Section 7 – Communicating with Parents

 

Getting Information from Parents/Guardians

Collect general player information, such as name, address, home and cell numbers, email addresses. Be sure parents complete the confidential Player Medical Information sheet found on the NMHA website.

Providing Information to Parents/Guardians

Establish an efficient means of communicating information to parents. Open lines of communication between Manager and Head Coach are essential to ensure smooth running and consistent messaging to parents/guardians.

The team will need to be up to date on:

  • Game and practice schedules –  on the NMHA website.
    • Game schedules are generally available for all or half of the season.
    • Practice schedules are generally available in 2 to 6 week blocks
  • League information
  • Events, parties, tournaments.

Email is preferred. It’s a great idea to send weekly updates/reminders to parents/guardians. Keep a running tab of information to send out once per week, including the upcoming week’s schedule, forms or payments due.

Set up a team website. Team websites can be set up to send out schedule reminders automatically. Some examples teams have used successfully:

Prepare a team list for players and parents/guardians. It can include jersey #, player name and contact information. This is especially useful for travel tournaments.

Coach Evaluations

Parents will be asked for feedback on the coaching staff during the season. Division Directors will provide the Head Coach and/or Manager with a link to an online survey for completion. Head Coaches, Assistants, Trainers and Managers get evaluated. It is important for team staff to develop with constructive criticism or positive feedback. Parents/guardians should be encouraged to complete the surveys in a timely manner.