Athletic directors have
a very difficult job. They are responsible for every sport, coach, and athlete
within an athletic program. Many times they must make tough decisions regarding
budgets, discipline, and hiring/firing a coach. Assuming the ‘buck stops here’,
I believe that athletic directors have every right to do what he/she thinks
will make the athletic program successful. If that means making every coach
submit student learning outcomes (SLOs) and a formal assessment plan for their
team as well as athletes, then so be it.
However, on the flip
side of this issue, coaches have enough on their hands without worry about
developing useless SLOs. Many coaches might resent their athletic director for
making them do busy work that is simply a ‘checkmark in the box’ exercise. If I
was an athletic director, I would hold my coaches accountable for their team’s
production. Ultimately, the wins/losses determine the success of an athletic
program. Do the fans, alumni, and administration
really care about SLOs if the team fails to produce on the field?
Most successful coaches will have a plan laid out for their program. And most have this written out somewhere in their office. It is not that more of a hassle to write this plan out for the AD.
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