Creating a Positive Connection Between Youth, High School Sports in a Community

A successful program, one which meets the needs of students, is not based solely on a high school staff putting all the pieces together at the varsity level. It takes a community to help achieve this goal.

The nature of success begins with building a positive culture between the youth and high school programs. Winning should be considered an incidental by-product. Developing a tradition of excellence takes years of development from the youth programs to middle schools and then to the high school.

Studies show that 76 percent of young people on middle school and high school sports teams participated in youth sports. However, what did these students learn at this level? Who coached and provided the necessary skills to be successful in a high school program? Do the parents and athletes understand what is necessary to be successful on the secondary level? These are all necessary questions when trying to build a positive connection between youth and high school sports in a community.

To build a positive culture, athletic directors and high school coaches should employ the following outline to bridge the gap from youth programs with the high school.

Know Your Youth Organization

• Start by realizing that those involved with the youth sports programs are volunteers. They are individuals interested in working with young people, and take time away from their jobs, family and friends. Their willingness to commit to this endeavor is a tremendous value in order to build an overall program because parents want the best for their child.

• Value your volunteers. A visit from a high school coach, a pat on the back or a simple thank you goes a long way toward feeling appreciated. This step is essential in order to build a positive relationship.

Be Invested

• Understand that a positive connection between the youth and high school sports programs requires a commitment from the athletic director and head coaches. They need to be involved with the youth programs.

• Realize that being invested does not mean taking over. It involves listening, learning and developing an understanding of the needs of everyone at each level in order to benefit the overall program.

• Share the vision of the athletic program, and this will create excitement about the future. Parents invested in youth sports want their children to be happy, have fun, learn, and for these outcomes to continue on the secondary level.

Sense of Ownership for Parents

• Use the pride of parents in the achievement of their children to assist in meeting the goals of the culture of the organization. This may require some patience as well.

• Remember that parents want what is best for their children.

• Understand that effective communication is essential. Parents want to know what their child is doing, supposed to be doing and how they can be involved.

• Develop an appreciation that parents are important assets to the success of athletic programs. Find ways to involve them in your programs.

Athletic Director and Youth President

• Build a solid relationship with the leadership of the youth organizations in the community. It is vital to share the goals, mission statement and the value of athletics in order to develop the necessary steps to be successful.

• Schedule monthly meetings between the athletic director and the leaders of the youth organization. This creates the opportunity to finalize practice and game schedules for the use of the facilities and building. As a result, a solid relationship will be developed for the betterment of the entire athletic program from the youth to high school levels.

Involvement

• Get your varsity coaches involved with the youth programs in the community. This gives everyone – coaches, athletes and parents – the opportunity to build a solid, positive relationship. Building trust is the foundation to success. High school coaches can be involved with the youth team selections, camps, coaching clinics and by attending games.

• Try to connect high school athletes with youth sports by having them officiate games, keep score, work concessions, work the chain gang, take tickets and coaching. Being involved is an opportunity to mentor. Also, invite youth teams to be a part of the team on game nights, to tour the locker room, stand on the sidelines and to be a part of the team huddle after the game.

• Attend youth organization meetings. This allows you as the athletic director to speak about the high school programs, develop relationships with the board and stakeholders, and to hear feedback from the community.

Consistency

• Work to build continuity because this develops consistency in the programs. If you develop this early, you can create an established routine that is part of every practice and every competition. To build this continuity, invite youth coaches to high school practices to observe and to ask questions.

Future Booster Members and Parents

• Understand that parents currently on the youth level will be booster members tomorrow. Building positive relationships will create opportunities to continue the growth as they move into the high school sports programs. Encourage parents at the lower levels to get involved and provide them with an outline of what constitutes a successful program.

Accountability

• Clearly explain where winning fits in the total equation. This may be one of the most difficult challenges facing high school athletic directors and coaches since winning is normally considered the most important objective in youth sports. While everyone involved with sports wants to win, there are far more important outcomes such as learning lifelong qualities and values. These would include sportsmanship, integrity and leadership to mention only a few.

• Instill the approach that winning the correct way can also become a tradition. Athletics should not exist only for the biggest, fastest or most skilled individuals. It can and should contribute to self-esteem, character and moral development for everyone involved.

• Understand that talent alone does not build programs. It is necessary to teach fundamentals, strategy, the ability to work together, and to increase the basic understanding of the game. These are important building blocks for successful programs.

Sports are a centerpiece of many communities. It takes every volunteer, every paid coach, every parent, every athlete and a community to build a program that nurtures and supports young people, and this does not happen overnight. Working together in unison with cooperation and effort by everyone involved builds the tradition that carries on for a lifetime.