Student’s Plea turned into a Cause for Concern

As we often find when a community member reaches out with a story or concern, the story or the concern is really only a segment of a larger issue. When a student reached out to us about the need for a basketball coach, it again, was a item of a larger worry. Today’s blog post is going to focus on the many openings for coaches and CASD hiring process. We are dismayed at either the lack of expediency in hiring coaches or the lack of qualified applicants for the positions. 

On July 2, we had a student athlete reach out seeking help for the basketball team. We offered him some ways to bring his concern forward. We suggested speaking at the school board meeting, having a parent speak on his behalf, or having the team join him. We knew that many in the community had already been calling CASD with concerns.

The student choose to write for the blog:

"It is half way through the summer and we don’t have a boys basketball coach. Marquise Boggs, our asst. coach, was doing all of our workouts with us until he was stripped of his keys and gym privileges without definitive reasoning. Marquise was dedicated to working out with us most days of the week. He is the closest to us (age and reliability) and he has been where we are trying to go since he played college basketball. He has been mentoring us by passing all of his knowledge to us. 

Right now is the time when teams go to college’s camps together to get exposure and grow together. The lack of a coach has kept us from attending. This is the second consecutive year we’ve been in this situation. 

The school and the community have very high expectations for our team next year, but without being coached through the summer, the task seems pretty unreachable and unrealistic. Also, it is hindering our opportunities for college exposure and offers."

We waited to publish knowing that the coaching position originally posted on April 17 was re-posted at the beginning of July. We knew of the community concern and knew community members were reaching out to CASD often, but we wanted to give the school district the benefit of the doubt. Then, Matt McCain emailed the basketball team on July 18:

Dear Boys' Basketball Players, Parents, and Guardians, 

I would like to share with you where we are in the process regarding the search for a boys basketball head coach. The committee team and I have been given the task of replacing Coach Thompson with the quality coach who is the right fit for our program. Our young men in this program deserve the best coach possible and we will not settle for anything less. 

We’ve identified a coach that has the experience and skill set to lead our program. I will be recommending him to the Board of School Directors once all paperwork is processed and approved. I want to assure you that the time spent searching for the right candidate was needed to select the right coach for a talented players and high-level program.

I will be away for 1.5 weeks starting tomorrow if paperwork is completed and the offer is excepted during my absence Mrs. Snyder and/or Mrs. Hammond will update all of you with the information as soon as it is available.

At this time, nearly two weeks after the email, no update has been provided to the team. However, it became alarming as we pulled together the facts. It is quite concerning that we, Coatesville, with a successful basketball team with great talent, was not able to hire a coach for a position that should be highly desired. 


The reality is that we are not only without a head varsity basketball coach. Here are the coaching positions that are posted on CASD website's human resources section: 

7th & 9th grade football coach   ..................................................................	7/29
7th grade boy’s soccer coach   .....................................................................	7/24
7th grade girl’s soccer coach   .....................................................................	7/24
8th grade girl’s soccer coach   .....................................................................	7/24
8th grade field hockey coach   .....................................................................	7/24
Assistant boys tennis coach  ........................................................................	7/9
Assistant boys basketball coach (9 to 12) ...................................................	7/9
Girls assistant basketball coach  .................................................................	7/2
Head volleyball coach  ..................................................................................	7/2
Head JV soccer coach ...................................................................................	3/19
Assistant volleyball coach ............................................................................	3/12

*We have also been advised that the district is without a Boys Lacrosse Coach.

Now, we are unsure if any of the positions have been filled and the posting has not been removed, but in the past the district has removed the listing when the position was filled. 

We felt it was important to learn about the hiring process for coaching. Therefore, we reached out to CASD to ascertain the process: Applicants apply through the CASD website under HR and employment opportunities.  Everything is completed through that portal.  HR will go through all applicants and together with the Hiring Committee to make decisions on who to interview.  Members of the Hiring Committee interview candidates.

We also reached out to several other school districts: Solanco, West Chester, Kennett, and Exeter all follow a similar process which looks very different than CASD. 

The applicants send their materials directly to the athletic director (AD). The AD chooses who to interview. The principal is sometimes involved in this interview, but the lead is the AD. They make the decision to hire the coach and pass the name and qualifications along to inform the superintendent. The coach is recommended for hire to the board through the superintendent's office. 

It is a bit worrisome to us that the AD is not more directly involved in the selection process similarly to other districts. As Matt McCain is away on vacation, we were unable to contact him to ask his role in the selection process. We are also very interested to know who is on the Hiring Committee as that information does not seem to be very transparent. 

Aside from the initial concern brought to us by a player, asking for our help in getting his team a coach, we now have multiple areas prompting uneasiness. Why have so many coaches resigned from their positions? Why are so many coaching positions still unfilled? Are we no longer able to draw applicants in for our sports program? Why is the hiring process for coaches at CASD so unlike other schools? Who exactly makes the decision on which coaches to interview? Preseason begins August 12, less than two weeks away, our children need coaches.