- Attending person workshops, clinics, and conferences for coaches
- Taking inventory and ordering new equipment
- Discussing scheduling with athletic director and opposing coaches
- Arranging tor preseason scrimmage games
- Recruiting team managers and statisticians
- Meeting regularly with assistant coaches
- Making a schedule for scouting opponents
- Announcing tryouts
- Writing press releases for newspapers
- Planning for use of athletic facilities
- Clipping newspaper stories on the team and its opponents
- Inviting the players' parents to the games
- Monitoring players' academic progress
- Asking knowledgeable persons to scout the team for weaknesses
- Arranging for filming or videotaping of the team
- Encouraging players to attend summer sports camp and participate in summer sports
- Assisting players in their choice of colleges
- Discussing the program and problems with the school principal and other administrators
- Writing thank-you letters to appropriate individuals
Because of turnover within coaching and the expansion of sports, many opportunities exist for coaching employment. Salaries vary with the emphasis the community places upon the sport, as well as local wage and salary practices. For example, a school district that regards football as very important may pay a coach $5,000 a season, while another district may pay $3,000.The average, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, is$2,000 to $4,000. Coaches of minor sports-tennis, wrestling, and swimming-may receive less than $1,000, unless there is strong local interest. Naturally, this is in addition to a teaching salary.
Also, many coaches at all levels in all sports direct summer camps or assist in such activities. This can be a welcome source of extra income.
At the school level, coaching, which is really an avocation, offers the opportunity to work closely with a group of young people and have a large impact upon their development. Many of the friendships made will be carried throughout the coach's life and provide a continuing source of satisfaction. A coach can make a difference!
College Coaching
College coaching varies greatly with the visibility of the program and the status of the college or university. That is, a Division I (or A for football) program at a major university undoubtedly will have significant coverage of its games by the media and often have its games televised. This would not be true of Division 11,111, or NAIA programs, although the latter would receive regular newspaper and periodic television coverage. So if you wish to be a superstar college coach on the television, aspire to Division status. It's well to remember that many coaches greatly enjoy the small college and often achieve longevity there, far from the lime light.
Michele Sharp knew in high school that she wanted to coach basket ball and perhaps some other sports. While enrolled at West Chester University in the health and physical education program, she served as an assistant coach in basketball and softball at nearby Cabrini College. Upon graduation, she gained employment as a health and physical education teacher and as a head coach in softball and basketball. Sharp remained active in the-season through coaching Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) teams and working at summer basketball camps. Following successful stops at Philadelphia College of Textile and Science, Swarthmore College, and Norwich University, she now coaches at Manhattan College in Riverdale, New York.
"I love the players and enjoy the camaraderie of the coaches, and winning makes the hard work all worth it", she said, adding that she believes, "Opportunities for women in coaching abound. Although we don't have the extensive professional system men do it is not available for women coaching men."
