The official city motto of Boise, Idaho is "Energy, Peril, Success." With lots of the first, and by avoiding the second, Boise High School Athletic Director Tracy Leinen has earned plenty of the third for herself and her programs.

In 17 years as an athletic administrator at Boise (nine as Athletic Director and the previous eight as an assistant), Leinen has racked up a host of professional honors. She has received NIAAA Distinguished Service Awards in three of the past five years, and in 2006 was honored with both state and national NFHS Citation Awards. In addition, the Idaho Athletic Administrators Association has twice named her Athletic Director of the Year.

Competing in the state's largest classification (5A), Boise High's girls' cross country team won a state title this past school year, and the softball team was the state runner-up. The school's girls' basketball team has been successful as well, making it to the state tournament in each of the last eight years, and the baseball team finished in the top five statewide this spring.

In this interview, Leinen talks about her career path, issues in scheduling, and how she reinforces good sportsmanship among athletes, coaches, and fans.

AM: When did you decide to become an athletic director?

Leinen: My first job at Boise High School was as a phys. ed. and health education teacher, and from the very beginning I coached several different sports. The more I watched our school's athletic director, the more I realized athletic administration was for me. I've always been well organized and highly motivated, and I thought I could use those traits to help all the sports at our school. So I started working toward a master's degree in athletic administration.

The first time the athletic director job opened up and I applied for it--I was already an assistant athletic director by then--the position went to our head football coach. He knew I could handle the duties and he was very busy, so he basically let me do most of the work and I learned a lot by doing. I went to every meeting, helped out every team, and did everything an athletic director does. It was a tremendous opportunity to learn, and the next time the athletic director position came open, I got the job.

What strategies do you use for mentoring coaches?

One of the most important things I learned from coaching is what I should not tell my coaches. Specifically, I never try to tell them how to coach. In my experience, it's better to listen, offer support, and provide advice by talking about what worked for me when I was coaching. You can pass on a lot of wisdom that way, without making coaches feel like you're trying to do their job for them.

We also set goals and frequently talk about the progress we're making toward them and what we have to do to take another step. If coaches believe in your goals for the program, they'll start coming up with their own ideas for how to reach those goals, and that's when a program can be truly successful.

How about working with upper-level administrators and parents?

I believe strongly in ongoing and honest communication. My principal and I have a meeting every Monday morning where we talk about the week's schedule, any issues that have arisen with athletes or parents, and whatever else has come up. Then, throughout the week, I keep him informed of everything that might affect him or that I think he should know about. The last thing I want is for the principal to be surprised by a call from an angry parent. If there's a problem, I want him to hear about it from me first.

The same thing goes for my relationships with parents. I tell all our parents at preseason meetings that I have an open-door policy. It's amazing the problems you can nip in the bud when parents know they can come and talk to you about any concerns they have.

What issues do you wish more athletic directors were talking about?

I think scheduling deserves more attention. How many games should be in a season to give kids enough opportunities to compete without putting them at risk for injury or taking up too much of their time? We also have to compete with club sports when scheduling, which can be tricky. How do you avoid major conflicts while keeping the high school season competitive enough so that you don't lose athletes?

Another major issue is athlete misconduct, particularly when it involves drinking and similar types of behavior. That's something we should all be thinking about more.

What is your school's policy?

Our district has taken an education-first approach, and I think it's worked quite well. If athletes are caught drinking or using drugs or tobacco, they serve a suspension, but they get to choose how long will be--seven, 10, 14, or 21 days.

If they choose a seven-day suspension, the athlete and his or her parents have to attend what we call a survival class, which meets one night a week for six weeks and focuses on the dangers of drugs and alcohol, ways to say "no," and prevention strategies. If they choose the 10-day suspension, the athlete still has to attend the class, but their parents do not. For the 14-day suspension, they agree to meet with an outside counselor, who conducts a verbal and written evaluation of the athlete's drug and alcohol use habits. We then provide the information to the athlete's parents, and together we decide what kind of intervention may be warranted. If someone wants to do none of these things, they sit out a full 21 days.

What makes this policy effective?

I think it's important that we're focusing on education first. Athletes don't feel like they're just being punished for doing something wrong. They see that we want to help them make better choices in the future.

There's also an element of social pressure to it. If an athlete chooses the seven-day suspension, they still have to attend the team's contests during that period, and sit in plain clothes right behind the bench. They have to face their teammates and the crowd, and they have to watch the game knowing they can't be out there helping their team. Hopefully, it's a feeling they'll remember.

How does your school approach sportsmanship among athletes and fans?

We've made sportsmanship a priority not only at our school, but throughout the Southern Idaho Conference. Each fall, we put together a meeting called SIC Interlock that brings together kids, parents, coaches, athletic directors, and sometimes even officials for a community dialogue about what sportsmanship means and how we want everyone to act as role models at our events.

We divide the group into individual tables with people from different schools, and each discusses a series of 10 to 15 questions about sportsmanship. For instance, one of the questions is, "How do you feel when you're at an event and mom or dad gets up in the crowd and starts yelling at an official, your coach, a teammate, or you?" It starts a really healthy dialogue, and that helps us to enter each new school year with sportsmanship on everyone's mind.

Has the program been a success?

There's no doubt about it. Since everyone knows our expectations, we have very few problems. I attend just about every home event during the school year, and it's extremely rare that we have an issue. If we do catch a parent in the stands yelling at an official or some students booing members of the other team, the principal or I will address it right away, and that almost always takes care of the problem.

Boise High School's mascot is the Braves. Has that caused any controversy at your school?

There has been some discussion about it, but I think we've succeeded in using the mascot respectfully. When we have coaches' meetings or student assemblies, we talk about what the Brave means to us--courage, honor, strength--and we make it clear that it's not there to denigrate anyone. We never let it become a caricature by having a student dress up, and our students don't chant during games or anything like that. By focusing on being respectful and proud of what the Brave is and what it stands for, we've kept our mascot from being a major issue.

What is the relationship like between club sports and high school sports in your area?

More than ever, there's a mentality that club sports are where kids earn college scholarships. I think some club coaches see the high school season as second-class, and they may try to get athletes to think the same way. My view is the exact opposite--that the high school season is number one. In soccer especially, I'm afraid club sports are basically trying to take over for high school programs.

How do you counter that?

Mostly by talking to kids and their parents about what high school sports have to offer. Not only do we emphasize the educational value of participating in school sports, but that we also encourage kids to be multi-sport athletes here. All my coaches believe that sharing athletes is what's best for everyone, and I think that's much healthier than an athlete playing one sport year-round.

What do you get out of your work with the Idaho Athletic Administrators Association (IAAA) and the NIAAA?

Being a part of those organizations has meant so much because it has put me in touch with many wonderful mentors. I've learned a lot just by going to the conferences and talking to other athletic directors about what's going on in their states and their individual schools.

It's also really broadened my horizons. I'm a past president of the IAAA, which means I get to serve a three-year term on the Idaho High School Athletic Association's board of directors. That has allowed me to see first-hand the way high school sports are governed in our state. Now, I'm one of the people other athletic directors call if they have questions or concerns about virtually anything, and that's a great way to stay connected.