Calls to Action for Youth Sports
Org Practice
Raising the Bar on Coach Training
Actions that help organizations connect coach training to their values, prioritize affordability and easy access, and ensure coaches are well-prepared to create safe, positive experiences for kids.
Commit to Training Coaches
Area of Focus
Any sport organization’s commitment to coach training starts with a clear belief that coach training is essential to a great sport experience and should be valued at every level. That commitment shows up in how time, resources, and energy are allocated to support coach development.
Call to Action
Build Buy-In Among Sport Leaders
Call to Action
Connect Training to Your Values
Call to Action
Highlight Liability Considerations
Provide Quality Education that Meets Coach Needs
Area of Focus
Organizations have a responsibility to make sure the training they offer prepares coaches to protect and support the kids they serve. That starts with identifying the most important areas, like safety, well-being, and a great experience for every athlete, and making sure coach education directly supports those needs.
Call to Action
Measure the Impact of Coach Training
Call to Action
Identify and Promote Free and Low-Cost Training
Call to Action
Communicate the What, Why, and Who of Great Training
Call to Action
Set Short- and Long-Term Training Goals
Remove Barriers for Coaches
Area of Focus
We know that recruiting and retaining coaches is a challenge for everyone in youth sports. It’s a tough job, often doesn’t pay and calls upon people with work and family responsibilities. Training should meet coaches where they are; delivered in ways that avoid burdens and barriers like cost, technology access, or time.
Call to Action
Partner to Lower the Cost of Training
Call to Action
Prioritize Sustainability of Coaching Programs
Call to Action
Minimize Out-of-Pocket Costs for Coaches
Signature Issue
Create Transparency of Coach Training and Standards Across all Stakeholders
Org Practice: Our Vision for the Future
Well-trained coaches create better sport experiences for kids, families, and communities. But there’s little consistency in how coach training is approached today. Organizations across the youth sport landscape use different methods and standards. Some offer no formal training at all.
Significantly increasing the number of well-trained coaches is possible. And it all starts at the local level.
We can show everyday clubs, schools and programs how they can commit to coach training – and highlight opportunities for them to offer training that’s accessible, relevant, and free of unnecessary barriers. Programs can align around the importance of training and consistently communicate how coach education positively impacts kids of all ages.
Together, we can create a stronger, more aligned system where training is seen for what it is: the foundation of a great coaching experience.
Here’s how we make it happen:
- Organizations dedicate the time, energy, and resources necessary to train coaches on an ongoing basis.
- Every organization, no matter the size, strives to move their coach training forward.
- Training is high-quality, relevant, and grounded in coaching competencies that help kids thrive.
- Training is accessible; delivered in ways that support without overwhelming coaches.
- Organizations make clear what training their coaches receive and how they will sustain those efforts over time.
We need low-barrier pathways to better coach education that clubs, schools and youth programs implement on the ground.
Thank You to Our Org Practice Working Group
Chair: Sam Ranck, Little League
Members: Hannah Olson, Ph.D., Univ. of Washington; Jerry Davis, OSU LiFEsports; Megan Bartlett, Center for Healing and Justice Through Sport; Sarah Pickens, U.S. Soccer Foundation
Contributors: Jennifer Peterson, Univ. of Washington; Julia Lankford, Laureus USA; Ashlea Miller, Little League; Dawn Anderson-Butcher, Ph.D., OSU LiFEsports