|
|
Post by coachjr on Jan 5, 2011 10:57:50 GMT -6
I have been in coaching for over 30 years and a Head Coach for over
20. Several of my assistants have Facebook pages. I do not.
We had a couple instances this past season where an Assistant may
have crossed the line from coach to "buddy" in what was being said
on their facebook pages. Loyalty has to be the #1 priority on every
staff. Have any of you had this problem or have a policy with their
staff on how to deal with facebook and members of the team and/or
parents of players? I would be interested in your insights. Thanks.
|
|
|
|
Post by wingtol on Jan 5, 2011 11:45:05 GMT -6
My personal policy on facebook is that I will not be a friend of any player until they graduate from our school. I also make sure I am very careful of what I do or say on there but I never have contact with a current player on it that is for sure. I have a few parents as friends and have never had any problem with that again because I am very careful of what I put out there.
IMO interacting with teens who are still in HS on the Internet is a recipe for disaster!
|
|
|
|
Post by coachjd on Jan 5, 2011 12:28:39 GMT -6
Our state union is telling us to NOT be friends with any students until after graduation. Period. I would use this angle with your staff and say this is a nightmare waiting to happen. State teacher unions have advised to not be friends with any students--period!!! So the football coaching staff will now follow this procedure. If you are currently friends with any players, please out of respect for our teaching and coaching profession, drop them from your facebook friends list.
|
|
|
|
Post by coachbdud on Jan 5, 2011 12:30:28 GMT -6
I do not accept any kids/players from the school I coach at until they graduate.
Some other coaches do, but I deny all requests until they graduate.
|
|
|
|
Post by tothehouse on Jan 5, 2011 12:34:09 GMT -6
I agree and I'm doing the same thing with regards to "friending" after they graduate. We had (notice I said had) a security guard who was a girls basketball coach that supposedly was texting something to some players.
Media and players can be used for good...but you better damn well use it for the good.
I have the girls and one guy that film our games cell numbers and text them about when they need to show up and work, etc. BUT, in no way, am I sitting their texting miscellaneous BS with them. Multiple current players ask to friend me on FB and I ignore them and then tell them "I don't 'friend' current students". They understand.
I like my FB page, but I might kill it. It just seems like somebody could turn something around on you....even if you are completely doing nothing wrong.
|
|
|
|
Post by airtrafficcontrol on Jan 5, 2011 13:17:04 GMT -6
I have every player on facebook.they also know our policies on it.
We set up a "team players" private group and also a fan page.
I have total control over the players pave and it's how we update them and post video etc.
Players are n9t allowed to discuss opponents or be ngTive towards our program via the Internet...it works a treat.
|
|
|
|
Post by mariner42 on Jan 5, 2011 14:06:43 GMT -6
I like my FB page, but I might kill it. It just seems like somebody could turn something around on you....even if you are completely doing nothing wrong. I'm at this point, too. I mostly use it when chatting up/meeting a new girl, so I'm not entirely sure why I even need it in the first place anymore... I don't add students or athletes until they graduate, I limit my cell phone exposure to kids that I know to have good heads on their shoulders, and NO ONE knows where my house is. |
|
|
|
Post by drewdawg265 on Jan 5, 2011 14:35:04 GMT -6
We use a Team Facebook site to communicate all the time. I also have most of my current players numbers on my cell phone and they have mine. It makes it so much easier for me to remind players of schedule changes, off-season camps or contact them if college coaches stop by that are recruiting them.
|
|
|
|
Post by shocktroop34 on Jan 5, 2011 14:48:46 GMT -6
I don't have a page, but I pass on to my players messages that I want communicated so it gets out quickly.
We also have a team page. I must admit, thought I'm not a fan of facepage or mybook or whatever the hell it's called, it is helpful.
Rule of thumb (and this comes from my principal which I thought was very insightful): Never put anything on an email or facebook page that you wouldn't wanted printed in the New York Times.
Just something to think about.
|
|
|
|
Post by coachcb on Jan 5, 2011 15:40:47 GMT -6
I have a Facebook account and I do the same things described above. However, I am strongly considering ditching it.
It doesn't matter how much you limit your account to make it private, crap still comes out of it. Stuff that could be seriously detrimental to a career. I don't know how many people I have had to drop because they posted something inappropriate on there. Or how many times I have had to tell old college buddies to pull the 'party pics' of me (nothing out of line, just things that don't need to be on the web) from a decade ago.
I could see the use of a 'team page' but you just have to make sure your monitor it consistently. I have seen several team Myspace pages where the language was absolutely horrendous. The kids were posting on there, swearing up a storm and being crude. In my current position, I'd be straight canned if we had a team page and those kinds of things were posted on there.
|
|
|
|
Post by pvogel on Jan 5, 2011 16:18:22 GMT -6
just gonna second the concept of not being a "friend" of players until the graduate.
and very careful about what is posted. the NY times idea is money.
|
|
|
|
Post by coachdennis on Jan 5, 2011 16:34:27 GMT -6
The New York Times idea is applicable to pretty much anything you do or say in your life. It's a good policy to which to adhere when writing something as "old fashioned" as an e-mail as well.
It is my view that social media is here to stay. Therefore, we should be harnessing the positives it can provide. I don't coach in a school setting, but rather with a community based club, so I freely admit that this makes my life a lot less complicated than many of yours. Having said that, we set up a team Facebook page this year, controlling access to just players and family. It worked incredibly well as a vehicle for sharing information, photos, team building, etc. Only rarely did I have to admonish a kid for language being used.
As for Facebook friend requests, I will accept them from players in our club, but I will not initiate them. I will occasionally privately chastise a kid for some of the stuff he is doing or saying on his page if it is inappropriate, asking them, "Are you going to be proud of that? Does that reflect well on your teammates?" In every case, the kid takes down the offending stuff, and a good lesson is taught. (These kids are in a tougher spot than my generation in that the dumb things we said and did were not captured forever in digital format.)
Overall, though, I have found Facebook to be a great networking tool with players and parents alike, and never once have I regretted my interactions with kids on it. Just watch what you say and do, and you will be fine. For me, the very fact that my players can see my status updates, photos makes me very careful about what I post, which is probably a good thing in any event.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2011 16:44:25 GMT -6
I was going to make a long post, but it would have sounded a lot like coachdennis's so I spare you guys from reading it twice. I do have a response to the very intial poster though. To me, it sounds like you had an assistant criticizing the HC and/or other coaches with the kids or to the kids. I'm guessing that from your comment on loyalty and you are 1OO% correct with that.
The comments made are a coaching loyalty issue, but not really and "Coaching and Facebook" issue, IMHO. The issue is that the assistant was criticizing fellow coaches along with the kids. The means he was voicing that criticism is irrelevant. If he was saying that stuff on the kids Facebook page, its a pretty safe assumption he's making those same statements when talking to the kids in person.
|
|
|
|
Post by shsqbcoach1 on Jan 5, 2011 17:08:38 GMT -6
As a young coach (26), I think I may be the only person I associate with socially that doesn't have a facebook and coaching is THE reason. I personally don't feel like I have enough control over, or a need for, a facebook page to justify having one. Certainly I can control what I post, but sometimes "friends" will post things I wouldn't want players to see.
For example, I have a facebook page with current players on the team. One night a player is on facebook and decides to click a link to one of my "friends", John Q Friend, because he wants to see what my life is like outside of a school setting (not exactly out of the realm of possibility). Unfortunately John's last update reads "Poker. Beer. Football with so and so" and my name happens to be listed or "New Years eve party at (coach's) house!". Im above the legal drinking age and its certainly OK for me to get together with friends for some drinks and cards or ring in the new year... but does a 14-18 year old understand that difference? I know you can mess with the privacy settings but even if yours is set to super duper private a kid is still just one click away from stumbling onto a "friends" page, seeing something inappropriate on his page, seeing you listed in his "friends" links and drawing his own conclusions about what you do.
I've got a girlfriend and am friends with enough people from high school/college. The list of people I need a constant update about is short enough that I can keep track of those people on my own and I've never once said to myself "If I only had facebook I could have avoided this whole mess". To me facebook present more problems for someone in a somewhat "public" life than benefits.
I think the team facebook page is a good idea though, if monitored carefully. A great way to get messages out to kids quickly.
But for coaches who will accept a friend request from former players do you ever fear that the same stuff you don't want current players to see will still be relayed by past players?
|
|
|
|
Post by dacoordinator on Jan 6, 2011 11:25:31 GMT -6
I agree with not friending students until after they graduate. It can lead to many problems for you. Not only does it skew the line of coach and player. It can also make you seem as if you are a hypocrite if you don't monitor what you say or post on there. Mainly saying that you may say or preach one thing to your players but not actually live by it or do it.
A lot of college coaches use it as a recruiting tool, but I think they do a lot of censoring to their pages. So thats one way it can be used positively
Facebook can help you can a lot of interest.... but it also can harm you in terms of staying professional if you get out of control with it.
|
|
|
|
Post by coachkill22 on Jan 6, 2011 11:50:26 GMT -6
I have a Favebook account that is only for players and some parents. I also have an account that is my own personal account and I don't accept players as friends on that account. My personal account is only for my adult friends (no minors).
I'm not a teacher, so my football facebook account helps me keep in touch with the players. I also put football stuff on there and have discussion boards about something to do with football. It has worked for me.
|
|
|
|
Post by cnunley on Jan 6, 2011 12:10:15 GMT -6
I use to have a facebook account while I was still in college and when it was only for actual college students/alum.
As soon as it went public to everybody I began teaching I got rid of everything. I agree that even if you have everything on private or blocked that its someone elses page that could get you in trouble.
This season, however, we created a Team Page. It was plain and simple. Team Schedule, and practice updates. Settings were adjusted so no one could even post on our site. Seemed to work well. A couple of practice times had to change so it was posted on Facebook and most of the kids spoke up on how helpful it was.
|
|
|
|
Post by fballcoachg on Jan 6, 2011 12:26:35 GMT -6
I completely agree with cnunley and shsqbcoach1, I had an account when it started and I was in college but got rid of it when it was time to get a teaching job, they flat out told us to or set it at private. I chose the first option because I don't need pictures of me at a get together or old rugby social pictures popping up. It seems younger teachers and coaches are fighting the image of "buddies" by default and I don't need that issue on top.
I would however have a team page if I was an HC as just another medium to contact the kids.
|
|
|
|
Post by gambler00 on Jan 6, 2011 12:44:31 GMT -6
I have all the players cell numbers in my phone. Any update or change I do through text messaging. Also we have an email account with google with all the parents emails so we send mass messages that way. Seemingly in talking to other coaches I know either you embrace facebook or stay away from it. The problems I have with facebook are as follows for a coach. (I have an account and am friends with players.) I have taken the opposite route and have no profile controls on my profile and I let anyone be my friend (within reason). I dont post photos but the reason I have an account is because that is the way I communicate with a few close friends and family. I dont have anything on my profile that can be posted in the new york times so I dont see a reason to make it private. Another reason I have it is I want to see if any photos or stuff gets posted about me or the team. Note just because photos are untagged it doesnt mean someone cant stumble upon them. If kids know you are their friend then they will be less likely to post bad stuff and you can address it. I dont communicate with players on facebook but allow them to be my friend. One thought is being a facebook friend is different now I think the term they are using now is connection. Anyhow I see all the problems with facebook but I feel like being on the cite is good surveilance for the program.
|
|
|
|
Post by julien on Jan 6, 2011 14:07:20 GMT -6
I have every player on facebook.they also know our policies on it. We set up a "team players" private group and also a fan page. I have total control over the players pave and it's how we update them and post video etc. Players are n9t allowed to discuss opponents or be ngTive towards our program via the Internet...it works a treat. We do the same here. I guess it's really different because airtrafficcontrol and I are coaching in Europe with adult amateur team. Team page is a must for us. Great way to communicate and promote our "program". |
|
|
|
Post by JVD on Jan 6, 2011 18:32:26 GMT -6
I love facebook! No students allowed to be a friend till they graduate. I have over 500 fans of our small schools fan page. I said I would allow comments until it was a problem. Over a year and no problem. I might have deleted 2 or 3 posts that former players droped F-bombs in. Very easy way to tell everyone what's going on. www.facebook.com/#!/pages/LAnse-Purple-Hornet-Football/227536237636 |
|
|
|
Post by k on Jan 6, 2011 22:09:30 GMT -6
I had one at one time. No longer. I had stuff on mine that I wouldn't want my employer seeing so I said "see ya."
I'd like to have a fan page for the team. 95% of the team have smartphones that they use for facebook. It is their primary means of communication with each other.
|
|
|
|
Post by eagle zipper hero on Jan 11, 2011 11:20:59 GMT -6
Its a good idea to be the players friend to monitor what the athlete puts on there. They don't understand what is appropriate, and could get into trouble. If you see something that could get them into trouble, call them in, delete it, discuss why them why that should not be on facebook for the world to see.
|
|
|
|
Post by Chris Clement on Jan 11, 2011 12:27:20 GMT -6
I use a team page with my youth team. I keep a little more distance from the kids on the high school team, they're a little older, and a little stupider for it. But then, there's nothing that embarassing on my page, and none of my players speak english.
|
|
|
|
Post by ajreaper on Jan 11, 2011 12:28:11 GMT -6
I cannot understand how myself or any of us can have almost daily personal contact with our players and students but any connection in cyber space is a big no no? Makes no sense what so ever. If anything, social network sites, email and texts provide a record of what was actual said, sent or posted- you often do not get that in face to face encounters.
Those who have victimized kids were doing way before the advent of the internet- we can use it for good with the same degree of resoucefulness they have used it for bad.
Walk the walk and talk the talk both in person and online.
|
|
|
|
Post by John Knight on Jan 12, 2011 15:58:24 GMT -6
Amen, reaper
|
|
|
|
Post by buck42 on Jan 12, 2011 20:14:13 GMT -6
Anything I need to say to them I can say via a text message...I have a facebook page but I can not tell you the last time that I logged on...its not worth it...
|
|
