Author Archives: Claire Rietmann-Grout

February 4, 2023, is twenty-one years after my mother’s passing. Every year feels different for me when my mother’s anniversary cycles through, but this year has felt especially different for me than in the last few years. I have been feeling a lot more balanced in my life, in general, since creating my own natureContinue reading “My Grief Plan”

This week, our Half Moon Bay community was shaken by a mass shooting. Half Moon Bay is a small beach town, known for pumpkins and Mavericks, and I never imagined that gun violence would happen so close to home. It was a tense afternoon as the tragedy unfolded, while we frantically called our friends andContinue reading “Listening Session on Gun Violence”

About a year ago, I met Pam Baker. While out for a walk, we bonded over our passion for empowering women to lead through sports, specifically through encouraging them to become coaches. Pam shared her vision to create a training program for young women to learn how to coach and prepare them for their careers.Continue reading “The Women’s Coaching Alliance”

For Semester 2, Coastside Leadership Academy is providing students with the opportunity to join the Concurrent Enrollment program at Skyline College. Through the Concurrent Enrollment program, students are able to earn transferable college credit while in high school. The Concurrent Enrollment program is free for high school students and they have access to all SkylineContinue reading “CLA Goes to College”

Like many sports fans, I was glued to the TV last Sunday night as we watched football player Damar Hamlin receive life saving care on the field and then be rushed to the hospital in an ambulance. His teammates and coaches were visibly shaken and upset. Players on both teams were in tears. From theirContinue reading “Coaching Through Crisis”

This past year has been a year of growth for me. I have learned about myself and am proud of where I am in my evolution to become the best leader I can be. Here are three leadership lessons I learned last year that I am taking with me into 2023. Leadership confidence is strengthenedContinue reading “Leadership Lessons I Am Taking With Me Into 2023”

At Coastside Leadership Academy, we spent the semester cocreating curriculum with our students, focusing on 21st Century Skill development. Our students have learned about our Coastside Community from many different angles and now it is time for them to reflect back on the skills they have learned and begin creating their portfolio.  At CLA weContinue reading “Student End of the Semester Reflections”

I enjoy this time of year between Thanksgiving and Winter Break because former students are back in town and they often come to visit. It is fun to hear how students are doing after graduation with their new found independence, and learn about their college experience so far. Their stories are lively, and feeling theirContinue reading “When Students Come Back”

I have been goal oriented for as long as I can remember. When I was a kid I would set goals for myself, large and small, and then work as hard as I could towards them. I remember posting “Claire’s Summer Goals,” on my wall during the summer between 5th and 6th grade. Years later,Continue reading “The Positive Coach’s 10 Stages For Setting, Working Towards, and Reaching Goals”

At Coastside Leadership Academy we have established a daily routine. We start the morning with check in and mindfulness, move on to an hour of movement or play, and then have a student centered learning block. We break for an hour of lunch before another student centered learning block, and then have our closing circle.Continue reading “Student-led Days”