New Lebanon athletic director Paul Blackburn is coach of coaches

His coaching legacy was secure. He set goals, personally and professionally, and achieved them. He enjoyed success on his terms, while positively affecting the lives of others.

He could’ve very easily ridden off into the sunset, without regrets and without looking back. But instead, he chose to become a first-time athletic director for a Lebanon scholastic sports program that in some ways is at the lowest point of its long history.

Paul Blackburn had been retired for about a month before deciding to take on the biggest challenge of his educational career.

“Everybody’s personality is different,” he said. “There are things that make you tick. You grow and do things, and they make it worth getting up every day. I need that. Everywhere I’ve been, I’ve had an impact and I’ve given my best. We’re working in a team environment here. We have a lot of great coaches here and we have a great community, and I think I can help.

“Here at Lebanon, I think everybody has to be able to trust you. I don’t mind talking to people. I wake up every day happy and I enjoy life. I’m in a great position where I can try some things. Now, I’m still in the observation phase. If I see something, I can say, ‘Can I suggest something?’”

Blackburn isn’t originally from Lebanon, but it is his adopted home.

In June, Blackburn retired following a successful 35-year teaching and coaching career. He had just spent 16 years in the Derry Township School District, where he chaired the district’s health and physical education department and led the Hershey High School boys’ basketball team to prominence on and off the court.

In the early 2000s, Blackburn had enjoyed similar boys’ basketball success with the Lebanon Cedars.

“I’m really excited to be back,” he said. “I love Lebanon. I live right behind the high school. The reason I’m back at Lebanon is because I want to be part of this team. My wife and I believe in being in the community because you feel like you’re part of something.”

Blackburn replaces Tony Sinico as Lebanon School District’s athletic director. He officially became the Cedars’ head sports guy on July 13, after applying for the position on June 23 and being interviewed for it on July 1.

Blackburn is the school district’s seventh athletic director over the last 21 years.

“I have friendships with the people I worked with at Lebanon,” said Blackburn, 58. “They are just people we know. When the position came open, someone said to me, ‘Hey, would you consider applying?’ I talked to my wife and I didn’t have anything to do next year. I’m not a sit-around guy. Thirty-five years of coaching was kind of my goal. One of my daughters said to me, ‘Is there anything else you want to do?’ I didn’t have anything to go to. It was the first time since I was 21 that I didn’t have keys to a gym. I love Lebanon, I love the kids and I love the community. I think that’s why I applied.”

At Hershey, during the 2024-25 season, Blackburn’s Trojans captured the District Three Class AAAAA championship before advancing to the PIAA title tilt. Last year, Hershey High followed up that run with a 23-4 overall mark.

During his 28 years as a head coach, Blackburn’s teams compiled a combined record of 462-252, a mark that included a 270-132 record at Hershey.

“We won a lot of basketball games,” said Blackburn. “We had a good program with a lot of great kids and parents. At the tail end of my career, I was able to apply things I had learned. I was always willing to change. I was able to adapt to my environment. I think I was able to build a culture. When I got to Hershey, I started to evolve in having better relationship with my players, coaches and community. It was really a fun time and a lot of great people.”

Blackburn coached the Lebanon boys’ basketball program from 1998 to 2007. During that time, the Cedars captured a Lancaster-Lebanon League championship in 2004 and were consistently a force to be reckoned with in both the league and around District Three.

“What I remember is the passion of the community for the boys’ basketball program,” he said. “It was a basketball town, and I think it still is. I think the staff and administration were really close and we worked on things together. In my time here, my wife and I made great friends.”

Given the current state of Lebanon athletics – at least on the playing fields – the early 2000s almost seem like the good old days.

“Obviously, people in school and the community have changed,” said Blackburn. “I think their vision of athletics has changed. I think the participation level was greater when I was here. I think a lot of people have other after-school priorities.

“There’s a standard and a base that’s here and we’ve got to build on it. Our athletes are trying sports at a later age. I think the skill level shows that. I think we have great coaches, but we have to build up from the lower levels. Some of our athletic programs have grown by leaps and bounds, and there’s some potential in our programs. I think it’s a great place to be right now.”

As evidenced by some recent very serious investments in facility upgrades, Lebanon School District remains committed to athletics as an extension of the classroom and a teaching tool. On the scholastic level, there are three ways to measure success in sports – participation, competitiveness, and winning. But there are lessons to be gathered from all three.

“I’m in lockstep with the administration with our goals,” said Blackburn. “In the past, when I’ve had success, it’s not just because I had great players; I also had great families and great coaches. We really want to go far here, and we have to go together. This is not a quick fix. It’s a year-to-year-to-year thing and if something doesn’t work, you try something else. There are a lot of people interested in it. I don’t know everything, but I’m willing to learn; I’m willing to help and I’m willing to listen. We just need vested interests in our kids.

“It’s a pretty short shelf life for ADs and it’s a young man’s game. I think my role is to be in control of all athletics and I want to be a resource. And everything has to be done safely. Now, my area is pleasing everyone and giving everyone opportunities to compete. I don’t think anyone understands the hours of an AD until they become an AD. It’s an endless of job of ‘I need to be present.’ It’s a different pace, but I love it.”