Welcome back letter from the comissioner
Dear Coaches,
As we start fall sports competitions, I want to take a minute to welcome you back and express my heartfelt warm wishes for all of you that are coaching and teaching our students. On behalf of so many of us that are no longer in the trenches working with kids, please know that we are envious of your jobs and the opportunities you have every day to effect students’ lives.
I would like to remind you that as you go about teaching X’s and O’s, don’t forget to also teach the Y’s of life. You, as coaches, have the ability to affect young lives more than anyone except parents. In doing so you are making a difference in the attitudes of your students, parents and your communities.
The reason we offer sports in our schools is this: Sports programs, when run appropriately, offer the opportunity to develop our student athletes into men and women of integrity and character. They can then lead responsibly and ultimately make their communities better.
Sports can and should provide for the social, emotional, moral and ethical wellbeing and development of our young people.
Our purpose is to develop and send our students out into the world that are committed and equipped to make a difference in our communities.
Remember that the essential thing is not knowledge, but character, because when we can build good people, all the rest will follow.
We have distributed over 900 copies of Joe Ehrmanns’ book, InSideOut Coaching, and these concepts are taught so well in that book. Joe talks about the purpose of what we do in addition to the goals that we all set for ourselves. Joe’s purpose for coaching states it best. His purpose “is to help boys become men of empathy and integrity who will lead. Be responsible, and change the world for good. “
For more information about this great book please go to CHSAANow.com/whyweplay.
I encourage you to find your purpose for coaching not just with the goal of winning, but to make sure that there are many reasons you are out there making a difference in our kids’ lives every day.
Best of luck and a safe season to all of you and again thanks for all you do.
Sincerely,
Paul Angelico
