be at just about every event I can,” he says. “Even if it’s just for a little while, I want students, parents, and coaches to know I’m there, that I care, and that I support them.”

It’s not just basketball. It’s every sport. Every activity. Every student. “If someone thinks I only care about girls’ basketball, I haven’t done my job,” he says. Because in his eyes, there’s no hierarchy of importance when it comes to school involvement. Every kid who picks up a ball, plays an instrument, or performs on stage is part of something bigger than themselves. And Craig is determined to make sure they all feel that.

At the core of everything Craig believes is this: sports are a metaphor for life. “You need struggle. You need adversity. Because things come too easy these days,” he says. He sees the connection between hard work in athletics and success in life. Very few students will go on to play Division 1 sports, let alone compete professionally. But the lessons they take from athletics—discipline, resilience, teamwork, and self-improvement—will last them a lifetime. “I always tell my athletes: You might never play past eighth grade, so let’s make this experience the best one possible,” Craig says. It’s about more than the scoreboard. It’s about building confidence, camaraderie, and personal growth—the kind of things that follow students long after they leave Shepherd or Central.

And that philosophy extends into his classroom as well. “I tell my students, for 50 minutes, forget about everything else. Leave whatever you’re dealing with at the door, and just enjoy the story,” he says. “Because history? It’s just stories. And I want them to love hearing them.”

Craig’s deep investment in Ottawa’s school culture isn’t just professional—it’s personal. He grew up here. He went to school here. And he started coaching when he was just 18 years old at Wallace. 

“This community cares,” he says. “People show up for sports, for concerts, for plays—even when their kids aren’t in school anymore.” He loves that about Ottawa, and he makes sure his students and athletes know they’re part of that tradition. “You never know who’s sitting in the stands, watching you play,” he tells them. “Because in a place like this, you matter to the whole community.”

It’s why he sets high expectations for his coaches, his athletes, and himself. It’s why he shows up. It’s why he works to make sure that every student in every activity feels like they belong. And when you ask him what all of this—the coaching, the teaching, the long hours, the sacrifices—has meant to him, his answer is simple. “I’m just along for the ride.”

But to the students and athletes of Ottawa, he’s the one driving the bus.