High School Coaching Academy: Building a Championship Program

with Mark Onstott, New Trier HS (IL) Head Swim Coach,:
5x Team State Champions (IL), 2x "National Boy's Swimming Coach of the Year" Award (NFHSCA),
awarded US' `National Championship' HS team (2007) by Swimming World magazine,
team was named 2009 National Dual Meet Champions by NISCA (National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association).

Coach Onstot breaks his presentation into 14 essential focus areas he feels provides the framework for not only developing a highly successful program but maintaining a high level of excellence year after year.

A few of these essential focus areas include:

• Dual Meet Objectives: Six key concepts for getting the most out of each dual meet from each swimmer and how to maximize dual meets in terms of program development.
• Leadership: Get specific strategies for grooming leaders on an ongoing basis. Defined roles for each class, frosh through seniors. Also includes captain selection criteria and captain responsibilities.
• Goals: Proven strategies for implementing team and individual goals.
• Team Banquet: Create a banquet that generates excitement and a sense of inclusive success for each individual and his/her families - an essential component of Onstott's program success.
• Coaching Staff: See how to organize a staff and to how to delegate various team management responsibilities to each staff member to best enable them to be fully engaged in the program.

Onstott also includes athlete recruitment and retention, club swimming, working with parents, developing a lettering policy and putting athletes on a consistent and obvious path to success.

Included with each of the 14 focus areas is invaluable information as to the why and how of implementation and benefits to the team, coaches, and the overall program. Throughout this presentation, you will see how Onstott's program centers around developing behaviors that breed excellence.

62 minutes. 2011.