Positive Coaching Alliance

Positive Coaching Alliance

Marin Academy's athletic program prides itself on its partnership with the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA). PCA is a non-profit organization based at Stanford University whose mission is "To transform youth sports so sports transform youth."

PCA’s Goals are:

• Replace the win at all-cost model of coaching with the Double Goal Coach who strives to win but has a second, more important, goal of using sports to teach life lessons.
• Teach Youth Sports Organizations leaders how to create an organizational culture in which Honoring the Game is the norm
• Spark and fuel a "social epidemic" of Positive Coaching that will sweep this country and beyond.

Positive coaching can increase an athlete's self-esteem and self-confidence, which results in more enjoyment from participating, which causes a scholar athlete to be more likely to continue playing. Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) believes the realm of youth athletics presents a tremendous opportunity for scholar athletes to develop life skills that will serve them well beyond the playing field.

M.A. has taken numerous initiatives to establish an athletic culture that everyone understands and supports. Coaches, faculty, and parents, attend Positive Coaching workshops at the beginning of the year. These sessions enable each group to understand each other's objectives and develop a common / teaching vocabulary. The PCA adage "We Honor the Game Here" has become a mantra among community members, and Head of School, Bodie Brizendine states: "I know of a few other institutional initiatives at our school that have made such a difference."

In March 2003, Marin Academy was the only high school that received PCA’s Honoring the Game Award at their National Youth Sports Award banquet.