For as long as there have been high schools in LaSalle Parish, sports have been a dominating factor for the overall success of our schools. As an avid sports fan, I love watching our student-athletes compete. For a community, nothing brings people together more than a successful sports program.

High school athletics have many advantages for our students as well. As noted by Grace Chen in a 2022 article, the top ten reasons why high school sports benefit students are: Community Representation, Fitness, Improved Academics, The Importance of the 3 P’s (Persistence, Patience & Practice), Teamwork and Cooperation, Positive Mentors, Social Relationships, Leadership Skills, Time Management and Success Mindset. All of these reasons are backed up with data and statistics.

Towns, cities and communities across Louisiana are identified by their sports teams. Long before Duck Dynasty, West Monroe was known for football. New Orleans may be known for Mardis Gras but Jesuit High School, located there, is known for winning baseball championships (the most in the state at 22). For a little closerto- home reference, long before the Jena Six, the small town of Jena was known as a dominating force in girls’ basketball.

While the Jena girls’ basketball program is laying a foundation to once again reclaim dominance, the football and softball teams are simply building on an established foundation with baseball inching closer and closer to a quarterfinal team. At LaSalle High, their softball and baseball greatness is clearly established and fans of both programs can just about reserve hotels rooms in Sulphur for the state tournament at the beginning of the school year.

I don’t think anyone would doubt the impact the Jena Giant football program has had on LaSalle Parish. Head Coach Jay Roark has assembled one of the finest and experienced coaching staffs in the state and as I travel throughout Louisiana talk of the Jena football team is everywhere.

The football fever each fall is so big that some equate it to being Jena’s idol. With back-to-back semifinal appearances and the team having a hunger for the New Orleans Superdome, there isn’t anyone in Jena that doesn’t expect the Giants to be playing for a state championship in the coming years.

While I am certainly the first to argue that academics should be the primary focus of high school (and recent test scores indicate that LaSalle is excelling in that category), no one can deny the fact that sports, and recently football, has put Jena on the map as one of the top programs in the state.

With so much focus on the sports programs, my mind went somewhere recently where it probably shouldn’t have gone. What exactly are we paying our coaches who invest so much in our youth and community? As new incentives and stipends are being considered for our teachers who excel in their field, should the same principle be applied to coaches? If we believe in paying people for what they’re worth, does the pay scale for our coaching staffs equal their worth?

Most of the coaching staffs have deep roots to LaSalle Parish. They are at our schools not because of the money but because of their love for their community, schools and students. Truth be known, they don’t do what they do for the money or else they would have been long gone.

A quick search of the LaSalle Parish School Board’s personnel policies revealed that as head football coaches, Roark and LaSalle High’s Hunter Johnson are provided an additional $3,000.00 per season. They are listed as 11-month employees (two extra months equating to around $4,000.00) but are only paid $3,000 extra for leading the football program. They also receive an hourly pay for the months of June and July for up to 16 hours per week, as do most other school systems for their summer coaches. In addition, all coaches of major sports (football, basketball, baseball and softball) receive an additional $100 for each round of playoff competition.

Assistant football coaches are listed as 10-month employees and are provided with an additional $1,400.00 per season. The extra month salary equates to approximately $2,000.00.

Factor in all the “real” time spent coaching as the head coach or assistants, (you know, the hours before the clock starts and hours working at home) and you begin to see the pay scale average dropping fast.

From what I can gather, the LPSB coaches’ pay scale has not been increased for some 20 years. Yes, you read that correct. It has been over 20 years since head football coaches and their assistants in LaSalle Parish have received a raise in their supplements, along with some other sports.

Think about the changes that have taken place in our parish football programs during those 20 years. Back then, all sports were seasonal, meaning that coaches only coached during the actual season. Football players did not report until August and after the last game (which was usually the last regular season game) no work was done until the following August (save two weeks for spring training). The results of that seasonal schedule were decades of losing. Sure, there were sparks here and there, but for the most part Jena was picked for opponent’s homecomings as they were viewed as an easy win.

But since Roark has arrived in Jena, a new winning mentality has emerged. Gone are the days of just three months of football as a new, rigorous, yearround, college-style training schedule for players was instituted. At LaSalle, former head coach Derek White operated with the same system and now Hunter Johnson continues that all-year schedule.

I checked with several surrounding school systems just to see how LaSalle compares with parishes relatively our size. In Caldwell, their head football coach is a 12-month employee who receives a $6,000.00 supplement and in Winn, a smaller school, their head football coach is listed as an 11.5-month employee with a $5,500.00 supplement.

We have several coaches serving as assistants that could easily go many places for head coaching positions. Their loyalty and appreciation to Coach Roark is probably the deciding factor for them staying.

In case you are unaware, currently on the JHS football coaching staff, there is a combined 153 years of coaching experience and three of the assistants have previously served as head coaches at other schools for a combine total of 37 head coaching years.

If we want to keep being a dominate force in football and other sports, it might be time to reevaluate what we pay our coaches… head coaches and assistants… and perhaps we shouldn’t limit our evaluations to football.

One of the things that sets our parish a part from others is our support and pride for our schools and our athletic programs. I take great pride in telling people I’m from LaSalle Parish and my heart swells like the Grinch’s when I hear people around the state complement our football and other teams.

I, like many of you, love to tell people about the success of our sports programs. Perhaps it’s time we put our money where our mouth is.