Persons Banned or Suspended from Membership in USRowing

[lt.wolf]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/o ... legations/

[Mango]

That was a crazy read.

We knew he was suspended and we all know Conal has always been a POS with a hot head.

But the fact that USR was presented a 198 page document that they just swept under the rug? My very hot take after just finishing that article is to fire anybody and everybody who knew about it and helped keep it quiet.

[gamestop]

God frick this guy. I thought I couldn't hold any more disdain for a coach after Kirk Shipley. USRowing has now put out a statement, keep your expectations low:
https://usrowing.org/news/2023/7/13/new ... groom.aspx

Instead of saying "we have zero tolerance" and have "implemented strong safeguarding practices", why not say

"wow in the wake of 3 prominent cases of abuse in the last year, we want to share what has/has not worked to put an end to abuse of minors at the hands of coaches. Also, here's what we're going to try to do now. We can:

Make the Safesport parent guide to misconduct a mandatory training.
Provide more transparent data on the number of clubs/individuals who have had safesport violations.
Reevaluate how to incentivize compliance with safesport training and self attesting.
Make our Safesport policies, FAQ's, resources more present and forward facing in communications, socials, and physical presence at events
Better incorporate safesport training into coaching education programs at every level."

At least try to make me believe. It took me 10 minutes to come up with those bullet points. Sure they are half baked and following through would require a lot of work, but hey we're at least a good few months from the next article about a Kirk Shipley, Ted Nash, Conal Groom, etc.

[FullSend]

That was a crazy read.

We knew he was suspended and we all know Conal has always been a POS with a hot head.

But the fact that USR was presented a 198 page document that they just swept under the rug? My very hot take after just finishing that article is to fire anybody and everybody who knew about it and helped keep it quiet.

I don't think that's a hot take at all. Tolerance should be especially low when dealing with abuse of minors. No excuses after you have a thorough investigation that validates the findings.

[Faster-n-faster]

USRowing should be careful with “zero tolerance” in more ways than one.

That list would be a whole lot longer if they had “zero tolerance,” which they do not have by the way.

They have plenty of tolerance.

[porsche5k]

USRowing is absolutely full of it with their zero tolerance policy.

[Remomex]

That's just boilerplate legalese. Any company that ever gets accused of any wrongdoing makes the same exact statements.

"Safety is our number one priority"
"We have zero tolerance for ________"
"We are committed to _________" With _____ being the opposite of what they are accused of

etc etc. It's as laughable as a doper who blames the steak they ate at a restaurant for their positive result

[Rocket-Sauce]

"Rowing Coach" is starting to have the same connotation as "Catholic Priest" or "Boy Scout Leader"

[Mango]

At some point rowing in the US has to address the number of men coaching girls. That ranges from HS to college. There have been a huge amount of woman with very high levels of experience.

[rowing]

Rowductio ad absurdum

Assuming the worst about someone in rowing because it fits your preferred/damaged worldview or aligns with your gossip/grudge collection, possessing no definitive report on the facts (WaPo is toilet paper), yet demanding that the national governing body take action, while very likely having some boundary issues of your own.

What a sport we have!!

{grabs kerosene}

[oldman]

At some point rowing in the US has to address the number of men coaching girls. That ranges from HS to college. There have been a huge amount of woman with very high levels of experience.

I agree with what I think you mean that women coaching women (young and college) can be effective and rewarding for all. But college "girls"?; and a "huge" number of women seems to imply a horde out there ready to assume the reins which may not be readily available; and "experience" does not lead to "qualified to run program X" -- I don't think I could run a D1 program but I know I am okay as a coach. It's the match-ups that count. Can someone who does recruiting 23 hours a day have the experience to become a head coach? Experience, time on some task, is not important. It's the quality of time used that counts. My impression over the years is that it's the same for both genders, very low for most people in the beginning, with a small number that learn and grow.

[lt.wolf]

We have recently taken action within our club by dismissing a member who engaged in predatory behavior. Unfortunately, the SafeSport program proved ineffective by delaying the necessary measures for the dismissal process.

It is imperative for clubs and the rowing community to take matters into their own hands when SafeSport and US Rowing fall short in addressing these issues. We understand the importance of creating a safe and secure environment for all members, and we are committed to doing whatever it takes to uphold those standards.

[Slim]

We have recently taken action within our club by dismissing a member who engaged in predatory behavior. Unfortunately, the SafeSport program proved ineffective by delaying the necessary measures for the dismissal process.

It is imperative for clubs and the rowing community to take matters into their own hands when SafeSport and US Rowing fall short in addressing these issues. We understand the importance of creating a safe and secure environment for all members, and we are committed to doing whatever it takes to uphold those standards.

We all need to take collective responsibility for these issues. Outsourcing decision making to third parties is convenient, but it allows situations to persist.

I'm struck by the extent that we will go to ensure fairness at the expense of the safety of children.

[rowing]

We have recently taken action within our club by dismissing a member who engaged in predatory behavior. Unfortunately, the SafeSport program proved ineffective by delaying the necessary measures for the dismissal process.

It is imperative for clubs and the rowing community to take matters into their own hands when SafeSport and US Rowing fall short in addressing these issues. We understand the importance of creating a safe and secure environment for all members, and we are committed to doing whatever it takes to uphold those standards.

But isn't that the point.....that the CLUB should act FIRST?

SafeSport is an educational initiative to drive home the process for the "first responders"....the club and officers. SafeSport is also part of the reporting process. SafeSport is also a backstop for investigation/action that exceeds the club or the NGB skillsets.

So bottom line, SafeSport educates, engages, investigates, and delivers final reports. But none of that happens without the first responder.

I get that the process of dismissal may involve delay, but the CLUB can fix that by instituting a policy of suspension/separation during any open investigation. With or without pay is up to the club. Waiting for SafeSport to finish up seems like a club fail, not a fail of the SafeSport end of things.

[FullSend]

We have recently taken action within our club by dismissing a member who engaged in predatory behavior. Unfortunately, the SafeSport program proved ineffective by delaying the necessary measures for the dismissal process.

It is imperative for clubs and the rowing community to take matters into their own hands when SafeSport and US Rowing fall short in addressing these issues. We understand the importance of creating a safe and secure environment for all members, and we are committed to doing whatever it takes to uphold those standards.

But isn't that the point.....that the CLUB should act FIRST?

SafeSport is an educational initiative to drive home the process for the "first responders"....the club and officers. SafeSport is also part of the reporting process. SafeSport is also a backstop for investigation/action that exceeds the club or the NGB skillsets.

So bottom line, SafeSport educates, engages, investigates, and delivers final reports. But none of that happens without the first responder.

I get that the process of dismissal may involve delay, but the CLUB can fix that by instituting a policy of suspension/separation during any open investigation. With or without pay is up to the club. Waiting for SafeSport to finish up seems like a club fail, not a fail of the SafeSport end of things.

In the Conal situation isn't part of the problem that he was co-running the club, or did I misunderstand the setup? Becomes a lot harder for the club to act first if the person in question is functionally "the club"