Wheaton College Alumni Magazine Autumn 2013 | Page 52
FACULTYvoice
Let’s End Abusive Coaching
What coaches do and say to our kids in the name of winning games
and earning scholarships sometimes borders on the criminal.
a
by Dr. Michael Giuliano, head coach of men’s soccer and
adjunct professor of communication studies
s the head coach of Wheaton’s men’s
soccer program and as a parent who
cheers for my three kids, I’ve seen youth
coaching at every level—from the
American Youth Soccer Organization’s
volunteer parent-coach to the professional
coach making nearly six figures to run a
nationally ranked club program.
At every level, I cannot believe what
too often I see and hear—10-year-old
boys being screamed at by red-faced
Coach Mike Giuliano
60 A U T U M N 2 0 >(0