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Post by coachcb on Dec 19, 2006 6:54:31 GMT -6
I have realized over the past few days that we as coaches can be a little hard on those parents that bug us. But let's look at the flip side; this year I had a great group of parents, they were very supportive of myself and the team. I only had an issue with one father, but that wasn't even that big a problem. Heck, right now I'm basically living off the grocery store gift certificate they gave me; being a poor college kid's getting old. So, in the spirirt of the holidays, why don't we discuss the flip side of the coin; great groups of parents.
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bhb
Junior Member
Posts: 259
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Post by bhb on Dec 19, 2006 7:13:19 GMT -6
Might be a short discussion-;-)
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Post by wildcat on Dec 19, 2006 7:22:32 GMT -6
90% of the parents I have dealt with are very supportive provided that their sons are treated respectfully and given a fair chance. It is that 10% who demand preferential treatment even though their kids don't put in the work that gives all parents a bad reputation.
MOST of the times that parents have complained, it has been pretty legitimate (coach swearing excessively, coach showing preferential treatment, coach not prepared, organized, etc, etc). Granted, there are parents that are problems no matter how noble the efforts of the coach, but most parents want what is best for their kids and they realize that being a pain in the neck isn't the way to do that.
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Post by superpower on Dec 19, 2006 8:23:19 GMT -6
I have superior parents at my current school. They have been completely supportive of the expectations I have put forth for their kids. I think the key is good communication and giving the parents some ownership in the program. My wife organizes team meals for every varsity game day, and then the parents volunteer to help in various ways. This has been a great way for us to get the parents involved in a very positive way. Right now I couldn't ask for a better group of parents, so I am enjoying every minute of it!
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Post by coachcb on Dec 19, 2006 8:27:17 GMT -6
I agree with you wildcat; most of the parents I have dealt with are great folks. Having only coach at the varsity level briefly, I call honestly say that (at the youth and middle school level) there are really only three complaints that are Really viable and pop up consistently; 1. Playing time 2. Treatment of the kids 3. Swearing When you come down to it, these are pretty easy to fix; ditch your ego and play all of the kids (assuming equal practice time), treat the kids well, and watch your mouth. I have always had an easy time with the 1st two, however, swearing was a problem for me. This year, my staff and I each went on a run during practice for swearing. Two d-mns and a h-ll got us about two miles worth of running. LOL.
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Post by knighter on Dec 19, 2006 9:31:28 GMT -6
At current school 99% of parents are AWESOME. They allow me to do my job, and help in any way they can. I do not let them minority bother me in the slightest.
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Post by coachshs on Dec 19, 2006 9:51:23 GMT -6
I also have great parents. There is always that one dad that gets on all our nerves, but someone has to keep us in line right! ;D
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coachf
Freshmen Member
Posts: 15
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Post by coachf on Dec 19, 2006 9:55:47 GMT -6
This year's parents were a much better group than last year (no cop escorts=better parents). We had one major problem this year, unfortunately he will be a pain in the butt for a few more years. Nice guy, just manipulative and oblivious of his detrimental actions.
We do have a few great parents who furnish meals and such. We also have some who go out of their way to make sure we are taken care of as a football team.
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Post by blb on Dec 19, 2006 10:02:26 GMT -6
We have helpful, supportive parents at our school, but like shs says, there's always that one.
He fulfills a vital role in our program - he makes us appreciate the other parents all the more!
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Post by coachcb on Dec 19, 2006 10:16:45 GMT -6
I guess part of my general negativity with parents comes from a group I had for two years. I coached their kids as 8th graders and then on as freshman. After dealing with their issues (some vaild, some bs-I-wtach-Monday-Night-Football crap) I gues I started stereotyping parenst in general. But this last group was incredibly helpful and gave me and the staff a great deal of respect. We had the one guy who felt that we should be running Indy-stuff that would get his 5th grader a scholarship as a QB. But after putting the smack down on a few teams by running the jet series, he toned it down.
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Post by lochness on Dec 19, 2006 13:14:22 GMT -6
Our parents are a lovely group of people.
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Post by larrymoe on Dec 19, 2006 14:25:48 GMT -6
coachf- OUR BUDDY!!!! Gotta love that guy.
But the majority of parents there are actually decent. OK mayb e 50% of them. Maybe not a majority.
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50Murf
Sophomore Member
Posts: 212
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Post by 50Murf on Dec 19, 2006 15:05:53 GMT -6
I have found that most of my parents are really great people. They help with the split the pop, the chain crew, the hot dogs, pop, and candy, and the set up & clean up of the field. In my case, I have been at my school for 8 years, and it is always a minority of the parents, about 3 or 4 sets of parents out of 28 - 30 total, that cause a lot of the problems. The main complaint is about playing time, and get this, not being able to dink at the games. We are a 7/8th grade Catholic school team, play on the weekends, for an hour, and these people are upset that they can not tailgate or drink on the sideline. So I do consider myself luck to have a lot of great parents and only a few "drunks".
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Post by champ93 on Dec 19, 2006 18:27:47 GMT -6
For the most part, my parents have been supportive, which is a tough task at my school. Either I have them trained well or they're planning hteir attack.
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Post by semi-pro64 on Dec 20, 2006 10:28:57 GMT -6
Dealing with parents is like the Pareto principle (80/20 rule). 20% of the parents will be 80% of the problem. Everytime I talk with a parent from the good 80% group I always make sure to thank them for letting me coach their kid and being a part of of our program. As for the bad 20% of the parents it kinda comes with being a coach, I don’t talk with them (I let the head coach deal with them!)
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Post by airman on Dec 20, 2006 22:12:14 GMT -6
when I get a parent who talks about his kid being the star and all that junk I always tell them we are in need of vol. coaches, so practice starts at 3 and gets done at 6:30. see you there new vol assistant coach. never had one take me up on this.
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Post by coachcb on Dec 21, 2006 7:48:28 GMT -6
Lol airman; I've done the same thing. Especially at the HS level; I not only explain to them when practice is, but also go into great detail about watching film at least a couple hours a day 6 hours a week.
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Post by knighter on Dec 21, 2006 9:20:07 GMT -6
I beleive this after 11 years as a head coach, and 1 as an assistant.
People that detract from your program are a minority. People that support the program are in the majority in most cases. The minority, as in most cases, just tends to be more vocal.
I keep all the "anonymous" letters, and when I retire I plan to put them all in a book. I get a good laugh out of them.
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