By Dan Cardone

Dan Cardone is Athletic Director at North Hills High School in Pittsburgh, Pa. He is a frequent contributor to Athletic Management.

Difference makers are people who follow through on their desires to take an athletic program in a forward direction. So who are these difference makers? They can be athletes, coaches, parents, administrative assistants, or administrators. They can also be maintenance and custodial staff members, booster club organizers—any person or group who helps the athletic department accomplish the goals that produce a positive environment for those participating in interscholastic athletics. These individuals or groups are team players who, as we say here at North Hills, “row in the same direction.” As an athletic director, I feel that it is my job to recognize, empower, and learn from these difference makers.

In my last blog, I covered how the principal of a high school can become a difference maker in his or her role as it relates to sports. This week we are going to look at how to involve parents in this important role.

One area that has changed significantly in interscholastic athletics the last few years is the increased involvement of parents. They have a keen interest in the participation of their son or daughter in sport and constantly want to be in the know—they want instant access to the program their child is involved in. Identifying parents who will have an impact on various sports teams is a message I preach to our coaches. Find the most supportive parents to serve as the officers of a booster organization. This is usually a senior parent. Next, search for similar traits in the parents of the underclassmen.

Having a chain of solid leaders at the helm of your parent groups will help move the program forward. The opposite can be said of having those who are a detriment to your goals. They can bring a program down in a hurry.

One way as an athletic director to identify parents who are leaders is to engage them. I listen for phrases such as: “I like what coach is doing with the program.” A person who is not going to be a team player as a parent might say, “Have you had a lot of complaints about the coach?”

There is usually a real benefit to an athlete who can emulate the positive traits of their parents. They tend to exhibit qualities such as leadership, respect, and teamwork. The parent should send their child the message that the coach is the leader of the program.

One observation I’ve made from the championship teams I’ve coached is that most of the players had championship-quality parents who set the same expectations for their child that the coach did. They were more than willing to help in a positive way. In short, they knew that to be successful, everyone, including they in the role of parent, had to row in the same direction.

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