Coaches Turnover at Pre-team Levels

[coachmolly]

Our gym started a pre-team program about a year ago, the girls come in 2x/week for 1.5hrs each. It's not a very intense program, though it is geared towards preparing them for Xcel competition. Over the last year we have had quite a bit of turnover (some due to injuries/finances, others due to kids wanting to try other things)- but as kids leave we also have new ones added in. The kids who have stuck around are happy and learning lots. We try to keep practices fun and age appropriate (ages 7-11ish) while also being a bit more picky about form and requiring more of them in terms of conditioning and work ethic. None of the coaches who work with this group are drill sergeants, we are all very mild, even when it comes to discipline issues and cater our expectations based on where each child is. HC also has no set plan on how to move these girls towards the actual team, so for the last year they have sort of just waited to hear what would be happening with their group- working towards routines but with no set goal of actually competing them.
I have received only positive feedback from parents, even from those who have left, but I feel like I am doing something terrible wrong and with our latest kid announcing she is leaving to try other things, I know HC will come down hard on me. I'm just curious, how much of this is normal?
In my mind, I feel it's pretty common at these lower levels as kids are learning about the commitment required by gymnastics thus "weeding out" the kids who aren't in love with the sport. But this doesn't seem to be the way HC thinks. I'm just a mess right now because I feel like I'm letting the kids down.
Of the kids who have left, I think only 2 have been because they wanted to move on to other things, the rest (3 I think) have been due to finances and injury (one of which was not even a gym injury). All spots have been filled by kids who are just as, if not more, passionate about the sport, and having a blast. I just want to make sure I'm doing everything possible to keep the kids who want to be there in the gym and I guess I'm wondering if turnover at the earliest team levels is par for the course?

 

[sevenatenine2]

Par for the course.

Certainly you can do nothing about financial situations, and many may have the realization that it is only going to go up from there.

Also, I would think that the lack of competitive opportunities contributes greatly to them dropping out. The road to team must seem so long. Are they not at a level where they could compete Bronze? Again, I know that's not your call, but that seems like a bigger factor than any coaching deficiency.

 

[raenndrops]

It is completely normal... that being said ...
Pre-team needs to have an "End Game" master plan (movement onto team) and that needs to be spelled out from the beginning.

At our gym, we have a progressive rec program (3 levels) and everyone knows that the highest level of rec is where we get girls for team. HC waits until our District Championship meet is over (mid-March) and has a meeting with the parents of the girls at this level. They are shown the L3 routines by girls who competed them (2 girls per event... one girl that scored WELL and one who either didn't score well or who chose not to compete because she wasn't quite ready on all events). Then the meeting moves to another room where they can talk without the distraction of the gymnasts working out.
Here, they are given the time and financial commitment information. They are given 3 - 4 options:
Option 1: Continue in their current class. This is a good option for girls who don't have the extra time or who just moved up to this level recently (they can move up from one progressive level to the next at the beginning of any month, if their coach says they are ready). Because some of the girls will choose option 2, April - June is a time for smaller classes and more individual time with the coach at this level.
Option 2: Try out for team.
2A - Make team. Start with team at the beginning of the April session.
2B - Make team "with skills emphasis." This is our "pre-team" but they REALLY are on team - same hours as team, stretch with team, etc... just they have ONE COACH that will work with them to get the skills necessary to compete in November. They start at the beginning of the April session and will be re-evaluated in July at camp (and if necessary, at the beginning of September).
2C - Not ready for team yet, continue with current class. Can be re-evaluated at camp in July and again in September (once we know how many girls are coming back after the Summer... and how many openings we have at L3)
Option 3 (least desirable): They can quit or go to another gym ... Coach doesn't actually offer this one, but it is a possibility that some families choose.

By spelling everything out, the parents know what they are in for and so do the girls.
In September, the girls will get their team contracts... and that is when they commit for the season or not. We lose some girls every year, but we have a great feeder program right now and our team and rec numbers are staying high.

 

[gymdog]

If they're giving good feedback, then I don't see how the HC can come down on you. I would say the gym should try to offer other activities like an advanced tumbling class that can be taken once a week that they might like to switch to.

 

[gymcat]

We view preteam as a tryout for both gymnasts/families and for the gym. If the girl isn't that into competitive gym, or the family can't/won't make the financial commitment, we would rather know sooner rather than later. That said, if a lot of girls were leaving our program for another HC might start to wonder what was going on. We do however compete our girls so it's not entirely the same.

I agree about letting them compete bronze or even an in house fun meet. It's definitely nice for the girls to have something to show for their hard work and will definitely make them feel like more of a team.

 

[Deleted member 14190]

Just keep throwing logs on the fire, but might I suggest smaller logs. 5-7

 

[coachmolly]

Thanks so much for all the kind words, glad to hear from others that it's pretty normal. I have attempted to talk to HC about the plans for this group multiple times and am typically blown off or told later, the latest is that they will be their own separate team which can start competing next January rather than moving on to the current team. It has me incredibly frustrated as a coach and I can only imagine it must be confusing for the children and parents.
I asked back in August if I could register them for a very low key local meet this spring and was told that wasn't an option. I also suggested a parents meeting detailing the commitment of competitive gymnastics but the response was that "it might scare away the kids we want to keep." There are definitely some major structural problems.
I do have another group of 5-7 year olds, but they are few and far between in our program. It's just not a big gymnastics area at all, so I sort of take who I can get. And while gymnastics is not common, youth programs are very prominent in the community, so by 7 or 8 most of the kids are involved in multiple activities. I will try to remind HC of this if I come under attack for being unable to retain team members.

 

[Aussie_coach]

I think the biggest problem, is that there is no clear plan for this group. We find drop out rate at the pre team level is very low, these kids know they have been selected for something special and they know they are on a path towards teams, they have goals are are working towards them.

The reality is that no matter what the reason they give you for quitting there are only two legitimate reasons why people quit. The first is rare and it would be a situation where the gymnast simply can not physically train with you anymore, or moving to the other side of the country etc. The other reason is the most common and it is that they have not got enough of a compelling reason to stay.

Wanting to try other activities means they aren't super keen to stick with their gymnastics. If they leave for financial reasons it means that gymnastics wasn't a priority. We have kids whose families go bankrupt but still they come to gymnastics because to the kids it rates far above anything else and they are willing to forgo all other things so they can do gymnastics. Injuries too, when kids who,love gymnastics get injured you usually still can't get them out the door, they would rather spend 6 months conditioning than not come at all.

This does not seem like a problem with your coaching. It seems like a problem with the program. There needs to be a clear goal for the program that the kids and parents are aware of, there needs to be a way to measure when they are ready to move on, and they need regular feedback as to how they are developing towards that goal. Otherwise they don't see it as a progressive thing, they see it as just another activity, which they can drop or take up at any point they wish.

 

[coachmolly]

This does not seem like a problem with your coaching. It seems like a problem with the program. There needs to be a clear goal for the program that the kids and parents are aware of, there needs to be a way to measure when they are ready to move on, and they need regular feedback as to how they are developing towards that goal. Otherwise they don't see it as a progressive thing, they see it as just another activity, which they can drop or take up at any point they wish.

This is EXACTLY it! While some of the kids & parents know they have been selected for a more advanced group, I think quite a few regard it as being just another, slightly more advanced class. They are working routines, which is slightly different from a more advanced rec class, but it's just not enough. An in-house meet (no judges) has been discussed, but we keep having the dance coach pulled away into other groups so she hasn't actually taught them their floor routine.
As far as the girls leaving for other reasons, the girl who left for financial reasons was devastated, but as you suggest, gymnastics was really not a priority for her family. We offered financial help and carpool options to help out, but mom (a cheer coach) just didn't see the value in sacrificing to continue. Of the injured girls, one had a pretty traumatic injury and fear prevented her from coming back. Her parents and I both tried to encourage her to give it another try, but no such luck. The other who was injured playing another sport really just did not have her heart in it in the first place, so it wasn't surprising that she chose not to continue (though she has since come back and left again).
It's a messy situation, and many days it feels like a sinking ship, but my asst. and I are trying to make it work the best that we can, it's just hard to keep losing kids.