The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Online program aids coaching permit process
One of the biggest commitments to coaching high school sports is time.
Beyond the time invested for tryouts, practices, game prep and the games themselves, coaches in Connecticut are required by state law to obtain and maintain a coaching permit.
A CT Insider investigation found more than 100 high school coaches employed between 2018 and 2020 at Fairfield and New Haven county public schools were not certified to coach, either for the entire period or for part of it.
Since the requirement for coaching certification began in 1985, steps have been taken to address concerns surrounding the
timing of the process and the time commitment for prospective coaches. Most notably has been an online option for taking the certification course and a website for the application process, though the actual application must still be mailed to the Connecticut Department of Education.
First-year coaches are required to take a 45-hour course. Certified teachers are not required to complete the course, but must take the concussion course and be certified in first aid and CPR in order to coach. Permits are required for all coaches who coach in public schools from kindergarten to 12th grade.
The Connecticut Coaching Education Program was formed in June 2007, bringing together officials from the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Association, the Connecticut Association of Athletic Directors, and the Connecticut High School Coaches Association to develop one unified program.
“The process for a coach to be certified can seem overwhelming with the application process and class hours (45) needed to get a permit,” said Fred Balsamo, executive director of the Connecticut Association of Athletic Directors and director of the Connecticut Coaching Education Program. “The purpose of the alliance and the CCEP is to make it as convenient as possible for coaches to get certified. It’s a convenience thing, a one-stop shop site for coaches.
“Everything that coaches need to know for certification is on the CCEP website, including the application process, the courses they need to take, and a direct link to the Connecticut Department of Education permit site, where coaches can check to see if their certificate has expired or is still active.”
The in-person course is provided over six days. The online option for the course is expected to take participants between 35 to 40 hours to complete, according the CCEP website. It can be done at the user’s pace with a recommendation to complete each of the one- to two-hour segments in one sitting. Once the online portion is done, prospective coaches are required to take a fourhour, in-person program in order to receive certification. The in-person programs are offered prior to the start of each season.
The course itself includes segments of instruction on topics such as ethical standards, athletes and stress, working with parents, working with the college-bound athlete, state laws that affect high school coaches, sportsmanship, communication, organization and planning, nutrition and opioids, concussions, head and neck injuries, heat acclimatization, creating an emergency action plan and sudden cardiac arrest, bullying and hazing, risk management, performance duties, Title IX and mandated reporting situations, electronic and social media use, and CIAC rules and regulations. Each segment lasts between one to two hours.
Certification is good for five years, then a threehour recertification course is required. The three-hour online course started in 2010.
Balsamo said athletic directors can take the recertification course, then teach it to coaches at their school. He said about 90 percent of the recertification classes are taught by the athletic directors, with others taking the course themselves online.
According to the CCEP website, the goals of the program are to provide coaches and school athletic administrators more opportunities to access the 45-hour coaching permit course and Continuing Education Unit (CEU) workshops, to assist in the tracking and data entry of coaches, and to dispel confusion for people going through the coaching certification process.
However, while North Branford athletic director Lori Connelly embraces any move to expedite the certification process, she believes it is still more complicated than it has to be.
“I am in charge of making sure the coaches are certified along with a secretary at our central office,” Connelly said. “I check the certifications two to three months before the season is about to begin to make sure the coaches are all set. The process still takes way too long and the new online process is way too confusing. It seems like this should be able to be done much faster and easier.”
The online course option took on a more important role when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March. More coaches started using the online process and a backlog of applications piled up, according to Balsamo. The backlog, coupled with the fact no classroom instruction could be held for the required certification courses, led to a decision by the Connecticut Department of Education to extend any coaching permit that expired this year for one additional year.
Any coach whose coaching certification expires between March 15 and Dec. 21 of this year is provided the extension. There is no extension for temporary emergency coaching permits.
“Due to the COVID-19 virus we had to cancel all our classes required for certification,” Balsamo said. “Starting in March, everything got slowed down. Applications weren’t moving along and getting approved quickly and they were getting backlogged.
“Everyone started taking more advantage of the online process. That was a good thing. But due to the backlog and canceled classes the decision was made to extend permits one year.”
The class-taking process has also been changed.
In the past, coaches had to travel to take certification-related classes and courses at the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference office in Cheshire. For some coaches, this could mean travel time of close to three hours each trip for the six-day course. The CIAC has since added satellite venues geographically located near major high school conferences such as the FCIAC, SCC and SWC.
The Connecticut Department of Education processes the applications and the CCEP is strictly an informational site. The CCEP website can be found at both the Connecticut Department of Education and CIAC websites.
“The state Department of Education is wholly responsible for the coaching certification process,” CIAC spokesman Joe Cookson said last month. “The CIAC’s sole involvement is with the classes that are part of the coaching education curriculum.”
“Every coach needs an active coaching permit. Some people do fall through the cracks. Although there are many conscientious athletic directors out there who are on top of it, it is really up to the coach to make sure their permit is up to date,” Balsamo said..
“Here at the CCEP, we are strictly a resource entity when it comes to the coaching permit process. All we are trying to do is make it easier for the coaches to get all this all done with our online access to forms, courses and information.”