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Potential Audience

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Critical Role of Mothers in Youth Sports: Missing Piece of Youth Sports Puzzle?
Instead of continuing to serve as the primary guardians of their children at play, today's sports mothers are more often than not, found sitting in the stands, working behind the concession counter, selling snacks and raffle tickets, working as team administrators, or chauffeuring their kids to and from practice and games. The puzzling absence of woman coaches and administrators is clearly one of the most backward traditions in sports today and needs to be changed. The author will empower mothers to take a more active role in their children's youth sports experience in order to improve the culture and restore balance.

Men and women's groups

(PTAs, PTGs, etc.), youth sports organizations

After hearing the author, parents will understand:

1. Why youth sports are a "No Mom Zone"
2. Why women make such great coaches and administrators
3. How mothers can become coaches and get on boards of directors
4. Why, if more women/mothers were coaches/administrators, the culture of youth sports would inevitably change for the better because, as natural communicators and nurturers, as the natural guardians of children at play, mothers can inspire coaches, other parents, athletic directors, school boards and local and national youth sports organizations to do more to keep our children safe, to balance competition with cooperation, and to think about sports not just as a place to showcase the gifted and talented but as a place where all children can begin a love affair with sports and physical exercise lasting a lifetime, instead of ending, as too often is the case, in early adolescence.

What Parents Can Do to Reform Youth Sports in Their Community In the six years since the beating death of a youth hockey coach and father in Massachusetts, the number of out-of-control parents, the focus on winning at the expense of fun and skill development, and the amount of physical and emotional abuse in youth sports has gotten worse, not better. While groups have popped up around the country to address the issue, draft comprehensive parent codes of conduct, cities, towns and states have held youth sports summits and created task forces to come up with ways to reform youth sports, nothing is working. The focus continues to be on the parents and coaches when the real problem is the culture of youth sports itself. Because parents come and go, because change at the national level is unlikely, the path to fundamental change in that culture will only be accomplished at the grassroots, community level where concerned mothers ?and fathers ?can make youth sports about having fun, make sports safer for our children, and include every child who wants a chance to play. The author believes the solution to the youth sports crisis is not to ask parents to sign a code of conduct but to challenge the status quo in a new and different way.

Parents & other stakeholders

After hearing the author, parents will understand:

1. That in order to reform youth sports they need to listen to what children want (less emphasis on winning), not continue to meet the needs of adults, and have the courage to speak up (they are not in the minority; they are the silent majority). 2. That one major way to make youth sports fun again and to reduce the number of out-of-control parents is to push for implementation of a no-cut (i.e. full inclusion) policy at their community's middle and high schools, adding as many teams as are needed to accommodate all those who want to play 3. That another important reform is to push for adoption of an equal playing time rule (below sixth grade) and "meaningful minutes" rule at levels below high school varsity and by seeking to abolish tryouts that result in excluding or cutting children prior to sixth grade 4. That the use of independent evaluators, not parent coaches, to select teams would eliminate the deep cynicism about the fairness of the selection process that angers so many parents 5. That one of the ways to accomplish reforms is to demand accountability and transparency by youth sports organizations (parent input, open board meetings, term limits, more women on boards etc.) 6. That one of the most effective paths to reform is by establishing a youth sports council/task force to obtain input from a broad cross-section of the community about such issues as early specialization, the appropriate age for cutting and competitive tryouts, the best way to recruit and train paid and/or volunteer coaches, the stratification of children based on their perceived abilities, background checks, and how permits are handed out to use taxpayer-funded fields, diamonds, tracks, pools and courts, in order to establish a youth sports charter for the community. 7. That by utilizing the power of the permit, a municipality can reform youth sports by exercising public oversight over the use of such facilities, denying permits to programs that fail to abide by a youth sports charter on equal opportunity, playing time, conduct by coaches, players and parents, minimum age or grade for select/travel teams, etc.

The Power of the Permit: What Municipalities Can Do to Make Youth Sports in their community safer, saner, less stressful and more inclusive

All too often, towns and municipalities simply hand out permits to independent, youth sports organizations to use public facilities without regard to how those organizations run their programs. The author will explain how, by exercising the power of the permit and public oversight over the use of taxpayer-funded facilities, municipalities can reform youth sports, denying permits that fail to abide by guidelines meant to ensure that every child in the community has a chance to play, gets equal playing time (before grade six) or meaningful minutes (grade six and above), that coaches are trained and evaluated, that rules are established and enforced for parental behavior at youth sports contests etc.

Parks and Recreation Departments, etc.

After hearing the author, recreation and parks administrators will understand:

1. The overlooked power of the venue permit; 2. How, by establishing a youth sports council to initiate a community-wide dialog on whether the current way permits are handed out best serves the children of the community, and developing a youth sports charter establishing guidelines for the use of taxpayer-funded sports facilities, they can dramatically reform youth sports in the community by insuring that programs that use such facilities provide for equal playing time/meaningful minutes, adequate training and evaluation of coaches, parent training, selection of teams by independent evaluators not parent coaches, and adoption of comprehensive risk management programs to protect kids against unnecessary injury, or be denied permits.

Too Much, Too Soon

One of the most dramatic developments in youth sports over the past ten or fifteen years has been the explosive growth at seemingly ever-earlier ages of the number of highly selective, highly competitive sports teams and the related trend towards early specialization. The author will explain why parents should just say no to elite teams and early specialization.

Parents and other interested stakeholders

After hearing the author, parents will understand:

1. That there is no magic starting age; that when to start depends on child and what a mother's intuition tells her 2. That which sport a child plays depends on the child's interests and personality 3. That because it is impossible to predict until a child has reached puberty (and sometimes beyond) whether he or she has athletic talent, the focus before grade six needs to be on skill development and having fun, not winning. 4. Why they should say no to early specialization and elite teams because of the risks that they will damage their child's psychological, emotional, social and physical development

How to Put Winning in its Place and Dealing with Out-of-Control Parents

More and more, having fun is taking a back seat to winning in youth sports. Clearly, some parents and coaches are taking children's games far too seriously. The author will help parents learn how to keep winning and fun in proper perspective and how to cool down out-of-control parents.

After hearing the author, parents will understand:

1. The importance of accenting the positive 2. That managing the inevitable ups and downs their child will experience in sports will play a large role in whether he or she has a successful sports experience 3. The warning signs that their child is not having fun 4. How to avoid becoming over-involved parent 5. What to do if child wants to quit

A Mother's Role in Raising Athletic Daughter

With more and more mothers in this post-Title IX era having played sports growing up, they can have an enormous influence on their daughter's sports experience. The author will talk about ways mothers can help their daughters get the most out of their sports experience

Mothers

After hearing the author, mothers will understand:

1. The benefits of sports for girls 2. Why girls drop out of sports 3. The critical role mothers play in their lives of their sports-active daughters 4. The steps they can take to make that experience the best it can be

A Mother's Role in Raising an Athletic Son. For too many boys, sports are still, unfortunately, all about reinforcing unhealthy gender stereotypes (stoicism, play in pain, etc.). The author will speak about her experiences as a coach of a boy's soccer team and explain how mothers can help provide their sons healthy ways through sports to channel their aggressive impulses, teach healthy masculinity, and how to avoid becoming part of the problem of out of control parents instead of the solution.

Mothers

After hearing the author, mothers will understand:

1. That boys are hardwired to compete and win
2. That boys, more than girls, need sports
3. That they can play an important role in teaching their athletic sons healthy masculinity instead of reinforcing unhealthy gender stereotypes.

How To Get Organized and Stay That Way

The hectic lifestyle of most mothers makes it imperative that they look for ways to reduce stress by staying organized. The author will give practical advice on how sports moms can get and stay organized

Mothers

After hearing the author, mothers will understand:

1. Sports moms wear many hats
2. Planning ahead is key
3. Lots of ways to stay organized
4. Importance of keeping good calendar
5. How to keep track of everything
6. Dealing with car pools
7. Tips for food on the go/road trips

Balancing Sports with Family: A High Wire Act.

Finding the right balance between family and sports activities is a challenge for any family, especially given the pressure society places on parents to pack more and more activities into their child's lives or risk being seen as a "bad" parent. The author will offer ways for mothers to find the balance between sports and family life that works best for their families.

Parents/Parent Teachers Groups

After hearing the author, parents will understand:

1. Parenting shouldn't be a competitive sport
2. How to recognize the warning signs of overscheduling
3. How to learn to "Just Say No" and why it is so important
4. How to set limits and find the balance that fits the family

Preventing Child Abuse in Youth Sports.

Youth sports have experienced alarming increases in the amount of physical, psychological, emotional and sexual abuse of athletes at the hands of coaches, parents, and other athletes. Parents are led to believe that this abuse is simply the price their children have to pay to be able to play competitive sports, and that, if they complain, they will be dismissed as representing a small minority. The author will help parents prevent such abuse by educating them about the myriad forms abuse can take, the damage such abuse causes, and concrete steps they can take to prevent or minimize the risk that their child will be subject to such abuse

Parents, Coaches, and other stakeholders

After hearing the author, parents will understand:

1. The four main types of abuse (physical, emotional abuse, neglect and sexual)
2. The damage that abuse can cause and why it is so important that their child not be subjected to abuse while playing sports
3. What a parent can do to prevent abuse
4. What steps to take if their child reports abuse

Protecting Kids from Serious Injury or Death.

The number of youth athletes who are injured playing sports are staggering. Too many of our kids are becoming statistics. Yet many parents think there is little they can do to prevent their child from being injured playing sports; that it is simply a part of the game. The author will debunk the myth that sports injuries are not preventable and explain the measures parents can take to reduce or eliminate the risk of injury to their child

Parents, pediatricians, athletic trainers, athletic directors etc.

After hearing the author, the audience will understand

1. That nine out of ten youth sports injuries and deaths are preventable and that we are not doing nearly enough to safeguard our children in sports
2. The steps they can take, either alone or through their child's sports program, to protect their child from being injured or suffering a catastrophic or fatal injury, such as sudden cardiac arrest, second impact syndrome, heat-related illness, overuse injury, or eye or mouth injury.

The Signs of a Good Youth Sports Coach and How to Talk to Coaches

There is no doubt that the people who coach our children's sports team can make the difference between a positive experience, one they will remember fondly the rest of their lives, and a negative one, one that can leave emotional and psychological scars that don't ever go away and turn them off to sports forever. The author will help parents identify what makes a good youth sports coach so they know how to look for the good ones and avoid the bad ones.

Parents, coaches and other interested stakeholders

After hearing the author, parents will understand:

1. What characterizes a good youth sports coach
2. The warning signs of a bad coach and how to avoid such a coach.
3. How communication problems can be avoided by use of a team charter/pre-season meeting
4. When to talk to a coach and when not to
5. How to talk to a coach: the when, where and what (geared to mothers talking to male coaches).