Post by gatordog on Aug 15, 2011 12:34:09 GMT -5
Chicago Tribune front page story. Interesting how there is a more modern approach to this.
The cruelest cuts
High schools seek to soften blow of not making sports teams
By Dawn Rhodes, Tribune reporter
5:23 p.m. CDT, August 11, 2011
A slight chill coursed through the air Wednesday morning as dozens of teenagers streamed into Lyons Township High School in La Grange for the first day of fall sport practices.
More than 100 soccer players gathered in the hot, stuffy gym where freshman Sam Conde sat quietly and scanned the group, knowing that some may not earn spots on the team when tryouts end.
"There's a lot of kids and it's probably going to be competitive," said Conde, 14, a defender with a deep voice who hopes to make the freshman "A" team. "I'm going to need to prove myself to the coaches and be better than some of the kids, even though some of them are a lot better than me."
Many area high school student-athletes will be heartbroken Friday, when many coaches whittle down their rosters to a select few. Cut day is a painful ritual for the coaches who deliver the news and to the students who receive it.
"It's tough when you have (an) 18-year-old boy break down and start tearing up in front of you," said Jim Konrad, athletic director and head soccer coach at Naperville North. "All they want to do is be on the team and you have to be the one to tell a kid you're not good enough."
But while the practice remains a harsh fact, the process is changing.
Teenagers rarely have to storm a bulletin board bearing a list of names that made the cut. Rather, coaches are more likely to break the news to students face-to-face, often in carefully organized sessions.
It's an approach many athletic directors laud as personal, respectful and effective.
It's "an ongoing improvement in understanding how children grow and mature," said Randy Oberembt, athletic director at New Trier in Winnetka. "Each student is different in the way that they approach these things, so the conversation permits coaches to apply a little bit of differentiated education."
Though they cite no particular catalyst for the change, many athletic directors said there has been growing disenchantment with previous methods. In particular, many saw posted lists as impersonal. Lists also can humiliate students whose names are nowhere to be found and must wade through a sea of peers who did make the cut.
But the most common gripe with the list is that students receive no meaningful feedback. Athletic directors prefer personal interactions because they provide students with valuable learning experiences and coaches with important teaching moments.
"Being in education, we want what's best for our kids," said Lyons Township athletic director John Grundke. "We think that giving them that information makes it a little easier for them to make a decision whether they want to continue to pursue this."
Many athletic directors now direct their coaches to speak with every student-athlete at a tryout — even though it makes the process more involved. Even in instances where a coach posts a roster, students are often encouraged to speak with the coaching staff if they have questions.
"It doesn't make a kid feel like a piece of meat," said Steve Rockrohr, athletic director at Glenbrook South in Glenview. "It lets them know that the coach was actually looking at them and they weren't ignored."
Many coaches said they try to give clear, specific feedback so athletes understand the reasoning behind being cut. At Oak Park and River Forest, coaches use assessment sheets they can share with an athlete.
"I've definitely had fewer meetings with parents and athletes about why (their) son or daughter didn't make a team," said OPRF athletic director John Stelzer.
Then comes the hard part … "We really appreciate your efforts, but … " "There is a lot of competition, so unfortunately … " "This is a difficult decision, however … "
Lyons sophomore Julia Condotti, 15, worries about facing that awkward situation. She avoided it last year when she made the freshman volleyball squad.
"It is nerve-racking to know that there are so many girls that can make it, that somebody is going to get cut," she said, her upbeat attitude belying her apprehension. "That's the one thing that keeps racing through my mind."
The disappointment can be particularly strong, said Oberembt, considering how much time and energy teens often invest to make a high school team. For Lyons freshman Nicholas Hernandez, who tried out for soccer on Wednesday, that effort involved trying many other sports that didn't click for him, including basketball, football, baseball and volleyball.
"I might make the team, but I might not too," said Hernandez, 14, peeking over his green-rimmed glasses. "It'd be kind of disappointing 'cause I've been playing soccer for a long time. My entire family has been playing. My dad played for 22 years and I want to see if I can play longer."
What a coach does after breaking the news is pivotal.
Teens often are focused on their own emotions. But athletic directors said it's important to give the student direction so they can move past the disappointment. Coaches sometimes give tips on what skills to work on for next season or suggest other sports the athlete may succeed at, a strategy often aided by a school's offering of no-cut sports.
"In the fall, there are usually more freshmen that try out at that level," Grundke said. "And we don't want their first experience of the high school to be, 'You're cut. Get out of here.' We do try to include them."
At Loyola Academy in Wilmette, head football coach and assistant athletic director John Holecek encourages all freshman boys not committed to another sport to come play football.
"I think it's a good policy by the school just to include everybody," said Holecek, whose rosters usually boast between 225 and 245 players across all levels. "You don't have to be a great athlete. There's maybe a niche we can find for you in football."
Lyons freshman Aleksa Jackson,14, seems well-positioned to find her niche. The bubbly brunette said she already had made the cheerleading team and was interested in track. On Wednesday, she tried her hand at volleyball, a sport she never has played.
"I just wanted to get started in as much stuff as I could," she said. "I'm just trying to be a part of the team."
Steering kids toward a certain path is a delicate process, said Augie Fontanetta, athletic director of Fremd in Palatine.
"You can't necessarily sugarcoat because you don't want to give the kids unrealistic hope," Fontanetta said. "You want to be frank and realistic, but at the same time you've got to be empathetic."
Even with all the carefully thought-out steps, athletic directors concede that coaches can only cushion the blow so much.
"When you get cut from a team, no matter how much time a coach spends with you one-on-one, it still is going to hurt," Stelzer said. "Is it perfect? No. It's never going to be perfect."
So is there any benefit to cutting kids from teams?
"We're all going to get cut from something or not get a job," Grundke said. "Even though it doesn't feel like it's a great opportunity at the time, often that will help you learn and get something else that you would want later in life."
The cruelest cuts
High schools seek to soften blow of not making sports teams
By Dawn Rhodes, Tribune reporter
5:23 p.m. CDT, August 11, 2011
A slight chill coursed through the air Wednesday morning as dozens of teenagers streamed into Lyons Township High School in La Grange for the first day of fall sport practices.
More than 100 soccer players gathered in the hot, stuffy gym where freshman Sam Conde sat quietly and scanned the group, knowing that some may not earn spots on the team when tryouts end.
"There's a lot of kids and it's probably going to be competitive," said Conde, 14, a defender with a deep voice who hopes to make the freshman "A" team. "I'm going to need to prove myself to the coaches and be better than some of the kids, even though some of them are a lot better than me."
Many area high school student-athletes will be heartbroken Friday, when many coaches whittle down their rosters to a select few. Cut day is a painful ritual for the coaches who deliver the news and to the students who receive it.
"It's tough when you have (an) 18-year-old boy break down and start tearing up in front of you," said Jim Konrad, athletic director and head soccer coach at Naperville North. "All they want to do is be on the team and you have to be the one to tell a kid you're not good enough."
But while the practice remains a harsh fact, the process is changing.
Teenagers rarely have to storm a bulletin board bearing a list of names that made the cut. Rather, coaches are more likely to break the news to students face-to-face, often in carefully organized sessions.
It's an approach many athletic directors laud as personal, respectful and effective.
It's "an ongoing improvement in understanding how children grow and mature," said Randy Oberembt, athletic director at New Trier in Winnetka. "Each student is different in the way that they approach these things, so the conversation permits coaches to apply a little bit of differentiated education."
Though they cite no particular catalyst for the change, many athletic directors said there has been growing disenchantment with previous methods. In particular, many saw posted lists as impersonal. Lists also can humiliate students whose names are nowhere to be found and must wade through a sea of peers who did make the cut.
But the most common gripe with the list is that students receive no meaningful feedback. Athletic directors prefer personal interactions because they provide students with valuable learning experiences and coaches with important teaching moments.
"Being in education, we want what's best for our kids," said Lyons Township athletic director John Grundke. "We think that giving them that information makes it a little easier for them to make a decision whether they want to continue to pursue this."
Many athletic directors now direct their coaches to speak with every student-athlete at a tryout — even though it makes the process more involved. Even in instances where a coach posts a roster, students are often encouraged to speak with the coaching staff if they have questions.
"It doesn't make a kid feel like a piece of meat," said Steve Rockrohr, athletic director at Glenbrook South in Glenview. "It lets them know that the coach was actually looking at them and they weren't ignored."
Many coaches said they try to give clear, specific feedback so athletes understand the reasoning behind being cut. At Oak Park and River Forest, coaches use assessment sheets they can share with an athlete.
"I've definitely had fewer meetings with parents and athletes about why (their) son or daughter didn't make a team," said OPRF athletic director John Stelzer.
Then comes the hard part … "We really appreciate your efforts, but … " "There is a lot of competition, so unfortunately … " "This is a difficult decision, however … "
Lyons sophomore Julia Condotti, 15, worries about facing that awkward situation. She avoided it last year when she made the freshman volleyball squad.
"It is nerve-racking to know that there are so many girls that can make it, that somebody is going to get cut," she said, her upbeat attitude belying her apprehension. "That's the one thing that keeps racing through my mind."
The disappointment can be particularly strong, said Oberembt, considering how much time and energy teens often invest to make a high school team. For Lyons freshman Nicholas Hernandez, who tried out for soccer on Wednesday, that effort involved trying many other sports that didn't click for him, including basketball, football, baseball and volleyball.
"I might make the team, but I might not too," said Hernandez, 14, peeking over his green-rimmed glasses. "It'd be kind of disappointing 'cause I've been playing soccer for a long time. My entire family has been playing. My dad played for 22 years and I want to see if I can play longer."
What a coach does after breaking the news is pivotal.
Teens often are focused on their own emotions. But athletic directors said it's important to give the student direction so they can move past the disappointment. Coaches sometimes give tips on what skills to work on for next season or suggest other sports the athlete may succeed at, a strategy often aided by a school's offering of no-cut sports.
"In the fall, there are usually more freshmen that try out at that level," Grundke said. "And we don't want their first experience of the high school to be, 'You're cut. Get out of here.' We do try to include them."
At Loyola Academy in Wilmette, head football coach and assistant athletic director John Holecek encourages all freshman boys not committed to another sport to come play football.
"I think it's a good policy by the school just to include everybody," said Holecek, whose rosters usually boast between 225 and 245 players across all levels. "You don't have to be a great athlete. There's maybe a niche we can find for you in football."
Lyons freshman Aleksa Jackson,14, seems well-positioned to find her niche. The bubbly brunette said she already had made the cheerleading team and was interested in track. On Wednesday, she tried her hand at volleyball, a sport she never has played.
"I just wanted to get started in as much stuff as I could," she said. "I'm just trying to be a part of the team."
Steering kids toward a certain path is a delicate process, said Augie Fontanetta, athletic director of Fremd in Palatine.
"You can't necessarily sugarcoat because you don't want to give the kids unrealistic hope," Fontanetta said. "You want to be frank and realistic, but at the same time you've got to be empathetic."
Even with all the carefully thought-out steps, athletic directors concede that coaches can only cushion the blow so much.
"When you get cut from a team, no matter how much time a coach spends with you one-on-one, it still is going to hurt," Stelzer said. "Is it perfect? No. It's never going to be perfect."
So is there any benefit to cutting kids from teams?
"We're all going to get cut from something or not get a job," Grundke said. "Even though it doesn't feel like it's a great opportunity at the time, often that will help you learn and get something else that you would want later in life."