The Championship-qualifying team from Fayetteville-Manlius Schools features (from left): Christopher Compson, Allison Peelle, Meaghan McAnaney, and Pat Engle.

SYRACUSE, April 29, 2012 — Teachers love to teach. It sounds obvious, but in virtually every instance in which a team from a school district is profiled for the J.P. Morgan Corporate Challenge Championship, the importance of teaching the lessons and values of running is singled out.

It is no exception with this year's mixed champions from Syracuse - Fayetteville-Manlius Schools.

On May 24, Fayetteville-Manlius will join Syracuse's other qualifying teams — men's winner General Electric and women's champion Lockheed Martin — at the 29th annual Series Championship, a gathering that brings together the best 39 corporate teams from across the world's leading corporate running series. The men's, women's and mixed team champions from each city will square off in a 3.5-mile Championship that will be run just prior to the start of the regularly scheduled JPMorgan Chase & Co. Corporate Challenge in Chicago's Grant Park.

The F-M Schools team — Christopher Compson, Pat Engle, Meaghan McAnaney, and Allison Peelle — is made up of four people who share passions for teaching and running.

"All four of us coach various sports within the district," said Engle. "I think that is pretty neat that we not only like to be active ourselves but also like to help our students experience an active lifestyle."

And, this year, two of the team members are taking their passions a step further.

2012 Syracuse Championship qualifiers
2011 Teams	Qualifiers
Men's: GENERAL ELECTRIC	David Harwood, Dan Jordy, Aaron Knobloch, Peter Katlic
Women's: LOCKHEED MARTIN	Anita Brooks, Stephanie DeGirolamo, Donna O'Byrne, Julie Shafer
Mixed: FAYETTEVILLE-MANLIUS SCHOOLS	Christopher Compson, Pat Engle, Meaghan McAnaney, Allison Peelle

"Chris and Allison are coordinating a training program for co-workers who may be new to running but want to get into shape so they can participate in this year's JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge (at Syracuse, on June 19)," said Engle.

The influence of people such as Compson, Peelle, Engle and McAnaney can have a significant impact on the health and fitness practices of students and co-workers alike. It is, no doubt, one reason that Fayetteville-Manlius Schools has become a mainstay of the popular Syracuse Corporate Challenge. In the past six years, F-M has had enthusiastic teams that produced two individual wins, seven team finishes in the top 5, and a mixed team championship in 2009.

"As teachers," said McAnaney, "we educate our kids about healthy lifestyles and it is just as important to teach about it as it is to be role models for our students.  It is also a great event to get together with co-workers across the district and show pride in our school."

Their second mixed team title at Syracuse last year was exciting even in the days after the race. F-M’s winning margin turned out to be a very small, with National Grid only 15 seconds behind and General Electric also close.

"I was continuously refreshing (www.jpmorganchasecc.com) in anticipation of our possible win," said Peelle, who was a member of the winning team at Syracuse in 2009 that traveled to Johannesburg for the Corporate Challenge Championship in 2010. "It was great news to discover our second victory, and even more exciting to find out where we would be traveling for this year’s championship."

Peelle, a physical education teacher at a Fayetteville-Manlius middle school, has participated in the JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge at Syracuse since she started working at the school district seven years ago. She says the "F-M community," which includes the "many individuals throughout the community who enjoy running," has spurred her interest in the sport. She's now run three marathons.

Compton is a seventh grade English teacher and a cross country/track coach at F-M. A longtime competitive runner, he has a marathon best of 2:50:24 and recently “survived” the record-breaking 89-degree heat of the 2012 Boston Marathon.

McAnaney is in her fifth year of teaching fifth grade at Wellwood Middle School. She has participated in the Corporate Challenge twice previously and enjoys competing in other local races. She ran cross country and track at Colgate University and has completed both the Philadelphia and Boston Marathons.

And, Engle is a high school math teacher who, like Peelle, was on the F-M team that traveled to South Africa two years ago to compete in the first Series Championship held outside of the United States. He has run the Corporate Challenge each year he has been at Fayetteville-Manlius.

About to celebrate its 30th running, the JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge in Syracuse is a great team-building event for area companies.

They are excited about the chance to compete against the best corporate runners in the world at Chicago, and grateful for the opportunities the Syracuse Corporate Challenge gives them.

"The Corporate Challenge is a unique chance to bring an entire company together to pursue a single goal," said Compton. "In addition to the competitive atmosphere, it is a wonderful chance to spend time with colleagues whom you may rarely interact with on a daily basis and celebrate being part of the same organization. We are lucky to have a very supportive school and community that truly appreciates our efforts."

"F-M’s participation in the Corporate Challenge helps build a sense of community within the district," added Engle. "It is also nice to get to see people who may not work in your own building. Since the Syracuse race is at the end of June, it is also a good way to celebrate a successful school year."

How the team will fare in Chicago is anyone's guess.

"My hope is that we can improve upon our finish in South Africa where we were 10th in the mixed division," said Engle. "Having better weather to train in leading up to the race compared to the South Africa race will be beneficial."

No matter the final result at the Series Championship, however, they know they've already been a success on many levels.

"I think our success has been well received (in the district), which will hopefully encourage more people to get involved," said Peelle.