Coach Rob Miller gives a dynamic presentation to parents in October of 2013.

Jesuit principal Peter Kernion and athletic director Dave Moreau invite and encourage parents of current Blue Jays and alumni with children of all ages who participate in organized sports to an event at Carrollton and Banks on Thursday, Oct. 13 to learn more about the role that parents play in athletics. There is no charge for this event that begins at 6:30 p.m. in the Jesuit High School Auditorium.

Rob Miller of Proactive Coaching, an organization that conducts workshops and seminars on the various facets of character-based athletics, will give a presentation on “The Role of Parents in Athletics.” Topics for the evening include stages of athletics, shared expectations, red flags for parents, the role of parents during competition that enhance a child’s performance, confidence building, and life lessons for student-athletes.

Miller is a former high school (boys and girls) and college basketball coach. He currently serves as the commissioner of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics’ Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference. This is Miller’s fifth trip to Jesuit since 2011. In 2011, he presented to Jesuit coaches and members of the Blue Jay Club Executive Board about life lessons in athletics and building successful teams. He gave a similar presentation in 2012 to Blue Jay student-athletes and returned in 2013 to deliver the Proactive Coaching presentation to parents.

Liz Creel, a parent of Blue Jay student-athletes (Cal ’11, Zac ’13, Henry ’15, Benji ’16), found the presentation in 2013 tremendously valuable: “Rob Miller’s presentation for parents is truly enlightening.  He has a gift for helping parents comprehend the value of both youth and prep level sports as it relates to the overall impact on the participant.  His insight allowed me to better understand my role as the parent of student-athletes.  I came to see that role as one of nurturing and supporting values such as teamwork, discipline, and passion in my sons.  In addition, his presentation helped me to avoid forming my own (and sometimes unrealistic) expectations on my sons.  The bottom line is that I learned that youth and high school sports provided great lessons for my sons as well as for me.”

“Mr. Miller’s presentations are powerful, pertinent, and helpful, while aligning with Jesuit’s mission of developing men of faith and men for others,” said Kernion ’90. “I’m confident that parents will benefit the same way our coaches and student-athletes have,” added Moreau.