By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Student athletes spend hours perfecting their passes, pitches, serves and shots.
But some of those teens are asked to be team leaders – which requires a whole other skill set. Bowling Green High School Athletic Director Michele Wolf has seen students struggle with those leadership roles during her years working with youth athletes.
“I noticed over time that sometimes our captains don’t know how to lead,” she said.
So Wolf has devised a sports leadership program that helps team captains practice the skills that they need to work with their teammates and their coaches.
“I wanted our captains to be coaches in the field,” she said. “It’s a 100% learned skill.”
Wolf holds leadership sessions, teaching the captains how to instill trust, improve communication, and set realistic expectations.
“You have to understand what it means to be a good moral person before you can lead other people,” Wolf said.
“These kids are put in very difficult positions some days,” she said, explaining that captains make tough decisions, such as determining playing time for their teammates. “They have difficult conversations. Sometimes they are on an island doing the right thing.”
The team captains meet several times each sports season for the leadership program.
“The kids are extremely engaged – of course I feed them,” Wolf said.
They are encouraged to talk about problems they face in their leadership roles.
“I want them to feel comfortable sharing their struggles,” Wolf said. “They are going to make mistakes. They may snap at their teammates. We want them to learn from that interaction.”
Above all, Wolf wants the teenage leaders to gain confidence beyond their athletic skills. Using a book series and visits from leaders, such as the BGSU Head Volleyball Coach Danijela Tomic, Wolf hopes to teach the young captains to believe in themselves.
“We’re really trying to give them the confidence to lead,” she said.
The leadership course also teaches the athletes to express emotions like frustration to their coaches in a productive manner. Wolf talks to the captains about creating a plan before having conversations with their coaches or their teammates.
They learn about prompt communication and resolution – to prevent problems from snowballing.
“They need to attack these issues right away, find a solution, and move on,” Wolf said.
Some team captains struggle with how to voice concerns to their coaches – so Wolf lets them practice with her.
“They can come in and complain about a coach for 10 minutes,” but then they have to find solutions.
Wolf said she will sit in on discussions between team captains and their coaches – but that the athletes have to do the talking.
“This is conflict resolution in the most basic form,” she said. “I’m not going to do that for them.”
Those skills will live on beyond high school, beyond the soccer fields, tennis courts and cross country courses.
This fall there are 27 students in the sports leadership program, with most of them being juniors and seniors. Wolf is expanding the program to the next round of undergraduate leaders, with coaches being asked to identify younger teammates who show leadership potential.
