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NORTHCENTRAL UNIVERSITY
ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET

Student: Ross Downin

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COURSE NUMBER: MS-7100

MENTOR: Roy E. Yarbrough
COURSE TITLE: Foundation of Doctoral Study in Education
ASSIGNMENT: Creating Positive Culture

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Creating Positive Culture in the Athletic Department

Ross Downin

SM7100 Development of Human Resource Strategies in Intercollegiate Athletics.

Dr. Roy E. Yarbrough

Thursday, January 5, 2018

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Creating Positive Culture in Athletic Department

First off, I would like to say, that it is an honor to be the appointed Athletic Director here at Hillside
College. I am grateful for your warm welcome. It is our goal to provide an opportunity for participation in a
wide variety of student-selected activities. We believe participation in athletics is a privilege that carries with it
responsibilities to the student-athlete’s family, the school, the team, the Hillside College and the students
themselves. Hillside College will uphold the commitment to excellence in athletics which implies Hillside
Athletic Department will provide exemplary leadership, appropriate facilities and support services to allow its
student-athletes to compete at the highest level of interscholastic competition and to reach their educational and
athletic progress objectives. There are some things that I have been aware of and with patience and
determination our department will become stronger and embody a winning spirit. I have recently been told by a
few of the assistant AD’s that our department has been dealing with retaining personnel. This is common. I am
not surprise by the slightest, and here is why. Throughout my years as an athletic director and even and
assistant AD, I have seen and heard of this issue. I have seen the causes and effects of the “what next”
mentality that some personnel have. Personally, I am all for bettering yourself and career. However, I want to
create the working environment that keeps my staff eager to come to work and embittering the department
The mission of the Hillside College is to graduate people of uncommon integrity, competence and
maturity who are effective lifelong learners and responsible citizens, and who are prepared to contribute
substantially to the world in which they live. To this end, the college promotes the development of skills,
knowledge, personal qualities and a worldview that characterizes a well-educated person. All components of
the living and learning environment at Hillside College are designed and intended to support this
mission. There are many building blocks used to create a successful athletic program. But each program is
different, so not all blocks look and feel the same. If there is one common thread to any successful athletic
program, it is the quality of the personnel staff. The athletic department is the building block of what makes a
program thrive. They are on the front lines. In a people business, they are ones most closely linked to the
clientele because they are the ones actually teaching the fundamentals, developing the game plans, fostering
the relationships, educating for character, administering the paperwork and handling the parents. If the
personnel perform at a high level, then your program will maximize its potential. Your program is only as good
as the staff members who help run it, so your attraction, procurement and retention of the highest quality
individuals are of the utmost importance (Lough, 2008).
Furthermore, Hillside College of California Department of Intercollegiate Athletics recognizes a
commitment to serve both its student-athletes and the College. Its primary commitment is to provide an
opportunity for student-athletes to fully develop their academic and athletic potential. Through practice,
training and competition, the department strives to instill in each student-athlete:
•Good sportsmanship and personal integrity.
•Loyalty to the group and the ability to function with others as a team.
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•Appreciation for the benefits of hard work, motivation and perseverance in both winning and losing
situations.
•Pride in accomplishments gained through fair and honest means.
A strong athletic program does much to generate pride and enthusiasm in students, alumni, the College as a
whole, and the community which the College serves. The public relations, goodwill and service provided by a
strong athletic program benefit The Hillside College in ways which cannot be measured in strictly economic
terms. Through its athletic program, the College’s accomplishments and academic goals are made known to the
public. Based upon this philosophy and with ongoing support from the President and the College Athletic
Committee, the following values, mission statement, vision statement and strategic goals have been established
(Solutions, 2017).
These changes, that I plan to make, will take a few required steps follow. One of the most important is any
new personnel we plan to bring in must adopt the Hillside way of thinking. To ultimately be all in. Though
hiring high quality personnel can be seen as a challenge, retaining them over a long period of time is an even

taller task. Over time, more and more challenges have been piled on to a coach’s job description. Their day-to-

day responsibilities and professional requirements have become ever increasing; their “seasons” have become

close to, if not fully, year round; and parental and community expectations and scrutiny have bubbled to a
fever pitch (Lough, 2008). Compounded with forces working against them, such as limited program funding
and competition from outside organizations, what was once intended to be a part-time job has now become
every bit of a full-time endeavor. Since we know coaches are our most valuable commodities, the athletic
administrator has to be incredibly mindful of methods to retain them over time. There are obvious reasons
why some coaches and other personnel stay, and they are usually identical to the reasons why they entered the
profession to begin with: the love of the sport, and the satisfaction they get through their relationships with
their athletes (Ary, 1995). Yet, for some coaches, the downsides outweigh the upsides, ultimately moving
them toward the exit.
Through the years, I have been fortunate enough to retain a hardworking, talented and dedicated core of
coaches. Sixty-five percent of the personnel staff have been with me for five years or longer. Most of the
success of our program can be attributed to their loyalty, longevity and consistently high performance. There
are a few strategies, I believe, have been helpful in keeping them involved and retained. Building strong
relationships with the athletic department at Hillside College. One of the ways you can achieve this is through
frequent informal meetings. Coaches who manage teams with low participation numbers tennis, golf, baseball
generally have little to no help from assistant coaches. In these cases, they may be devoid of a support system
of adults. Little to no daily dialogue with another adult close to his or her team to process issues and talking
points can make the different personnel feel like they are on an island. There is nothing lonelier than walking
off the field all by yourself past an entire parent group after a tough loss. It is important for coaches, as well as
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my staff, to know they have a support system, especially with their direct supervisor as a part of it. A good way
to stay connected with coaches so they feel your support is through weekly informal meetings. Find a

convenient day and time each week when both of you are available for a casual“drop-in meeting”where you

can ask questions, share observations, offer praise, discuss struggles, help talk through problems and, most
importantly, listen. These meetings can be held during a plan period, lunch or on the phone. By building bonds

through these informal meetings, personnel understand that your relationship is not about “you and I,” but

rather “we.”

Having that built-in support system can make the coaches’ and personnel overall experience better, and
it may keep them around longer (2005). Embracing a greater purpose is what I want for my personnel at
Hillside College. Everyone likes to be a part of a winning team. Building your program as if it were a team
working toward a common goal helps all members of the staff feel like they are a successful part of the bigger
program, regardless of wins. Interscholastic athletics are a platform for coaches to teach life lessons through
sport. Emphasize this idea by creating an athletic department mission statement that encompasses player
safety, character development, academic success, life lessons and leadership skills. Implement programs that
support coaches in materializing these outcomes. When the department goals are clearly focused on
educational athletics, it provides coaches with an environment of great purpose beyond wins and losses.
Sometimes this can be the difference between them staying and going. For my personnel and coaches at
Hillside College, at times, the betterment of the department and the athletes is the only domains they have
exclusive control over. The sooner I understand and respect this as an athletic director, the more comfortable
the coach or personnel feels to do the job to the best of his or her ability. This requires a higher amount of
front-end work from me, the athletic director, to carefully attract, vet and hire a coach you feel has the skills to
do the job required. It also requires the relinquishment of control to understand this, though the coach may do
things in a different way, it does not necessarily mean it is the wrong way (Ary, 1996). Allow coaches to run
their program the way they would like to run it, as long as it fits within the framework of the overall
department vision, policies and procedures. They will appreciate your professional respect, and this may be
another reason for them to continue to rule their domain in your program. A better alleviation the workload is

potentially needed. Though your to-do list may be endless, you’re not alone. Coaches and personnel often have

an unmanageable task list that can only be done when they are available. Athletic directors need to remember
our daily schedules, though perhaps busier, may be less bound by required time blocks such as professional
meetings, teaching class or coaching practices. Therefore, for some staff, the best way you can support them is
by using some of your non-restricted time to make their day-to-day task list shorter.
There are multiple ways you can do this. One way is to create efficient systems that minimize extra
work for the staff. For example, create and manage a gym or field schedule so staff do not have to spend their
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time haggling with other personnel for space-time slots. Another idea is to centralize your student-athlete
paperwork. Rather than each coach managing their own database of physical forms, you can collect paperwork
and create a database that all staff can access. Facilitating practice and game set-up through a third-party
student managers or custodial staff also can greatly reduce the staffs daily stress, opening up time they can
spend working with student-athletes, rather than being bogged down by a mounting list of peripheral items.
More time spent doing the things they love increases personnel’s longevity (Hoffman, 2014). I believe
implementing an appreciation program for my current and future staff may put a stop to the turnover rate as
well as better retention. Find ways to show your staff, personally and publically, that you appreciate them.
Many staff members are not in the profession for the attention and the praise, but it certainly helps them feel
satisfied when they know their tireless efforts are recognized.
I would want to create a revenue stream exclusively for discretionary items for staff members such as
polo shirts, sweatshirts and jackets. Since many staff members may not feel the appreciation from all
stakeholders, constant appreciation from their athletic director may be enough to keep them coming back. I
would be lying if I said there are not particular personnel positions that are a revolving door for all athletic
directors. Every administrator has their cross to bear in terms of particular sports, difficult to fill with effective
staff members, meaning those sports struggle to find consistency for the program. However, often, that is
because of factors outside our control. In spite of this, as an athletic director, I need to understand and
appreciate the idea that quality staff are the catalyst of program success, and employing strategies to retain
them will keep their programs strong well into the future. Ask any athletic director what makes their program
so special, and most will talk about the personnel of the athletic department. They are the ones on the ground
floor, working day in and day out with the student-athletes. That is why it can be so devastating for a
department when there is constant turnover, providing little continuity and consistency within the programs.
One of the biggest challenges facing my position as an athletic director is hiring and retaining our personnel
who have long-term plans for their respective teams (Anderson, 2002). Sometimes it’s the salary, other times
it’s the job, but regardless of the reasons, athletic administrators are searching for ways to keep staff members
from fleeing their schools. There is a variety of factors pushing staff members out the door, but that do not
mean athletic directors are helpless when it comes to slowing turnover. It all starts during the interview, and
asking the right questions can shed some light on a coach’s future ambitions. Maybe they plan to use your
athletic program as a stepping stone to something bigger, or perhaps they are rooted in the community and
want nothing more than to grow their team into one of the best in the state. That is why it makes sense to ask
my personnel about their philosophies and where they plan to go with their careers. That does not mean athletic
administrators should hire someone with great ambitions.
Those are often the coaches and staff that are most determined to do the best job, and that can create a
solid foundation for the future of the program. The thought is that assistant coaches should one day be in a
position to run a program of their own. Few things are more frustrating for coaches than having a department
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or supervisor that does not support what they are doing. At the same time, they seldom want constant oversight
that gives the impression they are not trusted to do their own jobs. There must be a balance. Coaches are more
likely to stay with your program if they feel the school is invested, supportive and encouraging of what they
are doing. They also want to know when things go awry; when athletes, family of athletes go on the attack or
fans become overly critical, as the athletic director, it is my duty to have their backs. Being the first person to
step up and provide encouragement for a coach who hits a rough patch, whether it is on or off the field.
Coaches are more inclined to fight for athletic directors who are willing to fight for them. Support for
personnel must be more than communicated (Anderson, D. 2002). And if they feel like they are respected and
valued in your athletic program, it will make it much harder for them to leave for another job, or leave the
athletic profession all together. Hillside College is known for having one of California’s top athletic programs,

yet when coaches are asked what they enjoy most about being here, their response is related to the culture —

not the championships. They do not feel they are held to a win-or-get-fired standard, which allows them to
focus on other aspects of the job, like developing positive character and teamwork. To the problem there will
always be a solution. Progressively, here at Hillside College, we will development a type of environment that
represents a department that exceeds expectations out of supervisors and personnel in all levels. Overall,
creating a stronger athletic department and becoming more notable in our division and conference who shows
innovation in athletics with winning spirits.
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References

American Council on Education. (2005). An agenda for excellence: Creating flexibility in tenure track
careers. Washington DC: A.C.E. Office of Women in Higher Education.

Anderson, S.E., Coffey, B.S., & Byerly, R.T. (2002). Formal organizational initiatives and informal
workplace practices: Links to work-family conflict and job-related outcomes. Journal of Management,
28, 787–810.

Anderson, D., Morgan, B., & Wilson, J. (2002). Perceptions of family-friendly policies: University versus
corporate employees. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 23, 73–92.

Ary, D., Jacobs, C. J., & Razavieh, A. (1996). Introduction to research in education (5th ed.). Fort Worth:
Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.

Hoffman, K. (2014). Retaining Successful Coaches. Retrieved January, 2017, from

https://coachad.com/articles/julyaugust-2014-retaining-successful-coaches/

Lough, N. L., Tiell, B., Osborne, B. (2008). Athletic Administrators Perceptions of Work –Life Balance
Policies: A Divisional Comparison. Journal of Contemporary Athletics, 3(4), 327-347.

Solutions, R. (2017, August 23). How to Write a Personal Mission Statement. Retrieved January 07, 2018,
from https://www.daveramsey.com/blog/mission-statement-101/