In the last few years there has been a disturbing trend as HS coaches try and cash in on the for profit (or questionable non for profit) summer tournament teams. It started when some business minded coaches started open tryout teams, now the trend is HS coaches charging big fee's for summer teams that draw exclusively from there own school districts. How do public schools allow this type of quid pro quo to occur? Its one thing when you pay for a summer program and also pay to attend a private school which shares the same coach. Now it seems you have to pay the head coach of the public school boys/ girls teams to get on the field. The Conflicts of interest seem to run so deep yet it continues. Which program is the coach incentified to develop? The School district program or the one that pays him cash on top of their salary? How do they not play undeserving kids that have been paying them every summer? Are kids punished if they play for a competing club? This seams to be a hot topic issue in the towns these teams exist, i am interested to hear others experiences.
Above is the original post.
I did not go and read all of posts so can someone please explain how it is not a conflict of interest for a HS Coach to run a for-profit team that has only players from the school that he or she coaches at?
It is not a conflict of interest if kids have the option to play on the team or play on a private summer team or not play lacrosse over the summer without ramifications and in the spring the coach plays the best 10 players in the spring.
It is a perceived conflict of interest if kids/parents are afraid to not play for fear of losing playing time or not getting moved up ect. in the spring
It is a conflict of interest when it is made clear that if you do not play for the HS coaches for profit summer team you will lose playing time or other benefits that you would have gotten if you had played.
IMHO - I would rather live in a town with a high school coach that is dedicated to the program, involved in the youth programs and the summer team, makes a little money on the summer team rather then the guys that show up on March 1st.
