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By: Dr. Eric Forsyth, CMAA -- Dr. Scott Smith, CMAA -- Dr. Mark Rerick, CMAA
Being an athletic administrator means living at the intersection of change and continuity. As much as our world shifts—new tech, new pressures, new philosophies—the core challenges in our offices often feel stubbornly familiar. Journalist Alphonse Karr's old line, “The more things change, the more they stay the same,” hits home for us as much as anyone. Among those issues that remain ever present are two familiar topics: coaches and officials. No matter what's happening in society, these two categories keep us up at night. As shown in NIAAA membership surveys over the years, concerns like coaches' education, shortages, and retention—as well as the same issues with officials—have only grown in importance. Knowing that these issues remain important to athletic administrators regardless of the movement of society around us, the authors of this article requested comments from the past three NIAAA executive directors for their insight into the historical importance of focusing on finding good coaches and officials. Their historical perspectives serve as a baseline for practical suggestions today. This article is the first of a three-part series exploring similarities between NIAAA membership survey data that was collected in 2006, 2016, and 2023. All issues discussed in this series were rated among the most important concerns across the membership in all three surveys. To highlight the impact of these issues in their contemporary times, the authors solicited comments from the current executive directors at the time the surveys were collected. Coaches: The Ongoing Challenge Finding and keeping good coaches has never been easy, and it's only getting tougher. Bruce Whitehead, who led the NIAAA from 2005-2016, put it bluntly when speaking in response to the organization's 2006 membership survey: "Hiring and retaining qualified coaches has become one of the most difficult areas for athletic administrators." If you've ever felt like you're on an island trying to fill positions, you're not alone. The reality is, fewer teachers are willing to take on coaching roles because of time demands, and sometimes we're left choosing between an underqualified candidate or cutting a program altogether. Despite that concern, athletic administrators should never compromise on qualifications. As Bruce warned, "One unqualified coach who makes a bad decision can open the school district to huge liability exposure." It's tempting to fill a slot just to keep a program afloat, but the long-term risks—both for student safety and district reputation—are too great. A better option is to invest in education and certification. Both the NIAAA and NFHS offer affordable, practical training for coaches and administrators. The cost of a course is nothing compared to the fallout from a lawsuit or a major incident. Make education and training a non-negotiable requirement in your hiring process if your state does not already require some level of training. This is a vital component for the integrity of all sports programs. The relationship side matters, too. Mike Blackburn, who oversaw the NIAAA from 2016-2023, emphasized that the working relationship between ADs and coaches is just as important as the hiring process itself. "Hiring processes, support, mentoring, evaluation, retention, and dismissal are key parts of that development," Blackburn said. We can't just hire and hope for the best—we need to be present, supportive, and proactive in helping our coaches grow. This reinforces the importance of supporting coaches' education and training. Recruitment is now a daily job. Current NIAAA executive director, Phil Rison, noted that attracting and keeping quality coaches is harder than ever. Other districts are always trying to lure away your best people, and once you get them, you have to help them navigate the toughest part of the job: dealing with parents. Negative parent interactions can drive even the best coaches away, so we need to equip our coaches with communication tools and make sure they know how much they matter to our schools and communities. This, too, reinforces the importance of supporting coaches' education and training. Actionable Tips for Athletic Administrators:
Officials: The Backbone We Can't Lose Finding coaches certainly isn't the only personnel challenge; finding officials is also becoming increasingly more difficult. That pipeline of interested help continues to shrink, and many interscholastic districts across the country are experiencing a shortage in officials. As Whitehead had observed years ago, "The number of people who have an interest in officiating interscholastic contests is not growing and may be declining." The reasons haven't changed: minimal pay, long hours, and—most importantly—constant criticism from the stands. Blackburn tied the decline directly to the rise in critical and verbally abusive parents and fans. "Many potential officials are unwilling to subject themselves to unnecessary criticism in return for extensive travel and often minimal compensation," Blackburn said. It's hard to argue with that logic. Why would someone sign up for abuse? We have to be creative. Some districts are starting programs to encourage students to try officiating, framing it as a way to "give back" and stay involved in sports after graduation. The NIAAA and NFHS have even launched national campaigns to spread the word through radio PSAs. Many former interscholastic participants are now attending college. These former athletes could very well be the best recruitment pool out there to help fill the gap for needed officials. The point is, we can't just hope new officials will show up—we have to actively recruit and support them. Retention is everyone's responsibility. Rison warns that without enough quality officials, our programs risk slipping into a club-sport atmosphere, where standards and experiences can vary wildly. "You cannot play without them," Rison said. We need to dig into the root causes of the shortage—mainly, the behavior of parents and coaches—and address them head-on. Lose officials, and we likely lose sport programs. Actionable Tips for Athletic Administrators:
Final Takeaways: What We Can Do Now If there's one thing all these voices agree on, it's that the challenges aren't going away on their own. Finding and hiring qualified coaches is hard, and keeping them is just as tough. But every coach you bring on board needs to be set up for success, not just thrown into the deep end. The same goes for officials: recruitment is tough, and retention is even tougher, especially when negative behaviors from the sidelines drive good people away. As athletic administrators, we have to lead the charge. That means:
The landscape will keep changing, but the fundamentals of our job remain the same. Let's use the wisdom of those who've walked this path before not as history lessons, but as practical guides for the work we do every day.
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Coaches and Officials Remain Top Priorities for ADs [NIAAA]
