Cincinnati Bell CEO a mentor for Taft standout
Jack Cassidy lends a hand to students, school
Aug. 8, 2011
Kevin Goheen
Enquirer contributor
Jack Cassidy gives his cell phone number out to any student at Taft High School who asks for it. The CEO of Cincinnati Bell and his company are invested in the school beyond just a financial backing that has been part of the school's success, a success that received national recognition last year when it earned the National Blue Ribbon of Excellence award.
When one of those students calls, as Adolphus Washington did last year, Cassidy answers.
"Adolphus asked me last year if I'd be willing to mentor him," said Cassidy.
Washington is a senior at Taft, a very visable senior especially when it comes to college coaches and scouts. He is among the top recruits in the country in football; he's ranked as the 95th best player in the ESPNU 150 and No. 86 by Rivals.com, two of the more notable recruiting services in the country.
He has a lot of people calling him, sending him text messages and recruiting letters, all trying to persuade Washington that their school and football program is where he should be headed after high school.
Mentoring, as Cassidy explains it, can take on many different roles. Those roles depend on the individual student.
"In Adolphus' case he's got a great family structure. His mom and dad are very centered on the important things so I don't really have to talk to him about his girlfriend or don't do drugs or watch what you're doing on Friday nights and all of that kind of stuff," said Cassidy. "What he told me in our conversations is that he doesn't want someone to tell him what school he ought to go to but just somebody to sit down and talk to who is interested but disinterested in the terms of his conversations with the athletic directors and the pressure that's on him."
In other words, Cassidy is another in a line of people Washington has surrounded himself, a group that begins with his parents and includes Taft football coach Mike Martin, basketball coach Mark Mitchell, athletic director Anthony Booker and principal Anthony Smith.
Cassidy brings another viewpoint that Washington trusts.
"He has a good relationship with a lot of college coaches so he's let me know what a lot of college coaches expect out of their athletes," said Washington. "He'll tell me about schools, about the academic part of it, the most important part of it."
The recruiting process has been fun for Washington - "I enjoy the attention," he said - but it does come with many demands. Recruits are allowed five official visits to college campuses and Washington said two of his official visits will be to Alabama and Miami (Fla.). He has already taken unofficial visits to Cincinnati and Ohio State.
"Adolphus is a kid with a 3.6 grade point average and he's in an academic environment where he can be successful at the academic level when he goes on to college," said Cassidy. "I think the whole environment he's been in with Anthony Smith being the principal, and with Coach Mitch and Mike Martin, he's getting things at Taft High School that you can't get at other places.
"That was our dream for Taft nine years ago when it was the worst performing institution in Cincinnati. We wanted kids to go there for lots of different reasons but primarily for the educational benefit. And if the kid wants to play sports that should be a pretty good place to play as well."
