Webinar Recap: TeamSnap Coaches Roundtable – State of Youth Sports Coaching

Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) recently joined TeamSnap for a virtual Coaches Roundtable focused on building supportive, fun, and accessible youth sports experiences. Moderated by Karlee Deaver, TeamSnap’s Manager of Inside Sales, the panel featured PCA’s Director of Community Engagement, Khali Blackman-Newton, Jim Dahline, Senior Director of Product Marketing & Strategy at TeamSnap, and Sean Jensen, author and podcast host of Winning Is Not Everything.

Key takeaways centered around how youth sports coaches can foster positive development, support player retention, and maintain strong community ties. The panel emphasized balancing competitive and developmental sports environments to keep sports enjoyable and enriching. Coaches were encouraged and inspired to celebrate individual growth and success while nurturing team cohesion, ensuring young athletes feel valued and heard.

A particularly impactful insight was the importance of organizational culture, where positive values are integrated into daily interactions, allowing youth to grow with confidence. The panel also discussed the immense value of open communication with athletes and their families, reinforcing a support system that enables growth. PCA’s Positive Youth Sports Index was highlighted as a tool for organizations to assess and enhance their practices.

The roundtable concluded by discussing ways to increase access to sports for under-resourced communities through strategic partnerships, like Oakland Unified School District’s Yes Sports! program, which reached 4,000 new kids in its first year. We’re thrilled that Khali Blackman-Newton shared her insights on this vital panel, contributing to a movement that ensures sports can positively shape every young athlete’s life.