FROM THE BLEACHERS-748

BY DR. JACK WELCH-

Public Education Under Attack

Public education is under attack, even though states are legally required to provide an equitable and adequate education for every child. As an educator, I’ve learned to listen to older people. Seasoned adults have an uncanny ability to sense who can be trusted and who can’t. Most of the time, I agree with them. In just about every job I’ve ever had, there have been a few older educators who became trusted comrades, people who had seen enough to know the difference between noise and truth.

People have instincts like that. Sometimes it’s just a gut feeling. Sometimes it shows up in how someone treats employees or even their own friends. For me, my radar immediately goes up when anyone starts disparaging the teaching profession.

Like any profession, there are bad actors who should be removed, and public and state education can and should improve with the right support. A few bad apples never justify bullying an entire profession though.

Bullying is increasingly coming from social media. Online harassment, threats, and insults aimed at teachers have become the most common form of aggression educators face today. These attacks cause real emotional and psychological harm and are driving good teachers out of the classroom. Left unchecked, this kind of rhetoric can spill over into real-world violence.

Much of it is politically motivated. Well-funded organizations have repeatedly targeted public and state education with false or misleading claims. In June 2023, as reported by author Glenn Rogers, Gordon ISD, a small, high-performing rural district in north central Texas, was viciously attacked online after being falsely accused of grooming students for transgenderism. The claim centered on a book available statewide through TexQuest, an online library coordinated with the Texas Education Agency. The book had never been accessed in Gordon ISD and had already been suppressed by school officials. None of that mattered. The attack rattled teachers, parents, and administrators. Educators who had done nothing wrong were subjected to fear, stress, and public shaming.

Let’s just call it what it is, public education is taking some hard shots right now. Across the country, more teachers are being verbally abused and, in some cases, physically attacked by students and even parents. Some reports say as many as 10 to 14 percent of educators have been assaulted on the job. A lot of folks point to the post-pandemic years as the turning point, but regardless of the cause, the results are clear: teachers are worn down, morale is taking a hit, and too many good educators are deciding it’s not worth the risk anymore. That’s why school safety isn’t just a talking point, it’s something we’ve got to take seriously. Older, experienced educators seem to know who to trust. Maybe it’s time the rest of us trusted our seasoned teachers again.

Thought for the Week, “A community’s true values are revealed not by its slogans, but by how it treats the people entrusted with educating its children. When we choose education over outrage, we choose a stronger future.” Blake Powell, a leading Texas educational attorney.

Dr. Jack Welch serves as President of Fort Scott Community College. With a career spanning professional sports, public education, and rural community development, he brings a servant-leader mindset and a passion for building trust-driven cultures that empower people to thrive in the classroom, on the field, and in life. He is also the author of Foundations of Coaching: The Total Coaching Manual.

FROM THE BLEACHERS-747

BY DR. JACK WELCH

 When College Football Became Professional

The national title game between Miami and Indiana will be remembered not just for the final score, but for what it represents. Indiana, a program long respected for basketball stands as the national champion for the first time in history. This would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. In today’s college football landscape, it makes perfect sense.

Indiana didn’t stumble into a national championship. They built it the modern way, through the transfer portal and NIL. This was not a slow build; multi-year plan defined by redshirts and recruiting classes growing together. This was a rapid transformation fueled by money, movement, and immediate results.

College football has abandoned tradition, it has become professional sports. The programs willing to change and invest accordingly have a chance to win. That is what Indiana did.

College football is no longer amateur athletics. Indiana’s football roster reportedly carried roughly $21.1 million in NIL spending, with marquee players like quarterback Fernando Mendoza earning more than $2 million. When you factor in total football operations expenses surpassing $61 million, the scale begins to resemble professional franchises more than traditional college programs.

Miami was in the same boat. Both teams took the field with rosters assembled less like college depth charts and more like professional free-agent lists. These weren’t freshmen growing into men within a system. These were proven players, recruited nationally and internationally, placed into schemes designed to win now.

History will judge today’s college coaches differently than those of the past. Yesterday’s great coaches were measured by how they built programs, developed players, and mastered the game itself. Today’s coaches are increasingly evaluated by how well they build rosters, manage NIL, navigate the portal, and assemble talent. The question for the future won’t be whether one era was better than the other, but whether coaching greatness can still be defined by teaching and leadership in a game now driven by acquisition and economics.

Indiana’s national championship is not an anomaly. It’s a blueprint. Spend wisely. Win the portal and raise the necessary funding. If done correctly, history can be rewritten in a single offseason.

College football didn’t die, it evolved into the professional ranks. Make no mistake, what we watched between Miami and Indiana wasn’t amateur athletics. It was professional football wearing college uniforms.

Thought for the week, “Change is inevitable. Those who adapt thrive, those who resist get left behind.”  Jack Welch

Dr. Jack Welch serves as President of Fort Scott Community College. With a career spanning professional sports, public education, and rural community development, he brings a servant-leader mindset and a passion for building trust-driven cultures that empower people to thrive in the classroom, on the field, and in life. He is also the author of Foundations of Coaching: The Total Coaching Manual.

FROM THE BLEACHERS-743

BY DR. JACK WELCH

Why most goals fade and the ones that don’t

This time of year, goal setting is as common as cold weather and gym memberships. New calendars, new planners, new promises. We tell ourselves this will be the year things change. We’ll get in shape. We’ll eat better. We’ll save more. We’ll be better.

Then, somewhere around mid-February, most of those goals quietly fade away. Why? Goals don’t fail due to lack of intention. They fail because they were never backed by habit, discipline, or passion. Wanting something is easy. Sustaining something is hard. Hard things require a change in lifestyle, not just a change in language.

Let’s be honest, most of us are out of shape not because we don’t know what to do, but because we’ve grown comfortable with how we live. Change only happens when discomfort outweighs comfort. There has to be a desperate shift in attitude before there’s a lasting shift in behavior. Until then, goals remain good ideas written on paper.

Scripture speaks directly to this struggle. “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps” (Proverbs 16:9). Proverbs 16:1–9 reminds us that wise planning begins with surrender. Planning isn’t the problem. Pride is. When goals are built solely around our will, they tend to collapse under pressure. When they’re rooted in God’s purpose, they gain staying power.

Athletics gives us countless examples of this truth. One of the most well-known is Michael Jordan. As a sophomore, he was cut from his high school varsity basketball team. That moment could have defined him, or defeated him. Instead, it fueled him. Jordan didn’t just want to be better. He committed to daily discipline. Early mornings. Extra reps. Relentless effort. That determination, repeated day after day, turned disappointment into greatness. His goal wasn’t a wish, it became a way of life.

Great achievements, on the field or in life, don’t happen by accident. They happen because someone decided the goal mattered enough to suffer for it. They were willing to sacrifice time.

So, as you set goals this year, ask yourself: Is this just something I want, or something I’m willing to commit to? Have I invited God into it, or am I asking Him to bless something I’ve already decided?

Thought for the Week, “A goal without discipline is a wish. A goal surrendered to God becomes a calling.” R.B. Shoemaker, former iconic Baptist Minister

Dr. Jack Welch serves as President of Fort Scott Community College. With a career spanning professional sports, public education, and rural community development, he brings a servant-leader mindset and a passion for building trust-driven cultures that empower people to thrive in the classroom, on the field, and in life. He is also the author of Foundations of Coaching: The Total Coaching Manual.

America’s Truck Driver Shortage Is a Workforce Crisis

From the bleachers, the game looks pretty simple. You can draw up all the fancy plays you want, but if you don’t have somebody willing and able to do the hard work in the trenches, you’re going to lose. Right now, one of the biggest problems facing our country isn’t in a boardroom or a tech lab, it’s on the highway.

America has a truck driver shortage, and it’s not just a workforce issue, it’s a supply-chain problem, an economic problem, and a common-sense problem. Nearly everything we use, food, medicine, building materials, fuel, gets to us because a truck driver hauled it there. When there aren’t enough drivers, shelves don’t get stocked, projects slow down, and communities feel it.

The American Trucking Associations tell us we’re already short tens of thousands of drivers, and that gap could grow to more than 160,000 by the end of the decade. A big part of the issue is age. A lot of experienced drivers are nearing retirement, and not enough young folks are stepping in behind them. Trucks move over 70 percent of the freight in this country. Take drivers out of the equation, and the whole offense stalls.

Now, trucking isn’t the only position we need to fill. We’re short in allied health, HVAC, electrical trades, computer technology, welding, you name it. These are all high-demand, good-paying careers that keep our communities running, but trucking is different. Trucking touches every one of those industries. If it can’t move, neither can they.

That’s where community colleges come in. Four-year universities aren’t built to solve every workforce need, and that’s okay. Community colleges, technical schools, and even high schools are. They can train people quickly, affordably, and locally for jobs that are open right now.

A CDL certificate doesn’t take four years. It takes weeks or months. It doesn’t bury students in debt. It puts them to work. For many folks, it’s a straight path to a solid living and a respected profession. Community colleges know their regions, know their employers, and know how to prepare students to be job-ready on day one.

Here’s the bottom line: truck driving isn’t going away. As long as America buys things, builds things, and eats things, we’ll need truck drivers. Investing in CDL programs isn’t flashy, but it’s smart. It’s the kind of investment that keeps the chains moving and the scoreboard lit up.

Thought for the Week, “Every winning team needs people willing to do essential work. When we build clear, affordable pathways into high-demand careers, everybody moves the ball forward.” Gary Welch