Tim Simpson

We talk about this a lot, and it’s long overdue that school leaders start having this conversation. High school athletic departments are years behind the classrooms they operate alongside. Think about that. In classrooms, educators are challenged to innovate, adapt, embrace technology, think differently and find creative ways to connect with every kid, as one coach recently noted. In athletics, we ask kids, families, coaches and communities to conform to outdated systems, because it makes the adults’ jobs easier. That’s completely backward. How connected are athletic programs with one another at schools? How many head coaches interact their kids with other programs? Kids want that, and that connection helps the culture year-round at schools. But here’s a bigger problem: Athletic departments are massively understaffed, underfunded and underutilized. We expect one athletic director to be an administrator, event planner, fundraiser, marketer, disciplinarian, facilities manager, transportation coordinator and community liaison at many schools. Then we wonder why innovation isn’t happening. Read this and think: Athletic departments should be among the most powerful departments in any school district. Yes, they should. Athletics are more than JUST games, and some people just continue to miss it. Sport has the ability to connect classrooms with communities, build relationships with local businesses, create student-leadership opportunities, generate revenue, enhance school and community pride and provide real-world educational experiences that extend far beyond these overpriced scoreboards. Athletics should be a true extension of the classroom, not an isolated department operating on an island. You can’t expect innovation when your entire operating model is built around survival. And yes, most ADs are in survival mode more times than not. Think about that statement, because that is hard truth. School leaders and school boards need to stop looking at athletics simply as an expense, a schedule of games or another administrative headache. Start looking at it as an investment in kids, families, schools and communities. Give athletic departments the staffing, resources, technology and freedom to actually innovate. Hold them accountable for creating opportunities, not simply managing schedules or buses. All of these things are achievable. The issue is the school “hamster wheel” I refer to. The goal shouldn’t be making life easier for the adults running high school sports. It should be making the experience better overall for all kids participating in them. That’s what “education-based sports” are supposed to be about vs just an administrative talking point. #MoreThanJUSTGames