Checking up on the health of the athletic program.

For years we have looked at athletic programs on every level and measured success by wins and losses. We preach to our coaches and our coaches preach to their athletes: that winning and losing has no bearing on the success of our programs.

Sound confusing? After all, when does our success come into question?

When do parents question our coaches' abilities?

When do athletes begin to quit? When do athletic directors, principals, superintendents, and school board members get phone calls?

When our teams lose--that's when.

"Winning equals success" is a hard perception to overcome. Quite frankly, we never will. So I won't try to convince anyone otherwise.

Instead, let's look at the "health" of our programs as we evaluate their success.

Success is measured in several ways. It is the obvious benchmark of the team record--the wins and losses as printed in the local papers. Other factors that demand consideration when measuring success include: communication, participation, attitude, community connection, and off-season opportunities.

We all consider these factors during end-of-season interviews with coaches and athletes, but do we actually use them as a tool to measure the success of our athletic team or program as a whole?.

As administrators and coaches, we must consider the "Health" of our athletic program as we evaluate its success.

Using a metaphor taken from the Fairfax County "FLE" curriculum, the "Wheel of Health" will be used to illustrate how all of the elements of success work together.

The concept here is that for a wheel to function properly, the tire (wins and losses) must be properly inflated, all the spokes (participation, attitude, etc.) must be properly aligned and in place to support the tire, while the hub (communication) must be strong and well oiled so that the wheel (our program) can operate smoothly.

With everything in place and functioning properly, the wheel will turn freely for a smooth ride. Even the obstacles placed in our path will be traversed easily and with little disruption.

If one or more parts of the wheel become weak or go out of alignment, the ride will become more difficult and the obstacles more obtrusive.

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"THE WHEEL OF HEALTH"

* The Hub

Communication is the center, or "hub," of the health of our programs. Every spoke draws its strength and support from it. Poor communicators are doomed unless they recognize their shortcomings and are able to compensate for them.

That is no easy task. You can be the most knowledgeable, skill-oriented, dedicated coach known to your sport, but if you cannot communicate, your abilities will go idle and athletes will be unable to benefit from your knowledge.

There are two forms of communication: the spoken word and the non-spoken word. Both are very important and require close attention, because, after all is said and done, it's not what we said or even meant to say; it's what we heard.

So, when we communicate to parents, athletes, and even administrators and coaches, we must be positive and check for understanding so that what you want to say is actually being heard.

Close attention must also be paid to your non-verbal language during these conversations as well. Body language and the tone of your voice can have a damaging effect on whatever is being said.

Even the slightest negative can be the only thing retained from your conversation, particularly during tense discussions on such topics as discipline or playing time.

A colleague of mine tends to conclude every parent conference with a thank you note to both the parent and the student. As a high school assistant principal, he deals with a number of disciplinary issues that require parent and student conferences.

So you can imagine that a thank-you may be hard to come by. But it is his goal nonetheless, and the thanks he receives is not for a lighter sentence.

In many instances, the punishment may be harsher than anticipated or even involve suspension from school. But he is thanked for his genuine concern for the student who took the time to thoroughly explain the reason for the punishment and how it can help the student make better decisions in the future.

He has proven his ability to take a negative situation and communicate what has to be learned from the situation and how success can be achieved in the future.

How do you communicate a negative situation? Can you take a bad loss and find the positives in it and then communicate that to your players and parents?

How about a player's poor performance that cost the team the game? Are you able to curb the criticism and convince the player and the team that it is always a team effort and that they can learn from this?

How do you communicate with an upset parent concerned with his son's playing time? Are you able to diffuse the tension and respond with positive remarks and assurances? How you handle various situations will depend on your personality and comfort level as well as the make-up of your audience. Since every situation is different, it may require a different set of circumstances on how to handle each.

The one common denominator in every communication scenario is that "perception is everything." What and how you say things can be totally different from the common conception. Note: In your message, be sure to say exactly what is on your mind and, of course, be positive!

* The Spokes

1. Participation:

How many students try out for our teams?

How many athletes do we retain from year to year? How many do we retain throughout the season?

These numbers can be a direct reflection of our students' perceptions of the program and their expectations for its success. Take a moment to look at or think back to a team that traditionally has a high winning percentage.

How many players were on their sidelines on the first day of tryouts?

How about a team for whom wins come sparingly--how many players do you see on their sidelines?

We are all attracted to success. It is human nature to want to associate with winning programs. At the same time, it's far easier to avoid losing programs than to get involved.

How can we address the issue of low turnouts? We have to look at our coach/player relationships to ensure a good bond is being established and nurtured.

Question the relationship we have with our starters and non-starters. Do we treat each with the same level of respect? Do we impose the same level of expectations on each?

Are the non-starters encouraged to strive for a starting role? Do they know their role as non-starters and can be called upon at any time, and thus have to be prepared?

How is our relationship with students that didn't make the team, quit, or did not come out the next year?

Are these athletes forgotten or is there a true concern for their well-being?

Are they ignored in the hallways and in the cafeteria, or are they embraced and encouraged to improve and try again?

Do we know why they quit or did not return? Is there an issue with our relationship, or is there something else--and can we help?

Let's not try to save the world here. After all, some kids just aren't cut out to be a part of our programs. We have to remember that in most cases, they need us more than we need them.

2. Athlete Attitude:

Are our athletes having fun? Do they respect their coaches? Do they respect their teammates?

Can you almost predict season outcomes based on athlete attitude?

Do you see a relationship between your attitude and that of the coaches and athletes?

The answers to these questions will tell us about our athletes' attitudes and also help us answer the participation dilemma. Bad attitudes are difficult to change, particularly when the season isn't going as hoped.

As educators and coaches, it is our task to address it and devote a great deal of effort to elevate the team morale and the respect between players and coaches. One way of addressing morale is by changing to whatever it takes to make the athlete happy.

If the change does not make the athlete happy, change the athletes! Help him witness the success of the program and understand his role in it.

It could be as simple as a pat on the back or a thank you or it could be as involved as a daily regimen of encouragement and an explanation of the athlete's importance in it.

The coach may also consider changing the routine a little. The same practice, conditioning, sermonizing, etc., can wear on the athlete. You know what I'm talking about, remember teacher in-services? Staff meetings?

Let your guard down and have fun with the kids. Do something totally unrelated to the sport, but with a purpose.

Do a team-building activity or play a game that works on conditioning. This will often break up the monotony and refresh both coach and athlete. We sometimes have to show them and remind ourselves how to have fun.

Attitude is a big part in the Health of our program and the key is to NEVER let the kid give up. Letting someone quit is the easy way out and will rarely produce a success story for either party.

3. Coaches Attitude:

A great deal of our athletes' attitudes comes directly from our coaches. A coach with energy and excitement will usually transfer the traits to the athletes. Athletes who feed off such things will usually wind up with a positive outlook.

So we have to ask our coaches and they have a need to ask themselves: Do we enjoy coaching? Do we enjoy the time and energy involved? Are the rewards satisfying?

All too often our administrators will hear from coaches that we don't have enough kids, the kids we do have aren't talented, strong, or dedicated enough, we don't have the right equipment, we don't have enough equipment, our equipment is sub par.

It's something that many athletic administrators have grown accustomed to. And, unfortunately, as the dollar signs add up, most requests from coaches for new and improved stuff are denied--only adding to the frustrations and negative attitudes.

Something brought me back to reality one night while attending our girls' basketball game. We were playing a small, inner city charter school that had 7 or 8 girls on the team, one of whom had a two-year old child in tow.

As they arrived at our school, I noticed that their uniforms were carried in by two of the girls in a cardboard box barely held together by the glue on its corners.

Another girl carried the team basketballs under her arms--two worn, indoor/outdoor balls straight off the YMCA playground. Talk about a team with a little equipment that is sub-par at best.

Undaunted, the coach and team walked onto the court and did their very best. Everyone there could tell that this was very little basketball skill, but what they lacked in talent, they made up for in effort, heart, and attitude.

It was an attitude and work ethic projected by their coach. Alone on the bench with two subs and a player's two-year old son, he continued to coach and encourage his team in the face of a sure defeat.

I can only assume from his positive attitude that he felt he was lucky to have the opportunities he had been given and was not overly concerned with the things he did not have.

This is not to say that someone should have gone out and created opportunities for him, but that it is so much wiser to enjoy the opportunities we do not get and continue to strive to make the most out of him or her.

4. Connection to the Community:

Our fourth spoke in the Wheel of Health is the connection to youth organizations in our community.

Do our programs have a relationship with the feeder programs in charge of developing the athletes that will be joining our teams in the future?

This is an important element that has several benefits and even several more spin-off benefits that will enhance the athletic program at your school.

First, it enables us to communicate the skills required by the young athletes and their coaches at the next level as well as helpful tips on their teaching. It will also provide us with a peak into the future of our program, giving us the opportunity to alter current practices to enhance the picture.

In other words, we get a chance to stack the deck in our favor by getting involved with the current youth groups.

Second, it gives the athletes in our programs a chance to teach the skills they have learned. In order to teach a skill, you have to have a greater understanding of that skill and the ability to break it down into smaller elements that, when rebuilt, enable the athletes perform it effortlessly.

What a great way to have athletes refine their own skills and enhance the overall performance of their program. From here, only the imagination will limit the opportunities that are created through such a relationship.

5. Off-Season Activities:

This is a two-part spoke. The first part concerns off-season activities for the coaching staff and the second concerns the off-season activities for the athlete.

Looking at part one, do we meet to evaluate and plan? Do we establish team goals? Do we establish goals for coaches?

Do we establish personal goals? These are all important questions to ask, and I'm sure you can add a few more, but we'll keep it simple for now.

I firmly believe and hope you can agree that success begins with planning and grows with evaluating. How many programs have you been associated with that have been successful, but as a staff, you never met to plan or met for only a few minutes before practice. I'll bet the number is low if any.

Now look at the successful programs that are successful and the staff meeting schedule, both in and off-season.

Of course you can meet forever and still be unsuccessful due to poor planning. So there is something to say about having a good plan, but we can save that for another discussion.

The important point here is that, as a staff, we all need to be on the same page. We all need to know the what, when, where, and who, as it all works together within the system.

Then, once the plan has been established and put into motion, we need to evaluate the plan and fix what doesn't work and enhance what does. These planning and evaluating meetings can be as elaborate or as simple as you want. The important thing is that you do it and that it is productive.

What's a plan without a goal? Obviously, you wouldn't make a plan without an objective, so remember that it is important to set goals worthy of attaining as well as realistic.

After all, you wouldn't expect a first year team to win a state title, or maybe you would. So, set goals for the team, individuals, and yourself, and reward yourself and the team when your goals are reached.

Remember, rewards will affect attitude, which affects participation, which affects ... you get the idea.

How about off-season activities for the athlete? Many athletes are involved with more than one sport and if they're in season for another team, you probably don't need to worry about them staying in shape. It's the group of athletes that aren't involved in other sports that need to be actively engaged in performance enhancing activities during the off-season.

Weight room and conditioning programs have become an integral part of most athletic programs across the country and have had a dramatic effect on the quality of athletes we can put on the field and court today.

Team and specialty camps also aid in the development of our athletes and need to be part of our off-season programs. So, as coaches and athletic administrators, we have to look at the off-season opportunities we are providing for our athletes. We do have to be careful not to break any rules set in place by our governing bodies, but, as we work within the rules, positive and productive off-season activities can and should be a vital part of our athletic program.

* The Tire

Wins and Losses:

This is our coat of armor. Our win/loss record is the first thing, and usually the only thing that people see when they look at our athletic programs, and they measure our success by it. The more wins, the more air is in the tire and the ride is smooth. The more losses we have the more the tire becomes deflated and the ride is rough.

The tire, our record, is an important part of the wheel even as much as we try to mask the importance of winning by stressing the importance of participation and enjoyment of the game.

Are we really saying that it's OK to lose and that it's more important to enjoy your time playing the game?

Who are we kidding? Why play the game if you don't want or care if you win or lose? Yes, I said it. Politically correct or not, we play to win and winning is fun. I'm not saying we should put winning over everything else, but it is your goal to win. That's why you play, and you should always strive to reach your goals.

So, using the "Wheel of Health" to illustrate the health of our athletic programs, we can evaluate ourselves and break down our strengths and weaknesses and categorize them into one or more parts of the wheel.

From there, we can either lube the hub by working on our communication skills or strengthen the spokes by adjusting a strategy to compensate for the weakness.

When we have taken care of the wheel, air (wins) will fill the tire. The "Wheel of Health" is not a recipe for guaranteed success. It is simply a framework from which we can build and evaluate our programs.

The ingredients you choose to establish your wheel with will determine the level of success you can achieve.

By Kevin Shea and Joe Fleming, Dominion High School Sterling, VA