As a three-sport athlete and star of many Harriton Theatre Company performances over the years, James Butler has become one of the more recognizable senior athletes around the school. As captain of the cross country and crew teams for Harriton, James has made a name for himself on the athletic fields and also in the classroom as a member of the International Baccalaureate program. Having just completed the rigorous cross country season, James is already looking forward to the upcoming indoor track season. “During this cross country season while I did not make it to states, Max Norris and Peter Downs did. I hope to make up for my loss by making it to states during indoor” James said.
James also has high hopes for the upcoming crew season this spring, in which he and fellow Senior Shane Fouste will return as captains. James hopes that he and his boat will be able to make it to Nationals for the first time. Last year was a successful one as two of the team’s boats made it to the national level, though James’ boat finished 5th in the Stotesbury Regatta, one of the oldest and largest rowing competitions in the United States. Their 5th place finish caused them to narrowly miss making it to nationals. Crew is one of the up and coming sports, which is steadily gaining followers on an international level. “Crew probably leans towards the underclassmen as I think the sport is growing in popularity”, James replied, when asked about the balance of age within the sport.
As mentioned before, the Cross Country team had a strong season with Junior Peter Downs and Sophomore Max Norris making it to states, while James Butler finished in 50th out of over 400 runners at the District Championships. He was only a matter of seconds away from qualifying for the State Championships. When asked about key members of the team, James was quick to single out Peter and Max, along with his fellow Senior, captain Connor Wortley. “The cross country team was a tad bit more upperclassmen although there is a very promising underclassmen pool”
James has also been quite involved in theatre throughout his high school career, playing lead roles in the Harriton Theatre Company’s productions of Tommy, Bat Boy, Hair and High Fidelity. He was also the stage manager for the production of Our Town. This year he tried out for the Phantom of the Opera at Merion Mercy Academy and earned the role of Raoul. “It’s great because their schedule lets me run indoor track at the same time” James said. James hopes to continue his theatrical pursuits in college at some level. James is also a member of the National Honor Society, an organization that recognizes outstanding high school students. He helps out around the community at Blue Elephant Farm on weekends, where he helps the Willis Town trust fund preserve the local grasses to sustain the area’s ecosystem.
James is currently in the middle of his senior year of the International Baccalaureate program at Harriton, one of the most challenging education programs in the world. Looking ahead to college, James does not have his heart set on any particular school, but he has already figured out what he wants to study. “I plan to study psychology or neuroscience wherever I go while partaking in theater at least at some degree” James said. He plans to take psychology next semester, in addition to his regular IB course load. He also plans to continue to row crew in college at either a varsity or club level.
Over his years at Harriton, James has turned himself into one of the most recognizable figures and a successful three-sport athlete. One of the rare handful of people, who are both and outstanding athlete and an outstanding student, James has been able to find success on the stage as well. He is looking forward to the rest of his senior sports seasons, where he hopes to make States and Nationals in Indoor Track and Crew respectively. He plans to pursue psychology or neuroscience during college, hopefully at a place where he can pursue theater and crew as well. Hopefully, he can achieve all of his athletic goals and survive his senior year of the International Baccalaureate program.