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District officials say assistant athletic directors reduced ineligibility and expanded programs at both high schools
Summary
Council Rock high-school athletic leaders credited two assistant athletic director positions with lowering academic ineligibility, improving parent communications and enabling new girls' programs. Administrators said the roles free time for coaches and principals and recommended continuing the funded positions for now.
Two assistant athletic director positions at Council Rock High School North and South have helped athletic and school leaders reduce weekly academic ineligibility, launch new girls’ programs and improve family communication, district officials told the Education Committee on Wednesday.
Why it matters: the assistant-athletic-director model pairs athletic management with grade-level administrative duties in a single role at each high school; the district has experienced turnover in that role and used educational-initiative funds to pilot dedicated assistant AD positions to provide day-to-day support for both athletics and school administration.
What officials said: Joe Spira (North grade-level/athletic director) and Tim Daley (South grade-level/athletic director) reported a sharp drop in weekly academic ineligibility since the assistants began work. "This week alone from north, we have just about 400 students participating in athletics in this winter, and we had 1 student ineligible this week," Spira said, contrasting that with prior weeks when 10–15 students were often ineligible.
The additional staff allowed more proactive outreach: athletic staff said they can call families at times that suit parents and check in after incidents or injuries, rather than delaying contact until evenings. Assistant ADs also took on logistics — officials cited transportation, officials, field availability and concussion tracking as examples — freeing coaches to focus on practice and athlete development.
Program growth: the extra staffing helped launch two new women’s programs districtwide: a women's wrestling cooperative and women’s flag football scheduled for spring, officials said. Coaches and veteran staff told the committee they felt the highest level of support in two decades, in part because more adults can attend games, practices and classroom check-ins.
Questions and follow-up: board members asked whether the positions should become permanent or remain funded temporarily through educational-initiative money. Administrators recommended continuing the pilot so the district can evaluate turnover, principal pipelines and the effect on principal recruitment for future openings.
