THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 8, 1995 TAG: 9501060175
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 18 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, CURRENTS SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Medium: 88 lines
INTERESTED IN A JOB that requires you to put in about 1,020 extra hours of work in a year for about $3.20 for each hour?
Or would you stand in line to answer this employment advertisement?
Wanted: Teacher for daily classes and large amount of administrative duties from 7:15 a.m. until 2:15 p.m., followed by a minimum of night work from two to six times weekly. Attend all at-school athletic contests and make arrangements for all interscholastic events.
That's a thumbnail description - and very incomplete - of the duties of a high school athletic director.
Yet Churchland's Bill Strickland loves every minute of it.
Well, maybe not every minute. There are some pretty tiring days when he starts out at 6:30 a.m. and doesn't return home until after midnight.
But the 53-year-old Strickland, in his fifth year as an athletic director after a lengthy stint as a football and girls softball coach, calls it ``a labor of love.''
For 18 years, Strickland, a graduate of Cradock and East Carolina University, was football coach at Churchland. With 76 victories, he is the school's winningest coach.
He produced Southeastern District champions in both football and girls softball. He became athletic director in June, 1990.
``I don't even think about retirement,'' he said. ``What? Give up my hobby and then have to go to work? As long as you enjoy what you are doing, I say stay in there. And that's just the same in coaching as being an athletic director.''
Since Strickland took over the position at Churchland vacated by the retirement of Jack Mounie, he has seen additional sports under his jurisdiction.
``I remember once when I was a coach we had nine athletic teams in the various sports. Now we have 25,'' said Strickland.
The long and irregular work hours require family support.
``I can tell you right now that without the understanding and support I have from my wife and my family I could not handle this job,'' he said. ``Not just anybody could handle planning family activities around a high school schedule.''
Each year, Strickland estimates he puts in an additional 25 weeks of work after regular school hours. The compensation is $3,271. Actually, it's less than football coaches ($4,536) get but more than other coaches. And it amounts to about $3.20 an hour for Strickland.
``Nobody could ever be in this for the money,'' he said.
``The Portsmouth school administration realizes how many hours we put in and has reduced our class load to help adjust for that. I did have three classes and now I have only two, to allow for more time to do administrative work.'' He teaches health, physical education and driver training.
Strickland said 50 percent of his regular work day is spent on instruction time ``to meet my obligation as a health and PE teacher.''
He breaks his other hours into 16 percent for planning and instruction, 17 percent to coordinate the health and PE program, and 17 percent to coordinate the athletic program.
``From past experience, I can tell you it takes many additional hours, somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,020 in a year, to serve as athletic director. I am at the gym or the stadium for every junior varsity and varsity event, boys or girls. Four nights a week isn't unusual. It's a minimum of two nights a week up to six sometimes.''
In a job description for Portsmouth high school athletic directors, there are 46 duties listed. It ranges from supervising the athletic program to maintaining a permanent file of players, including a check that the athletes are eligible academically through each grading period. Strickland also coordinates the use of all athletic facilities with groups outside the school, which includes community youth leagues and recreation and church leagues.
He also devotes 48 hours of work during the annual Portsmouth Invitational Tournament at Churchland. Indoor concessions are another of his responsibilities.
``It's working with the young people and their parents that makes the job appealing,'' he said. ``You develop a close relationship with many families. And my job requires close work with the principal and all of the coaches. Having their support is a necessity, and I couldn't have a better group to work with than those at Churchland.
``But most of all, I can tell you this job demands a very understanding wife.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo by L. TODD SPENCER
Bill Strickland, in his fifth year as an athletic director at
Churchland, estimates that he puts in 25 weeks of work after regular
school hours. He earns $3,271 for this ``labor of love.''
by CNB