when to leave

during the summer i have worked weightroom by myself, never made it mandatory that they come during summer, cut all the fields and the 8 hours of other school grounds we are responsible for, done all of the paperwork, done all budgets, equipment inventory and ordering, etc. (except for 1 week of vacation) i have only asked them to come a few days before fall practice, cut grass one time before practice and line off practice field and talk x's o's and personell. they were just in charge of their positions and coaching their players.

honestly, i dont have much time to do all that much with it. during season i trade on sat and draw up one game worth of scout team cards on sat. they grade their positions on sat. (quick grades, + or -) I also look at our film and grade my position. sun we meet and look at games, put together game plan meet from about 1-5 on sun.

I've been at 4 schools (one school- two tours). The first two moves were moves to a better position overall for me (area I wanted to live, teaching in my field, opportunity for a better program due to admin. support, etc.).

I was at my current school in from 93-96. I left due to a lot of things- mainly the declining enrollment forced a lot of staff cuts- at that time we had lost some good administrators and the school board had some of their own "issues". I was told by the sup. that they may have to cut my teaching back to 1/2 time in a year- so if I wanted to look for jobs, I should. Long story short, I was offered a 5A (largest- school of 2200) job, so I took it.

Though we had reasonable success (league champ or runner up all years... weak league), I was not comfortable being at such a large school, living in a city, the cost of living, etc. Looking back, I know that I could have done a much better job with the lower levels; I did a good job coaching OL, LB and offense, but at that level, I needed to be more of a program administrator than I was; once I recognized that, I realized that I am better suited for a smaller school.

My assistant at my previous (and now current) school took over when I left and we continued to talk on a weekly basis. After 5 years, he had some serious health problems and retired...a few other teachers and administrators retired, the old superintendent who originally hired me was returning... everything worked itself out for me to return as a HC, 1/2 time teacher (weights) and 1/2 time administrator... I am very glad to be back, but do value what I learned being away for 6 years.

I realize that the likelihood of something happening just like this is slim... I feel very fortunate to be in the situation I am in now.

Pros of moving to a new (or old) job: Renewal of enthusiasm... especially if you feel stagnant in a situation. If you move on your terms, the opportunity to be in a position better suited for you is probably more likely

Cons- mainly, it is hard to get a house paid off if you stay 5 years or less (I've owned 4 homes and I'm 37... not a good way to make money in real estate). Also, you need to get re-established at the school somewhat. For some (like me) that has an allure to it, though I am also seeing the value of settling in and being comfortable.

Raider-Here's my two cents, you can take it or leave it seeing as I have never been in the situation.

Sit down with your assistants and brain storm for an afternoon this spring. Let everyone be open and honest, but don't argue about anything. Get a few different points of view- remember
"the one eyed man only sees half of what the guy with two does". At the very least, it will be good to be on the same page with your assistants.