Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) is a national non-profit organization with the mission to transform the culture of youth sports so that youth athletes can have a positive, character-building experience. PCA achieves its goals primarily by providing training workshops to coaches, parents, and administrators of schools and youth sports organizations in the United States. Founded in 1998, PCA has conducted more than 10,000 workshops for more than 1,700 schools and youth sports organizations, affecting more than 4.5 million youth and high school athletes. PCA Founder and Executive Director Jim Thompson launched PCA in 1998 within the Stanford University Athletic Department after seeing a "win-at-all-cost" mentality in youth sports while coaching his son’s baseball team. Positive Coaching Alliance was created with the mission to "transform youth sports so sports can transform youth." Its mission statement has since been modified to "Better Athletes, Better People."
Thompson, who served more than ten years as the Director of Public and Global Management Programs at Stanford University, in 2004 was recognized as an Ashoka: Innovators for the Public fellow for outstanding social entrepreneurship. He has authored eight books on coaching: Elevating Your Game: Becoming a Triple-Impact Competitor (2011), The Power of Double-Goal Coaching (2010), The High School Sports Parent (2010), Positive Sports Parenting (2009), Positive Coaching in a Nutshell (2007), The Double Goal Coach (2003), Shooting in the Dark: Tales of Coaching and Leadership (1998), and Positive Coaching: Building Character and Self-Esteem Through Sports (1995).
"Better Athletes, Better People"
PCA’s philosophy focuses on sports as an opportunity for character education, espousing the Double-Goal Coach, whose first goal is winning, and whose second, more important goal is teaching life lessons through sports.
Positive Coaching Alliance has three national goals:
- Replace "win-at-all-cost" coaching with Double-Goal Coaching
- Help youth sports organization leaders create a culture in which "Honoring the Game" is the norm
- Spark and fuel a "social epidemic" of Positive Coaching in the United States
Positive Coaching Alliance developed "The Positive Coaching Mental Model", a research summary based upon several psychological studies, in order to guide youth sports coaches in creating positive and effective team cultures. The model comprises three principles:
Redefining "Winner"
Focusing on mastery of skill, rather than on scoreboard results, decreases anxiety and gives youth athletes a sense of control over the outcome. Positive Coaches recognize that mistakes are an inevitable part of sports and cultivate effort rather than concern about outcome, fostering an environment in which players don't fear making mistakes.
Filling "Emotional Tanks"
Positive Coaches frequently give truthful, specific praise, laying the groundwork for "teachable moments," when players will be receptive to specific, constructive criticism.
Honoring the Game
Positive Coaches train their athletes to respect Rules, Opponents, Officials, Teammates, and Self (R.O.O.T.S.)
Notable figures from sports, academia and business comprise PCA’s National Advisory Board:
PCA national spokesperson:
Phil Jackson, Head Coach, Los Angeles Lakers
Board members:
Tommy Amaker, Head Basketball Coach, Harvard University
Brad Ausmus, Former Major League Baseball Catcher
Jennifer Azzi, Olympic Basketball Gold Medalist
Dusty Baker, Manager, Washington Nationals
Albert Bandura, Stanford University Department of Psychology
Shane Battier, Forward, Miami Heat
Bruce Bochy, Manager, San Francisco Giants
Ruthie Bolton, Olympic Basketball Gold Medalist
Bob Bowlsby, Big 12 Conference Commissioner
Bill Bradley, Former US Senator; two-time NBA champion; Captain of 1964 gold-medal winning US Olympic basketball team
Brenda Bredemeier, Center for Character and Citizenship
Larry Brown, NBA and NCAA Champion Coach; member, Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame
Frank Broyles, college football Hall of Famer
Doug Burgum, founder and chairman, Kilbourne Group
William Campbell (business executive), former CEO of Intuit
Brandi Chastain, World Cup Soccer Champion
Nadia Comaneci, Olympic Gymnastics Gold Medalist
Kevin Compton, partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Bart Conner, Olympic Gymnastic Gold Medalist
Robert Cornilles, President, Game Face, Inc.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, psychology professor, Claremont Graduate University
William Damon, Director, Stanford Center on Adolescence
Seth Davis, Sports Illustrated Writer, CBS College Basketball Analyst
Rick Davis, former professional soccer player
Donna de Varona, Olympic Swimming Gold Medalist
Tony Dorsett, Pro Football Hall of Famer
Joan Duda, Sports Psychology Chair, University of Birmingham, England
Tony Dungy, Super Bowl Champion, NBC Football commentator
Carol Dweck, Department of Psychology, Stanford University
Mark Edmunds, Vice-Chairman, Deloitte
Herm Edwards, ESPN Football Analyst, former NFL head coach
Joe Ehrmann, former NFL Pro Bowl player, founder of Coach for America
Ken Eriksen, head coach, USA National Softball Team
Joy Fawcett, World Cup Soccer Champion
Pat Fitzgerald, Head Football Coach, Northwestern University
Susan Ford, president, Sand Hill Foundation
Julie Foudy, World Cup Soccer Champion
Howard Gardner, Harvard Graduate School of Education
John W. Gardner (In Memoriam), Founder, White House Fellows Program
Jim Gibbons, former dean, Stanford University School of Engineering
Dan Gould, Director, Michigan State University Institute for the Study of Youth Sports
Dick Gould, 17-time NCAA champion coach
Tony Granato, Assistant Coach, Pittsburgh Penguins
Chris Grant, general manager, Cleveland Cavaliers
Daniel Grossman, CEO, Wild Planet Toys
Peter Harris, Managing Partner, Eaglepoint Advisors
Dan Hawkins (American football), ESPN college football analyst, former coach
Chip Heath, Stanford University professor
Lionel Hollins, head coach, Memphis Grizzlies
June Jones, head football coach, South Methodist University
Jack Kemp, (In Memoriam), former pro football star and politician
Steve Kerr, 5-time NBA Champion
Jerry Kindall, former head coach, University of Arizona baseball
Chris Kleinert, president, Hunt Investments
Blair LaCorte, CEO of XOJET
Alexi Lalas, ESPN soccer analyst, former U.S. National Team player
Richard Lapchick, chair, DeVos Sport Business Management Program
Ted Leland, Vice President, University of the Pacific
Kristine Lilly, former U.S. National Women's Soccer Team captain
Leo Linbeck III, CEO, Aquinas Companies, LLC
Donna Lopiano, president and founder, Sports Management Resources
Ronnie Lott, member, Pro Football Hall of Fame
Barry Mano, president, National Association of Sports Officials
Steve Mariucci, NFL Network Analyst, former NFL head coach
Mike McCaffery, CEO of Makena Capital
George McCown, Managing Partner, McCown DeLeeuw
Chris Moore (film producer), American film producer
Jim L. Mora, head football coach, UCLA
Becky Morgan, president, Morgan Family Foundation
Mark Murphy (safety, born 1955), retired American football player, now President and CEO of the Green Bay Packers
Donna Orender, former president, WNBA
Noel Perry, Managing Director, Baccharis Capital
Charles Phillips (businessman), CEO of Infor
William Pollack, Harvard Medical School
Jerry I. Porras, Professor Emeritus, Stanford Graduate School of Business
Ken Ravizza, Professor of Applied Sports Psychology, Cal State-Fullerton University
Claudio Reyna, Youth Technical Director, U.S. Soccer
Dot Richardson, Olympic Softball Gold Medalist
Doc Rivers, Head Coach, Los Angeles Clippers
Ted Robinson (sportscaster), American sportscaster
Claude Rosenberg (In Memoriam), Founder of NewTithing Group
David Roux, Managing Director, Silver Lake Partners
Chris Salvaterra, producer, Katonah Pictures
Summer Sanders, Olympic Gold Medalist in Swimming
Mark Shapiro, President, Cleveland Indians
Lee Shulman, former president, Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
Keith Smart, head coach, Sacramento Kings
Dean Smith, Former Head Coach, University of North Carolina Men’s Basketball
Steven Smith (astronaut), NASA astronaut and All-American water polo player
Leigh Steinberg, Steinberg Sports and Entertainment
Steve Stenersen, president and CEO, U.S. Lacrosse
Brad Stevens, head basketball coach, Butler University
Kerri Strug, Olympic Gold Medalist in Gymnastics
Kathinka Tunney, Olympic skier
Bill Walsh (American football coach) (In Memoriam), former head coach, San Francisco 49ers
Gene Washington (49ers), former NFL wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers.
David Weekley, Chairman, David Weekley Homes
Doug Wilson (ice hockey), current General Manager of the San Jose Sharks
Jerry York, head hockey coach, Boston College
Steve Young, Pro Football Hall of Famer
Barry Zito, 2002 Major League Baseball Cy Young Award winner
Eugene T. Lee, current NFL Agent
The Positive Coaching Alliance gives out the Ronald L. Jensen award for Lifetime Achievement. The winners include:
2006 - Ted Leland
2007 - John Gagliardi
2008 - Jim Sochor
2009 - Tara VanDerveer
2010 - John Wooden
2011 - Bruce Bochy
2012 - Dick Gould
2013 - Phil Jackson
2014 - Joe Ehrmann
2015 - Dusty Baker
2016 - Billie Jean King
NikeGo, Deloitte, Liberty Mutual, Continental Airlines
Little League Baseball, US Lacrosse, Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO), US Club Soccer, USA Rugby, Ice Skating Institute, Pop Warner, USA Water Polo
