Coaches and activity or club sponsors at Center Grove High School have been given a new set of guidelines to follow that prohibit using profanity and any type of abuse with students.
The new athletic handbook, approved by the Center Grove Community Schools board of trustees in November, calls on coaches to exercise self-discipline and use appropriate language at all times.
The rules are among the 16-page guidelines spelled out in two handbooks — The 2018-19 Center Grove High School Athletic Handbook and Co-Curricular and Extra-Curricular Handbook — that Center Grove coaches, sponsors and students are expected to follow. The handbooks are nearly identical, the only difference being the student activities they address.
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When Center Grove varsity football Coach Eric Moore came under investigation earlier this year for using inappropriate language and aggressive physical contact with students, the school district said it had a “larger, systemic issue within the culture of extra-curricular activities.”
At the conclusion of the investigation in May, the school district said that it had not clearly outlined expectations for the behavior of coaches and other activity sponsors, and would be developing those expectations in a handbook for all coaches and activity sponsors. They also said they planned to draft guidelines for student-athletes and others who participate in activities to make clear the resources available, what is expected of them and how they should be treated.
Center Grove High School Principal Jeffry Henderson said student-athletes have been aware of the guidelines that have applied to them for some time. The new handbooks are geared more toward the coaches and activity sponsors and include guidelines for students so the coaches are aware of district policy, Henderson said.
Henderson said work on the handbooks involved consulting Center Grove administrators, viewing handbooks from around the state and getting input from the United Teachers Association of Center Grove. The process of putting together the handbook began at the end of May, after the conclusion of the Moore investigation.
The investigation found that claims of Moore embarrassing and intimidating student-athletes were legitimate. Moore was suspended with pay during the investigation, but did not face other consequences. Moore remains coach, but the district said it needed to take steps to ensure all student-athletes, and students partaking in general extracurricular activities, are treated in a respectful manner.
The publications spell out student requirements for participation in the sports or club activities, such as a mandate for student-athletes to pass 70 percent of their classes. The handbooks also include specific language regarding the treatment of students by coaches.
“All coaches are expected to demonstrate professionalism, patience and expertise when dealing directly or indirectly with student-athletes,” the athletic handbook reads. “Profanity should be avoided, at all times when speaking to an individual or to a group of team members. Any form of abuse — whether physical, verbal, mental or psychological is unacceptable.”
The handbook states that coaches are expected to “reinforce on a continual basis, excellence in sportsmanship, attitude, and respect for teammates and opponents,” “to listen and communicate openly and honestly” and “to exhibit self-discipline and use appropriate language.”
The handbook emphasizes using appropriate language, as well as when and how coaches can text students. The handbook states that texts sent by coaches to student-athletes must meet professional standards and include an assistant coach as a recipient.
The handbook notes that coach to student-athlete harassment or hazing should be reported to the athletic director or to a school administrator.
The policies approved by the school board do not state what the consequences are for a breach in policy on the part of coaches or club sponsors. Henderson said staff matters are handled on a case-by-case basis and any consequences enforced would be based on board policy.
“The purpose of the handbook is to set clear, defined expectations of coaches to shape any issues regarding behavior and to hold coaches accountable,” Henderson said. “We can’t predict behavior but we can set expectations and hold people accountable.”
Consequences are outlined, however, for students found to have violated rules, such as the drug, alcohol and tobacco policy. For example, students are not allowed to use or possess any controlled substances, drug paraphernalia or tobacco products. The first in-season violation results in immediate removal from the team, and awards and honors being revoked, with future participation dependent on a successful drug screen, at the student’s expense.
All districts work to prevent confrontations
Other school districts’ handbooks are mostly geared towards students, although there are sub-sections that address coaches and sponsors. Coach misconduct is highly discouraged, although whether specific consequences are laid out in handbooks varies from district to district.
The Greenwood district athletic handbook requires coaches “be positive about your program, school, and athletic department,” and warns coaches, administrators and athletes “not to create a disruptive influence on the discipline, good order, moral or educational environment in the school.” The handbook requires any disagreements between coaches and student-athletes be resolved first by first having a meeting with the coach. If that does not lead to a resolution, the parent is allowed to meet with the coach, and then a meeting with the athletic director if the issue is still not settled. The handbook states that anyone who tries to confront a coach before or after a game or practice will face possible suspension from participating in sporting events.
In the Clark-Pleasant district, coach and player ejections carry specific penalties.
“Any contestant or coach ejected from a contest for an unsportsmanlike act shall be suspended from the next inter-school contest at that level of competition and all other interschool contests at any level in the interim, in addition to any other penalties assessed,” the Clark-Pleasant athletic handbook reads.
As with Greenwood, Clark-Pleasant strongly discourages confrontation between players and coaches and requires any disputes be resolved in a meeting. When it comes to the “abusive language and/or personal confrontation,” the language in the handbook assumes the student-athlete is the perpetrator.
The Franklin and Indian Creek athletic handbooks lay out guidelines for student-athletes, but not specifically for coaches. The Edinburgh district is the only one in the county without an athletic handbook.
