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Coaches urge higher pay and retirement credit during Anne Arundel public comment
Summary
Multiple school coaches told the board that current stipends do not cover extended seasons, childcare or retirement credit and urged the district to increase compensation and retirement-eligible pay for athletic coaches.
Four coaches addressing the board during the public-comment period urged the Anne Arundel County Board of Education to increase stipends and retirement credit for athletic coaches, saying current pay does not reflect the time required during extended seasons or the cost of childcare.
Michael Zivick, a South River High School teacher and coach, told the board his out-of-season and postseason work has increasingly put him at financial risk. "I get knocked down, but I get up again," he said, using a lyric from his senior-year song to explain why he continues coaching despite the financial strain.
John Klessinger, a teacher and wrestling coach with more than two decades of experience, told the board his annual coaching salary is $5,904 and that "I made about $3,600 after taxes from coaching wrestling, a net pay of about $8.33 an hour." He said he averages hundreds of hours per year on coaching duties — practices, phone calls, planning and weekend competitions — and has not received retirement-crediting pay for that work.
Jack Maguire, head boys lacrosse coach at Broadneck High School, described postseason stretches that extend unpaid and said the extra weeks of playoff competition can amount to working "for free." Maguire urged the district to adopt retention-oriented pay that would help keep teacher-coaches in the system.
A coach who identified himself as Craig (last name given in the record as Craig and Repstock Lane) said he has coached at his alma mater, Glen Burnie High School, for eight years and noted the burden on parents and caregivers. A coach who identified herself as a mother said the current stipend structure and schedule "makes it nearly impossible for a mother to be both [a] successful coach on the field and a successful mom at home," and she urged the district to change compensation to retain more female coaches. She closed by saying, "Coaching moms deserve to stay in the game."
No board action was taken during public comment. Board members thanked the speakers for their remarks as the meeting moved on to consent and action items.
