Coaching a youth sport program such as Little League Baseball is a privilege that is not to be taken for granted. As a coach in Newton Little League (NLL), you have an important role in the development of the young children in the community. Our goal is to teach each child the positive values of good sportsmanship, fair play and teamwork – values they can use throughout their lives. In order to ensure each coach is acting in the best interest of all the children and Little League Baseball, the NLL Board has developed a Coaches Code of Conduct for interactions with players, parents, fans, coaches, and umpires.

Newton Little League expects the following standards of conduct and behavior for its managers and coaches.

All managers and coaches in Newton Little League must adhere to this code of conduct.

1. Encourage your players to play by the rules, work hard and be a good sport. Children learn best by the examples set by their coaches, so applaud play by both teams.
2. Be a positive role model by showing good sportsmanship, a positive attitude and remembering the real reason for the game: To have fun!

• DO NOT ridicule or yell at players, coaches, umpires or parents.
• Show a positive attitude, on and off the field.

3. Emphasize skill development at all practices and continually work to develop ALL players, from the least skilled to the most skilled and everything in-between.  Work hard to properly challenge all players.
4. Parents / Fans – Coaches are expected to interact with parents in a professional manner. Appropriate language and behavior is expected at all time.  Coaches and parents must agree to the 24-Hour Rule: Parents are banned from negatively discussing a game, a play or a strategy with a coach for at least 24 hours after the contest.
5. Players – Coaches are expected to maintain order and sportsmanship on their team.  At no time are coaches to allow players to yell at or disparage players and coaches on their own or the opposing team. 
6. Coaches – Coaches are expected to interact with opposing coaches in a professional manner. At no time should a coach yell at an opposing coach. Coaches must stay at the field until ALL kids are picked-up.
7. Umpires – Coaches are expected to interact with umpires with the utmost respect and in a professional manner. At no time should a coach yell at or to an umpire. Coaches may politely address the umpires to CLARIFY a call, but YOU MAY NOT QUESTION a call.  If the need arises to address an umpire before the end of the half inning, the coach should call a timeout and request permission to address the umpire out of earshot of players, parents and spectators. 
   • If you must, then please understand the rules of making an Appeal, Appealing a decision or Protesting as they are commonly confused and misunderstood.
   • Some of our umpires are middle or high school students and you, as adult coach, should be mindful of this when interacting with them.  Please keep in mind any umpire who is umpiring your game has the authority to throw you out of a game.  If this happens, then please leave field immediately without further comment.
8. No smoking while coaching. No alcohol before a game or practice. Absolutely NO alcohol at the fields.  NLL has a no tobacco policy at all fields during all practices, games or events.
9. Discipline – At no time is physical violence towards a player acceptable.  At the beginning of the season, coaches must establish, communicate and reinforce the rules of acceptable behavior to players and parents, and the consequences if not followed. Coaches have a variety of discipline measures at their disposal including restriction to the dugout, dismissal from practice or games, and, with approval of the NLL Board of Directors, dismissal from the team. (Coaches are responsible for supervision of the child until the parents arrive at the field.) If a coach wishes to discipline his/her own child, he/she is expected to do so privately.

ZERO-TOLERANCE POLICY

Newton Little League (NLL) hereby adopts a zero-tolerance policy toward any form of violence and harassment, understood as: physical hitting, shoving, kicking, throwing of objects, unwanted sexual advances, all forms of physical assault; abusive language or e-mails, threats, harassment and intimidation; any attitude or action that can be reasonably construed as violence toward another.

The NLL Board will immediately communicate this policy to all NLL members and stakeholders, especially managers, coaches, umpires, parents, and players, and advise them of their responsibility to report all incidents that can reasonably be construed as violence.

Upon receipt of any report of alleged violence or intimidation, the President of NLL and Player Agent, with an appointed sub-committee, will conduct an investigation to determine if the allegations are substantiated. The investigation will commence within 7 days of the reported incident.

If the allegations of misconduct are substantiated, one or more of the following consequences will be recommended to the board.

• Be given a verbal/written warning that the action/behavior must stop immediately.
• Be reprimanded verbally before the board and in writing and placed on probation for one year.
• Be suspended from managing/coaching/umpiring any NLL team for any length determined by the board, and/or restriction from any and all activity associated with Newton Little League.

It is the intent of Newton Little League to ensure a safe, productive, and professional baseball environment and the board will render decisions with these principles in mind.