With chants of “U-S-A, U-S-A” and athletes’ beaming faces framed by the red, white and blue of the American flag, the joyful energy of the summer Olympics was undeniable. Between the summer and winter games, every two years, people all over the world, young and old, catch the Olympic spirit and cheer on athletes in a variety of sports. It’s no wonder that the Olympics are correlated with an increase in youth sports enrollment.

Participating in sports positively impacts physical health and benefits mental health and personal development. Athletics provides students with the opportunity to compete, create lasting friendships, develop leadership skills and build resilience. School athletics also foster a community of connection between students and their school, and engagement in the school’s programs and activities.

At any level, coaches play a vital role in all sports. Coaches not only structure practices and provide technical expertise, but perhaps more importantly, coaches serve as role models. Great coaches inspire and guide athletes to reach their full potential. It’s important that coaches are fully trained and equipped with the necessary skills to provide student athletes with a positive experience.

The Positive Coaching Alliance, a national nonprofit organization committed to making youth sports positive, equitable and accessible to all kids regardless of social or economic circumstance, envisions “a world where every young person benefits from a positive youth sports experience with a coach who inspires them to become the best version of themselves in the game and in life.”

District coaches are required to comply with minimum qualifications and training, established by law. Additionally, boards, through policy, play an important role in ensuring that their students are coached by qualified individuals.

The California Code of Regulations establishes minimum qualifications for district employees serving as temporary athletic team coaches, which include competencies in the following areas: (1) care and prevention of athletic injuries, basic sports injury first aid and emergency procedures, (2) coaching theory and techniques in the sport or game being coached, (3) knowledge of the rules and regulations pertaining to the sport or game being coached, the league rules and California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) regulations, and (4) knowledge of child or adolescent psychology as it relates to sport participation.

Boards of education may expand upon these requirements and add additional criteria as they deem appropriate.

While the California Code of Regulations requirements only apply to employees of the district, it is recommended that boards adopt policy language making these requirements applicable to all district athletic team coaches, regardless of whether they are district employees or volunteer coaches.

Any noncertificated employee or volunteer who works with students in a district-sponsored student activity program, including an interscholastic athletic program, must obtain an Activity Supervisor Clearance Certificate from the Commission on Teacher Credentialing or clear a Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal background check prior to beginning their duties.

All high school athletic team coaches are required to complete a coaching education program developed by the district or CIF. Assembly Bill 245 (2023) added new training requirements for temporary athletic team coaches, including training in CPR, use of an automated external defibrillator (AED), and first aid that includes training in recognizing the signs, symptoms and appropriate response to concussions, heat illness and cardiac arrest. AB 1653 (2023) requires CIF, in consultation with the California Department of Education (CDE), to develop guidelines, procedures and safety standards for the prevention and management of exertional heat illness.

Additionally, every two years coaches are required to complete a training course related to the nature and warning signs of sudden cardiac arrest, including the risks associated with continuing to play or practice after experiencing fainting or seizures during exercise, unexplained shortness of breath, chest pain, dizziness, racing heart rate or extreme fatigue. A coach who fails to complete the required sudden cardiac arrest training is subject to suspension from coaching any athletic activity until the required training is completed.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2027, AB 1467 (2023) requires districts to provide student athletes with access to an AED during any official practice or match that, when medical circumstances warrant its use, is administered by a medical professional, coach or other designated person who holds AED certification and complies with any other required qualifications.