All Rhode Island Schools Earn Level 1 Honor Roll Status

Rhode Island may be the smallest state in the United States, but when it comes to the percentage of schools committed to education of its coaches, the Ocean State is No. 1. Thanks to the leadership of the Rhode Island Interscholastic League (RIIL), and its executive director, Mike Lunney, every RIIL school with athletics programs has earned Level 1 status in the NFHS School Honor Roll, a national recognition program designed to promote professional development for high school coaches by completing specific online education courses through the NFHS Learning Center (www.NFHSLearn.com).

In earning Level 1 status, 100 percent of the coaches (more than 1,700 across the state) at all 56 RIIL member schools completed the core course “Fundamentals of Coaching” along with three of the Learning Center’s most significant courses – “Concussion in Sports,” “Sudden Cardiac Arrest” and “Protecting Students from Abuse.”

The RIIL is the first state high school association to have all its member schools earn this distinction within the NFHS School Honor Roll program, and a special ceremony was held last month on the campus of Rhode Island College in Warwick to commemorate this achievement.

As a part of the RIIL’s annual Principals Breakfast on October 6, the principals and athletic directors of all Rhode Island high schools were in attendance to be honored and receive a large Level 1 Honor Roll display banner from the NFHS. Dan Schuster, NFHS director of educational services, was in attendance, along with Lunney, who has been on the RIIL staff since 2011 and executive director for three years. He is also a former basketball coach at Portsmouth (Rhode Island) High School for 16 years. While he was a successful coach with two RIIL state championships, Lunney has always believed there was much more to coaching than teaching the X’s and O’s of the sport.

“It’s not about X’s and O’s as much as it is about the health and safety of students, and so the School Honor Roll program was something that resounded with our Board,” Lunney said. “We had existing coaching requirements that were already in place utilizing NFHS Learn courses. So, when the School Honor Roll program started, we looked at the requirements and realized that all of our coaches were only about one course short of meeting that requirement.

“We set a goal for the 2022-23 school year that by the spring of 2023, 100 percent of our coaches would have that distinction. We just made it a requirement. Protecting Students Against Abuse was the only course that was missing (to earn Level 1).”

Although small in size and numbers within the state, getting 100 percent of the coaches in all schools to complete the courses on the Learning Center is a remarkable accomplishment, one that the athletics directors and principals in attendance were particularly proud.

“I’m sure there are people who didn’t want to go through all the training and education, but I commended the principals and athletic directors for making that commitment to ensure their coaching staffs were certified,” Lunney said. “But once they all came together and we were able to deliver that message that we are the first state in the country to have 100 percent of our schools meet the requirements, I think they took it as a source of pride. Hopefully, that’s going to carry forward for years to come.

“Coaches have a difficult job today. They’re criticized, just like officials are. So we also felt that we were trying to send a message that being able to hang that banner proudly in your school is a way to let their parents and communities know they have made a commitment to health and safety and to coaches education.”

Schuster has spearheaded the growth of the Learning Center, which recently reached 20 million courses delivered since its founding in 2007, and he was responsible for starting the School Honor Roll program just as the pandemic hit in early 2020.

Prior to Rhode Island’s amazing accomplishments, schools in North Carolina have led the way with a total of 79 banners, which includes some schools earning multiple levels. Rhode Island is next followed by Pennsylvania with 17 and New Jersey with 14. More than 230 banners have been awarded to schools in 18 states, also including Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, California, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Indiana, Nevada, Arizona, Maryland, Mississippi, Hawaii, Vermont and Idaho.

Schools can earn Level 2 status (and a Level 2 banner) on the NFHS School Honor Roll when more than 90 percent of their coaches – excluding volunteer coaches – complete courses that pertain specifically to sports they coach, along with “First Aid, Health and Safety,” “Heat Illness Prevention” and “Student Mental Health and Suicide Prevention.”

A Level 3 banner is awarded for schools that reach 90-percent completion for the “Sportsmanship,” “Strength and Conditioning,” “Teaching and Modeling Behavior,” “Engaging Effectively with Parents” and “Bullying, Hazing, and Inappropriate Behaviors” courses.

“The fact that 100 percent of the schools in Rhode Island are now saying that they are putting education first as their mission and purpose is a real testament,” Schuster said. “I was thrilled to be there and see all the banners and the sense of pride that they got to share with their communities, which says ‘We are walking the walk and we are education-based and educating our coaches is so important.’

“The fact that they (principals and athletic directors) could celebrate together and take a rare opportunity to pat themselves on the back was tremendous. It’s a great thing they should be able to talk about within their school community. They should tell parents about what it is and what it means and how’s that going to benefit their students.

“It was really cool to be there and be a part of the ceremony. Great work by Mike and his team to make it all happen because it doesn’t just happen on its own,” Schuster concluded.

Dan Warner, principal of Block Island Public School in Shoreham, Rhode Island, and chair of the Rhode Island Principals Committee on Athletics, was also in attendance for the banner ceremony last month.

“Principals around Rhode Island should be proud of the fact that Rhode Island is No. 1 in the country with regard to coaches education,” Warner said. “We want to thank the NFHS and the RIIL for making this happen.”

Lunney believes this is only the start of the coaches education movement in Rhode Island interscholastic athletics. He hopes that Level 2 and Level 3 banners will be hoisted in high school gymnasiums in the years to come.

“We’re encouraging the schools to continue on and get to Level 2,” Lunney said. “We know that moving forward everybody is going to maintain Level 1 status. But for those schools that want to continue down this path, we’re going to encourage them to head to a higher level.

“Unfortunately, we are getting fewer and fewer teacher-coaches coming into our environment. So, it’s important to be able to educate them to what we’re about and how we are different from other youth levels. Coaching is really important. It is critical for us to be successful in the future. We are thankful that there are programs like the School Honor Roll for a small state like us.”