Selection of a New Athletic Director

As you may already know, Norristown Area School District plans to actively seek for a new Athletic Director. NASD hasn't had a permanent AD since the unfortunate passing of Chuck Knowles in 2013. The interim decided retirement was a much better deal than reviving athletics for the district, I don't blame him. Norristown has a huge obstacle ahead of them. Choosing the right person for the job is not only important for the district, but important for our youth.

I'm a former athlete-alum of the district and I will be the first to admit that sports kept me focused and out of trouble. I had practice every day and a GPA to maintain. With practice ending at 5pm and having parents making sure I did my homework when I get home, I simply had no time to get in trouble. I didn't have to worry about Norristown's curfew because I usually passed out from being in school all day, working hard at practice after and studying for the next day. My coaches were my role models and made sure I stayed on top of my schooling. Especially Middle School Track with my dad as the head coach! I'm definitely not the only one who can say "sports kept me focused." Look at Norristown's most notable athletes and ask them what sports meant to them and they can tell you the same. Sports in Norristown kept me focused on the future and away from bad things happening in my community.

A coach and a director can boost morale for a school and its athletes. When an athletic program doesn't have a leader, the student-athletes have one less person motivating them to succeed. Selecting a new Athletic Director is important when talking about restoring NASD athletics. Pretty soon, a new football coach will take over at the high school to hopefully bring around a program that has won one game in the past two seasons. An AD will ensure we don't have horrible seasons like the last one and will be key in selecting a new head coach for that program.

For the first time in a while, the school district is encouraging residents in the community to be a part of this process. Tonight at 6:30pm, there will be a meeting that the community is invited to so they can share their input on who should become the next leader for NASD athletics.

If I can share some advice to anyone attending the meeting, speak with an open mind. The simple solution someone would say is "PICK ______ (insert notable NAHS athlete alum)." That COULD work, but because you've played a sport doesn't make you the right person for the job. The district asks for you to share input on selecting the new AD. This doesn't mean they will pick who you say it should be, so don't be disappointed if your favorite alum/teacher doesn't get picked. The new AD needs to be an individual that understands Norristown, PA, the demographics, the problems and most importantly, the students.

So make sure you attend tonight's meeting so we can work to revive our athletic program in the district.

Here is the official press release from the school district:

A solid academic program, coupled with an exciting athletic program, has the potential to impact the educational experience of students for a lifetime. In the Norristown Area School District we are seeking an Athletic Director committed to making extraordinary things happen for our students, staff and community. We look forward to hiring an Athletic Director that will instill within our students, the value of academic excellence and high moral and ethical standards and have the knowledge needed to build a high quality district athletic program that reflects a sense of pride and opportunity. Most importantly, your input needs to be recorded in this transparent process so the best person can be selected for the position.

Please attend the meeting tonight at 6:30 at the NAHS cafeteria.

Here is the press release from the school district regarding the selection of the new Athletic Director:

As a district, we are committed to a comprehensive and transparent process. On Thursday, January 30, 2014, 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. in the cafeteria of the Norristown Area High School, we cordially welcome the community to share ideas and suggestions regarding the qualities they hope to see in an Athletic Director.

Listed below are questions and answers related to the Athletic Program. Specific questions regarding the meeting on Thursday, January 30, 2014 may be directed to Mrs. Nan Odenthal at (610) 630-5000.

Please allow us to share the following information related to the NAHS Athletic Program.

What is the purpose of Thursday’s meeting?

We are meeting to welcome members of our community to share suggestions regarding the

selection of our new Athletic Director. We look forward to receiving input on the qualities, abilities, and talent needed in this position; and look forward to moving our Athletic program forward!

What is the status of the Athletic Director position?  From a broad perspective:

·         We began looking for the permanent replacement for our former Athletic Director, Mr. Knowles in December 2013.

·         This position was posted by our Human Resources Department in December and applications were received earlier this month.

·         Our Human Resources team has completed the screening process and we expect to begin interviews in the next few weeks.

·         A Selection Committee will be used to interview the candidates.

·         If our interview process is smooth and productive, we hope to be able to identify a final candidate during the month of February.

·         The Selection Committee will make a hiring recommendation to the NASD School Board of Directors; their approval is needed. This is not unusual; the School Board approves all Norristown Area School District hires.

What are the requirements for the Athletic Director?

From a technical perspective, we are looking for an Athletic Director who possesses:

·         Bachelor’s Degree

·         5 or more years of experience as an Athletic Director

·         Substantial knowledge of and experience in coaching and/or managing athletic programs

·         Strong communication and computer skills

Who will sit on the Committee that will select the Athletic Director?

This Committee is still being formed, but at this point, we anticipate that this Committee will include: a representative from the Human Resources Department, our NAHS Principal (Mr. Jeff Smith), our Chief Financial Officer (Ms. Anne Rohricht), several NASD School Board members, and several community members.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

When will the interviews for the Athletic Director take place?

Specifically, we hope to schedule these interviews for the first two weeks of February.

Other important questions about NAHS Athletics have been raised recently
and are addressed in the following section:

What is the status of the Varsity baseball coaching vacancy?

We have several very strong candidates, interviews have been scheduled for February 5, 2014. Because we do not have an Athletic Director, these interviews are being jointly conducted by the NAHS Principal and NASD Central Administration.

What is the status of the Varsity girls lacrosse coaching vacancy?

As of last week, we did not have a strong pool of candidates. As a result of recent outreach, we can share that now have several strong candidates. We hope to schedule interviews for the week of February 10^th.

What is the status of the Varsity football coaching vacancy?

We have received MANY applications for this vacancy. We will not interview for this position until an Athletic Director is in place.

What is the status of the NAHS Athletic Complex? When will we have bleachers, a concession building, and lights?

We do have a tentative plan to fund the bleachers and the concession building, however, we have a couple more hoops to jump through before we can move forward. Realistically, these features will not be onsite for the 2014-15 school year; but we hope to have them onsite for 2015-16.

We expect to be able to publicly share more information about our plan to fund these amenities in the next month or so.

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Can the youth athletic programs in our community use the NAHS Track & Field?  Yes! And, the School Board recently changed our policies to allow these groups to use this facility without being charged. The forms needed to schedule time at this facility can be found on our website:www.nasd.k12.pa.us. They can also be obtained by calling the NASD Administration Building at 610-630-5000.

Who can we contact with additional questions about the NAHS Athletic Program?  Until an Athletic Director has been identified, please contact Anne Rohricht at 610-630­5006. Please feel free to contact Ms. Rohricht even after an Athletic Director is on-site.

source: http://www.nasd.k12.pa.us/site/default.aspx?PageType=3&DomainID=4&ModuleInstanceID=165&ViewID=047E6BE3-6D87-4130-8424-D8E4E9ED6C2A&RenderLoc=0&FlexDataID=2676&PageID=1