Transcript: Brad and Mr. Perry on Legacy, Leadership, and Life Beyond the Swimming Lanes

Good morning, and welcome back to the show. We're here with U.S.'s great math and law teacher and swim coach, Mr. Perry, and his son, Senior Swimming Captain Brad Perry. How are you guys?

Doing great. Great to have you on the show. Yeah. So, Mr.

Perry, we'll start with you. When did you arrive at U.S., and what was your journey like to get there? I actually arrived at U.S. when I was in kindergarten. When my dad was a teacher at U.S., I started kindergarten.

We lived in Shaker Heights, right across the street. I was only here for two years. I went K-2. My dad switched jobs, so I left, went to Shaker for a year, and then Seoul, and up until 10th grade, and then came back for 11th and 12th grade.

Nice. You know, going to you, Brad, now, when did you start U.S.? When did you kind of know that this was, like, the place for you? Yeah, well, I mean, the cards were kind of already set for me a long time ago, but, you know, I also started in kindergarten.

There wasn't a pre-K program at the time, so I am the full lifer here. Yes. Yeah, so this might be a little bit more complicated. Yeah.

It's my 13th year, and it's just crazy. It's coming all the way to an end in just about 23 school days. Wow, that's crazy. You know, Mr.

Perry, your family has one of the longest histories at university school, spanning multiple generations. Can you guys kind of walk us through your family's history with U.S. and describe what it means personally to just continue this legacy? Sure. Well, I graduated from 89.

Brad's going to be in 25. My father graduated in 54, and he was a teacher at the school. My grandfather graduated in 24. My great-grandfather started as the first freshman in class until he graduated in 1893.

Wow. And great, great, we're one of the founders of the school. So it's pretty cool to be part of that history, and yeah, it's very exciting. Yeah, that's amazing.

Well, Brad, I know there's probably so many that you could pick from, but what's your favorite memory, just looking back on your entire time at U.S.? Hmm. I mean, there are a lot. It's really hard to pick, but I would say, you know, I think my junior year at the state finals for swimming, I was coming off of a pulled hamstring that happened just a month prior, and just kind of being able to, like, seal that victory.

That would be our third in a row at that time, and that was probably the highlight, and especially to be able to do it alongside my dad and coach. You know, Mr. Perry, you're one of the school's, like, beloved math and law teachers here, but you're also, obviously, the swim coach. As we've been talking about, when did your passion for coaching, like, swimming begin, and did you ever anticipate on winning so many state championships?

I definitely could not have anticipated it. I don't think if you would have asked me if I was in high school or college when I'd be coaching high school swimming, I wouldn't have thought that was the case. You know, I think I probably realized my true passion. I coached summer rec programs.

I coached in Bainbridge when I was in high school and in college, but it wasn't until, actually, I began my career as a lawyer when I took time off. I took time off of law practice to go watch the high school state meet, and it was a moment where I was watching the state finals, and I realized, this is what I want to do. I don't want to be a lawyer anymore. This is what I want to do.

So that's when it really hit me. You know, going to that, Brad, when did you kind of think that swimming is going to be your sport? Did you kind of grow up with swimming? Like, what did that kind of look like?

Yeah, so even before I was enrolled here at U.S., I would often be at some practices up here just to hang out. After school and just being kind of around that chlorine air even before I was six years old when I started in kindergarten. And I think my dad signed me up for some very early swim lessons around kindergarten, and that's kind of, you know, I never really looked back after that. And it's just kind of hard.

I mean, you can't really get away from it, so I just kind of embrace it. You know, now that you're grown up, you're one of the senior captains of one of the most successful teams in the state. Can you kind of take us back to when did you want to be a captain, and what was kind of that whole path? Yeah, so I think it was a lot of my freshman year when I was the captain at the time.

One of them was Ted Applebaum, and he was super nice and got to know everyone on the team, even us freshmen who were just super new. And I think from that moment, I could tell that's someone I really wanted to be. And even starting in sophomore year, that was my goal. Even without a title, I was trying to just know everyone, kind of really be like with the whole team.

And then I was fortunate enough to be elected captain to officially be able to continue that this year. And Mr. Perry, I know you've won some before, Brad, but coaching your son has to be uniquely rewarding. So can you describe the emotions the first time you felt?

You and Brad won together the state championship? Yeah, I mean, it's incredibly special. As Brad said, he's been at my swim practice since he was little. I mean, he used to play games with the upperclassmen.

He'd create games with kickboards and balls during practice to keep him occupied for hours of practice. So it's just unbelievable to imagine that little kid that used to hang out with my captains is now winning state titles with my team. I don't know if I could have predicted it. It's pretty special, though.

Yeah, and Brad winning at the state level is something few athletes, get to experience. What's one moment from those state meets that you'll never forget? I think maybe this year, before state finals, we have this cheer, and it's called game time. And it really just kind of like, it's different than our normal cheer.

We only do it in really important meets. And I think being able to do it one last time with the packed Canton house that was there to watch us, that one was really special, and especially to be around. My fellow seniors who have, we've done this four times. So it was really special to be able to have that moment one last time this year.

Yeah, and that one that you guys just won, Mr. Perry, you said that was the biggest crowd you guys have had at one of your state meets. So Brad, what was your favorite chant that the crowd did? Hmm.

I think the, I think it was a couple of, a couple of the prefects created a song about, about my, my dad, about winning, winning a fourth state title. And while I think in the moment, it was, it was a little difficult to hear because it's so loud in the natatorium. Once I kind of heard back what it actually was, I think it was Cam Shiver and Connor Merrick who created this, this kind of like jingle. It was, it was like different words, but it was the theme of walking into winter wonderland.

And that was kind of hearing, Yeah. even just that preparation that went into that, that cheer. It just felt really special, especially for us, for the swim team. Yeah. I remember hearing that.

I thought it was winter wonderland. They're like walking in a Perry wonderland. That's different. You know, Mr.

Perry, swimming practices are notoriously challenging. What's your philosophy behind making practices so rigorous and how does this discipline kind of translate to other areas of life or just kind of other sports even? I've always said that the habits, you create in swim practice can be something that I'll see in the classroom. And we work on being on time, being prepared, giving your, doing your best.

And it, I think that really translates to what you do in the classroom and other sports, but we, we make it hard. And, but part of the main part of swimming is the rest period at the end, which we call taper. And I think that's what the boys look forward to that the most. And so I think we can get them to buy into the really hard training, knowing that there's going to be an easier part of the season, the last couple of weeks.

Yeah. You know, Brad, after graduating, do you see swimming continuing to play a role in your life, even recreationally, or maybe even as a us coach yourself? That's, that's a leading question, but I would say I'm definitely going to do some club swimming in college. And I've already done a little bit of coaching with some country clubs on the side, just for fun already.

And that's a super rewarding experience. So I wouldn't be too surprised if you see me back with the coach's whistle at some point. Maybe not university school, but somewhere, but that's to be determined. Mr.

Perry, you wear many hats here at US, a teacher of both law and math, coach and mentor to a lot of students. How do you balance all of those roles effectively? It's a lot. It's a lot.

But I mean, I, I love it here. I mean, I've been here for, this is my 26th year now, and I think it's a part of me. I like coaching and teaching, I like watching other sporting events and you know, it, it, it is, it's what I love. And so it's not, it's not hard to do it.

I'm happy to do it. Yeah. You know, Brad, beyond all these different medals and championships, what's the biggest life lesson you've learned from swimming? And kind of to Mr.

Perry too, what's the biggest life lesson you've learned in and out of the pool every single day? I would say that the biggest lesson is when you think about swimming, you typically think of it as an individual swim. It's a sport. But when you kind of peel back the layers, you can see just how much your teammates really matter and how, even when you're all swimming your own races, you do end up relying on other people, whether that be to, to give your all in practice or to even just like be there behind your lane to kind of get you motivated before your race.

So the lesson would be rely, you can rely on your teammates and then, or you have to rely on your teammates to be able to be successful. And Mr. Perry, I know you've recounted some of the motivational speeches you've given your team before some meets. What's your tactics for getting your team fired up before you go out to, for a big meet?

You know, I try to remind them that, that's a good question. I've had lots of different speeches. It really depends on the meet. And sometimes it's more like, Hey, this is our home pool.

We don't lose in our own pool and make them, but my, my main goal is get them to give them everything they've got. Yeah. And I always tell them, I encourage my swimmers constantly to go out fast in the race, whatever happens happens. And that's mostly what I'm pushing them to do is to take a big lead and hold on.

Yeah. You know, Brad, you're also deeply involved in theater and lighting at U.S. What kind of sparked this interest and how does it balance or maybe even compliment your love for swimming? That's a great question.

And theater for me, specifically lighting started back in fourth grade. I would be in the auditorium a lot because my sister who's since graduated college, she did a lot of theater in middle and high school. So I was around the kind of the performing arts world, not involved, but then I was there for enough rehearsals that I think I wander my way up to the control booth in the middle school. And it's looked really cool.

And I asked the director if I could help. And then that turned into me being the follow spot operator for Willy Wonka back in my fourth grade. And since then I've, I've done the 30 shows both here and professionally. So that that started a long time ago.

And then the way it complements with swimming is theater is really grueling. A lot of times when you see a show, you don't really understand all the work that went in all the late night tech rehearsals, all of those for the actors, like memorizing lines, learning songs. There's a lot of really hard work. And I think that pairs really well with swimming because swimming is a grind as well.

Lots of yards and you got to just grind all the way up until the end, which is the state meet. And then for theater, which is opening night. And are you hoping to continue that as you look into what your career could look like? Yeah, definitely.

I'll be majoring in theater with an emphasis on design and production. So I'm definitely hoping to kind of make that a career, whether as a designer or as a technician or someone on tour. Yeah, that's amazing. And Mr.

Perry, unless the source that we found it from is wrong, I believe you have seen an acapella group. If that's true, how did that happen? Because I don't think a lot of people think of you as someone who would do that. Yeah, that's, that's, that's, that's good data that you've got.

You know, I even when I, when I was at us, I kind of sang at some groups outside of school. I didn't do a ton of singing when I was at us. So I didn't come here in high school. I came my junior and senior year.

So I, didn't do as much here. So many people didn't know that when I was here. But when I got to college, I was in a acapella group called Men of Note. They always have this kind of funny puns on those acapella groups, but I ended up directing it my junior and senior year, but it was a lot of fun.

I really enjoyed doing it. Yeah, nice. You know, Mr. Perry, alongside teaching and coaching, you also practice law.

Could you kind of share us what first drew you to like the field of civil litigation and kind of what was your journey through law and then education? Sure. I mean, I, part of the reason I went to law school is I don't think I knew what else I wanted to do. It was when I was taking a class called philosophy of law in college.

And my professor said, what are you going to do with this? You're gonna go to law school. And I was like, Hey, I'm going to go to law school. And so that's kind of where it started.

And I actually am one of the opposite of most lawyers. I really enjoyed law school, but didn't particularly love the practice of law. And as I said before, after about two years of practicing and taking off time, helping coach, actually, when I was in law school, I actually helped coach a high school team in Indiana, one of the high school teams there. So, I was coaching there.

I was volunteering, coaching here. And that epiphany happened that one statement that changed what I wanted to do. And I always knew at one point I was going to be a teacher, but I think that sped it up. Nice.

You know, Brad, as you prepare to attend Northwestern, what excited you most about choosing just this particular university and how do you think you'll really compliment you wanting to go into just theater and tech? Yeah. So, when I was looking at schools way back in, in junior year, the thing that struck me about Northwestern is it reminded me a lot about U.S. And that's that how students are just involved all over, both like academically, athletically, and artistically.

And that's kind of what drew me to kind of the vibe of Northwestern, because it really did feel like home. And then the reason Northwestern for theater is because they have a very, it's a very intense program, both for actors, designers, technicians, there's a lot of flexibility to be able to do other majors because I'm, I'm enjoy math and I promise I'm not being paid to say that. And I would like to do some sort of economics in college. And that's the one of the only schools that could really guarantee me to do that.

Paired with the intense technical theater major. Yeah. Well, that's really cool. Well, you guys both have a lot of interests.

There has to be people that have either sparked that or, guided that. So this question will go to both of you guys. We'll start with Brad. Who's one teacher or mentor at U.S. or outside of U.S. that has significantly influenced your life?

I can easily say Mr. Kate has influenced me greatly. I had Mr. Kate for APUSH back in junior year and then the first semester of this year with Strategy, Diplomacy, and War.

And I really just enjoyed his teaching style. He's very organized. And was still very helpful outside of class if I was struggling. And he just taught me a lot about, about how the world works.

And a lot, especially with U.S. history and into some like international relations. And just the way that you can really get excited about a topic and present it really well to a group of high school students that have no knowledge prior. And then they walk out of that class with a lot more knowledge than when they walked in. Yeah.

And then Mr. Perry, who's been your greatest mentor inspiration throughout your life? You know, I, again, I had so many teachers at U.S. that I liked in almost every subject. But probably if I really nailed it down, it would be my relationship with Mr.

Grant who was not only was my swim coach in high school, he was my boss at the country club. And now it's kind of come full circle moment where he is now one of my assistant coaches. And so, I mean, he's always been influence on me. There's no one more positive and more enthusiastic about U.S. than Ron Grant, so I'm happy, Ron.

Now, Mr. Perry, you've had so many state championship teams, but also just so many different teams, and you have to have had so many different students going through. Do you remember one year or one specific team that really stood out to you as being just a year to remember? There are definitely a bunch, but probably the most memorable one, there's two, but I'll pick one, was in 2012, and we had won 2009, 2010, 2011, and in January of that year, our best swimmer decided he didn't want to be on the team anymore, so we had this huge hit to our program, and how were we going to respond, and a student, you know, brought this sign, and one of my captains stuck on the wall and said, challenge accepted, and a lot of things had to happen, but that meet came down just a few points, and for us to pull out a state championship in 2012, losing our best swimmer was incredible.

Yeah, and Mr. Perry, you've seen U.S. through so many different generations. What's the biggest change you've noticed in the school's culture, or just in the school in general over your years? Well, it's definitely such a different time than I was a student here, and we didn't have phones, we barely had computer games, and so it was a different, it was a really different time, and I always talk about how some of the challenges in the classroom we had here, and some of the most unbelievably unbearable assignments that we had to undertake with teachers, and I even asked one of my history teachers, I said, would you make this assignment anymore, and he said, no way, the students wouldn't do it, because it was just overwhelming, and it was, I remember it was this massive history paper that was due the day we got back from spring break, and it was, it was overwhelming, unfair, but we all did it, and I think now you guys have way more activities, way more things to do than we did.

We just had time to study, very different time. You know, Brad, looking forward, what's one kind of piece of advice that you want to remember as a student? Well, first of all, I think it's important to remember that as you enter kind of like college, and as you just continue on, and maybe what's one thing that will really just stick with you? I would say that in these last couple of years, my piece of advice for anyone, whether you are an elected leader or just someone in the school, is to be approachable, and to try to get to know as many people as you can, and to try to have an impact on as many people as you can.

This happened a lot in my junior year with a lot of people, and I think a lot of people in my house, I got to know a lot of them, and that, and those relationships I made were, they still stick with me even now, and that would be my advice to anyone starting out as a freshman or even, even as a junior now, because those, that's what sticks with you even more than any grade you can get on a paper, or even what college you get into, because those, those friendships and relationships are things that you're going to keep with you, whether you're reaching out to people when you're at college, or visiting on a reunion weekend. You know, Mr. Perry, kind of on the flip side, if you could give one piece of advice to a kid, or even a senior that's Brad's age, what would you give? What's that kind of one piece of information that would really, you hope, guide them?

You know, for, gosh, I, I give a lot, I love to give advice in all my classes, whether it's about what to do in high school, or what to do in college. I, I, I constantly am trying to, I know it's, it sounds cliche, is to find a way to get outside of your comfort zone. It's something I say in swim practice all the time, is that, you know, you got to make yourself, you got to make it hurt, and you, and I try and encourage kids to try something new, step out of your comfort zone, try to meet a new person, try a new activity, especially when you get to college, too. You hit the reset button, and you're, no one even knows you.

You can be a totally different person, so I'm always encouraging people to try something new. And Mr. Perry, you know, you've seen Brad develop throughout all of these years. What are you most proud of, looking back on his development?

And being able to spend so much time with him? You know, I think when he talks about lighting to me, is that, you know, when, when he started doing that in fourth grade, I don't know if anyone, any of us foresaw that this would still be a passion for him. And when he's passionate about something, he gives a lot of time, and a lot of effort, and a lot of care, and that is pretty impressive. Yeah.

And then Brad, what are you most thankful for, being able to spend all this time with your dad, throughout your time in school? Yeah, I mean, I spent a lot of time with him. I spent a lot of time, whether that be in, in car rides, or at the dinner table, and then, of course, during the school day. So, just being able to, to be around a dad who's, be around the 10-time state champion, and kind of just get a lot of his advice, whether that be related to things in the classroom, or in the pool, or outside of both.

So, I'm just really grateful to be able to have that kind of time with him these past four years, but also the last 13 years here at U.S. You know, Mr. Perry, if you could change one thing about this school in any way, with unlimited power, what would it be? You know, I'll say with the swimming, we need a 50-meter pool.

There's only three high schools in the state of Ohio that have one, and why not university school be the fourth one? Nice. What about those urinal covers that you want? That would be great, too.

Well, Mr. Perry, we have answers. Interesting question here. If you could switch jobs with any other U.S. teacher for one day, who would it be and why?

Wow, if I could switch jobs, you know, I think it would be, well, I guess, in addition to what I love with the students, I also really love connecting with the alumni. So, maybe some alumni department. Maybe spend a lot of time with alums from around the country. That would be awesome to really connect with alums and hear their stories when they were here, too.

I would love that, too. That's cool. You know, Mr. Perry, I have a couple of final questions.

How do you want students at U.S. to remember your impact and kind of legacy? Wow. Well, I think my story of, you know, leaving a potential really lucrative profession like law and choosing something I really care about, I think that's really important. I know, again, to say follow your passions, and I mean, many people say, why did you leave being a lawyer?

But I think if I can encourage students to find out what your true passion is and to follow that, that's what I want them to do. Nice. And then going to Brad, what's the legacy you want to leave? I mean, you mentioned it.

We're getting to the last kind of 20 or so school days, right? What do you kind of want to leave when it's all said and done? Yeah, I want people to remember the impact I had and the dedication I had towards things I was passionate about. So, that would be both in the pool, up in the booth with lighting, and in the orchestra as a percussionist.

Nice. You know, our favorite question to ask all of our guests really at the end of the end is what their why is. Both of you are waking up hours before both of us during and before the swim season, getting ready for the grueling and tough season that you guys have before you, and time and time again, is proven successful. So, Mr.

Perry and Brad, what is your why? What is your reason for pushing yourself every single day? You know, I always say that the best part about swim practice is when it's over. And there's something about you got up early, you got through it, but there's nothing you can do about it.

There's nothing like having a good breakfast and feeling that sense of accomplishment. And so, yeah, it's hard to get up. But the why is what happens at the end. And Brad, do you?

Yeah, I think my why would be is being able to change. It sounds cliche, but to be able to change lives. And especially in the pool, being someone to be looked up to and change people's scope. And I think that's an important thing.

I think that's a big part of how the world works and try to be a good role model. And I really just want to have an impact on people. And I believe that that's kind of what keeps me going each and every day. Yeah.

Well, Brad and Mr. Perry, it's been great having you on the show today. Thank you so much for taking the time to share your insights, stories and experiences with us. To our listeners, thank you so much for tuning in.

And we'll hope you'll join us next Wednesday for the next episode of Late Start Show. Thank you guys. Thank you guys so much. Thanks, guys.