Profiles: Youth Center director Ian Kanarvogel makes a name for himself

Ian Kanarvogel has been a familiar face on the Island for most of his life. But only recently did he become a central figure in the lives of many young people on the Island — he was hired to be director of the Shelter Island Youth Center in September. And if you attended the successful 3-on-3 Lt. Theinert Basketball Tournament at the school this past weekend, you saw him manning the microphone, running the show.

Ian is also a presence for youth in his role as a teacher aide at the school. He is new to both jobs — he graduated from Texas A&M Corpus Christi just last May. But what he may lack in professional experience he more than makes up for with his enthusiasm, creativity and perhaps most importantly, his intimate understanding of what it’s like to grow up on the Rock.

Ian, his parents, Mark and Mary, and his sister Hope moved to the Island from Centerport when he was in fourth grade. Ian played football, basketball and baseball in grades 7-12, earning him the Gold Key Award, given to students who compete in all three sports.

While he was in high school, he worked as a camp counselor at Mashomack and as a lifeguard, but didn’t become involved in education until he attended Texas A&M. He was working toward his bachelor’s degree studying kinesiology, which examines the body’s movement. This could lead to a career in teaching physical education, he said, but also let him consider a separate field like physical therapy.

During his senior year he was student-teaching physical education and adaptive physical education at a nearby public school in Corpus Christi. “I was a minority in South Texas — the students were mainly Hispanic, and Spanish was the language that was spoken there. It was a large school with a lot more kids than there are here.”

It was also a much more difficult environment than he was accustomed to on Shelter Island. “When I was in school here, if someone got in trouble they would call your parents, and you wouldn’t want that to happen. There, you threaten to call their parents and they’re like, ‘so?’ They don’t really care … It was an eye-opener, that’s for sure.”

He graduated and got the job as the Youth Center Director and recreation aide and started working as a teacher’s aide assisting a special education student. Going from a huge university in Texas back to his small town was a surprisingly easy transition, he said. “It’s always been a very warm and welcoming atmosphere … It’s a plus to be eased into the teaching profession in a place that’s already familiar.”

Lt. Joey Theinert was in the grade ahead of Ian at the school, and he died around the time Ian graduated from college and headed back to the Island. It served as a reminder of the spirit of his hometown. “The whole Island shut down for the memorial. It was amazing to see the community get together and show their support.” That helped inspire him to organize Saturday’s Theinert Basketball Tournament.

Ian is certified to teach K-12 special education and physical education and K-4 general education, and hopes to one day become a full-time teacher. He got interested in education, he said, because “I’ve always enjoyed working with kids and I feel like I’m not really a grown-up myself. Kids are not that hard to get through to, it just takes patience. Especially with the Youth Center job, when you’re younger, the kids are a little bit more comfortable with you. Gym was my main thing, so paying me to direct dodgeball and basketball and football, it’s a no-brainer.”

He understands the important role the Youth Center plays in students’ lives. “I knew what it was like to not have anything to do here in the winter growing up. I played sports but for the kids who didn’t, they were kind of stuck.”

At the Youth Center, Ian makes sure they have plenty to do. “I just try to keep them as busy as possible so they don’t go crazy.”

He organizes events like last month’s Halloween dance, which was attended by 30 to 40 kids. On an average Friday night he’ll have over 30 kids swinging by the center.

Some weekends he’ll have a game night, when he’ll arrange ping-pong or pool tournaments, or kids will just play video games or hang out. Or they’ll play hide-and-go-seek or manhunt in the dark. When it was warmer out he would take them over to the basketball courts or play football or capture the flag. He also ran a bike club on Tuesdays. “It’s good to get the kids outside.”

He tries to get kids off the Island from time to time. “When they go off to college, many of them have not developed people skills because they already know everyone. You never really had to go up to someone and introduce yourself, or make a new group of friends. So I want to give them the chance to interact with new people.” They did just that last weekend as many of the players in Saturday’s tournament were Sag Harbor or Southold kids.

In December he’s planning a trip to Smith Haven for kids to go Christmas shopping. And he’s considering arranging events with other youth centers.

He tries to draw students to the center by creating a comfortable atmosphere. “I’m not going to force them to do what they don’t want to do.” He just wants them to stay active, which is good for them and makes his job more pleasant: “I don’t want to sit in the office.”

Most of the kids at the Center are 5th, 6th and 7th graders as well as freshmen and sophomores. Juniors and seniors tend not to come, he said, after they get their driver’s licenses. “I was the same way at that age. Once you can drive you’re eager to explore more, to get off the Island.” But he tries to offer alternatives: The basketball tournament was one example of how Ian’s gotten the older kids involved.

His parents are both well known members of the community: his father, a retired sheet metal mechanic, is a Red Cross EMT and has been a School Board member since 2008, and his mother is the school nurse. When they were named Lions Club Citizens of the Year last May, he was there celebrating with them. But he is also making his own way. “I’m trying to get out of that shell of ‘Mark and Mary’s son,’ to be more of my own self, and working at the Youth Center was a really good opportunity for that.”