By Ella Franzman – Sports Editor and Maya Rosado – Editor-in-Chief

Jonathan Law Athletic Director VJ Sarullo has been appointed to the same position at Staples High School in Westport. 

The news of Sarullo’s departure was announced in early January. Previously, Sarullo was the Athletic Director at Notre Dame-Fairfield and Sheehan in Wallingford before coming to Law. This is now his 17th year as an Athletic Director in the state.

Sarullo will fill the position held by Marty Lisevick, who will retire after 22 plus years as the Staples Athletic Director on January 31. 

Sarullo’s last day at Law is February 28. He said that he is excited about the move but will remember his time at Law fondly.

“First, I will miss all of the student-athletes, coaches, families and staff members that I have the good fortune to meet over my nine years here,” Sarullo said. “Next, I will miss the sense of family that our school community has developed over the years.”

Sarullo also holds the title as the president of the Connecticut Association of Athletic Directors and will continue to hold this position at Staples. He also is the SCC Chairperson for girls basketball and softball, which he will have to step down from as he will move from the SCC to the FCIAC.

“I think with any new position, there is some excitement with the unknown,” Sarullo said. “With that said, the parts that I know about are also exciting – 40 teams, 900 student-athletes, great coaches and facilities and supporting families.”.

Many Law coaches described their feelings about Sarullo’s departure as bittersweet. They said they are happy for him and his family but sad to see him leave.

“As our friend and Athletic Director, we are going to miss him, but we are excited for him as well,” girls tennis coach Mr. Kulenych said. “VJ has taken all of our athletic programs to new heights and his support and leadership has been incredible over the years. When he told us about the move, VJ said that his goal when he came to Law was to leave the athletic program better than he found it, and that’s exactly what he did.”

Softball coach Mrs. Blude said she will miss how much Sarullo supported all of Law’s sports teams.

“VJ’s biggest contribution over the years was doing all he could to support the coaches and players but truly caring about the success of the teams at Law,” Blude said.

Boys basketball coach Mr. Anderson said that Sarullo’s impact on Law athletics goes beyond the field or the court.

“VJ’s contributions to our Law family and community are extensive,” Anderson said. “He has been the driving force in reshaping and building our athletic programs to the highest levels of sportsmanship and sustained success.”

This past spring, Sarullo also served as an assistant baseball coach and helped lead them to the Class M semifinal game where they fell short to Woodland. Even with that added coaching responsibility, Sarullo still attended countless spring contests.

“I will miss his presence at games,” Blude said. “When he couldn’t be at an away game because of other teams having home contests, I will miss the texts asking if we won almost immediately after the game ended.”

In his time at Law, Sarullo also had a significant impact on the JLHS Booster Club.

“VJ has been a tremendous partner with the Booster Club since our founding in 2015,” Booster Club President Sherri Franzman said. “With his unwavering support we have been able to do a lot for the student-athletes at Law, like our highly successful Law Nation program that has led to increased student attendance at our sporting events.” 

In the fall of 2022, there were over 1,400 Law Nation admissions to sporting events. Since the program began in the fall of 2017, students have entered games using the Law Nation program over 7,200 times.

Sarullo said he is confident that Law athletics will continue to thrive under the new Athletic Director.

“I know that nothing but success lies ahead for all of our programs,” Sarullo said. “I have loved every second of being a part of the Lawmen Family. No matter where I am, I will always be a Lawman.”