A new Kentucky state law is changing the way teachers and coaches communicate with students. As with all laws, there are unintended consequences.
SB 181 went into effect on Friday. The goal is to eliminate untraceable forms of communication between adults and students. It prohibits school staff from texting students, contacting them on social media, or using third-party apps to communicate with them. Each school district around the state is charged with implementing a platform that school employees and students use exclusively.
The law was put into effect after a Courier Journal investigation found at least 80 cases of alleged child sex abuse by middle and high school coaches across Kentucky over the last 15 years. It also coincides with a law that will remove cell phones from classrooms this fall.
Bad Actors
In early June, Jeremy Dale was sentenced to 60 days in jail for six counts — four for harassment and two for unlawful transactions with minors. Dale was a football and track coach at Bardstown High School for more than a decade. He was fired after six students came forward with allegations in 2023. Dale lost his teaching certificate and will not be able to coach again, but he will not be in the sex offender registry.
The Courier Journal was in the courtroom for the sentencing when victims shared their testimony. It was disturbing.
As one of the women cried and another’s hands shook, at least four members of Dale’s extended family and friends sat making comments as the four read their victim impact statements, which is a victim’s rights under Kentucky law.
“Oh my god,” one said.
“Wow,” said another. “I hope she chokes on her words.”
Their actions caught the attention of the court bailiff, who walked over and said: “If you keep laughing, I’m going to have you removed from court. One more smile and you’re out of here. There is nothing funny about this.”
This writer has personally witnessed two instances where a coach overstepped their boundaries and had an inappropriate relationship with a high school student. Action needed to be taken at the legislative level to protect middle and high school students. However, it has created roadblocks for Kentucky high school coaches.
Complications for Kentucky High School Coaches
June is a busy recruiting month at all levels of football, including NAIA. Brandon Haynes is the running backs coach at UPike in Eastern Kentucky. As his DMs on X stacked up, the high school teacher regretfully had to inform his recruits from the state of Kentucky that he could no longer speak with them.
Haynes is obviously an extreme exception to the norm; however, his case illustrates the far-reaching impact of SB 181. KSR spoke with multiple high school coaches off the record about their concerns to get a better idea of how it will change their operation.
Transportation for Players
“Coach, I need a ride.” If you’ve spent any time coaching teenagers, you’ve probably heard this a time or two ahead of a game or practice. Most coaches are willing to jump through hoops to get on the phone and call parents to organize a carpool situation. Using a school e-mail or another app just made those hoops harder to jump through.
Promoting Players
Inappropriate messages on Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat were the primary drivers in the creation of this law. Messages on X can be a vital resource of publicity for athletes who want to get recruited at the next level. This recruiting reporter doesn’t follow many 15 and 16-year-olds, but once Justin Haddix or Nathan McPeek quotes a Tweet from a Boyle County or Frederick Douglass player who received a power conference offer, I’m paying attention. The same applies for college football recruiters.
Uncertainties
The coaches Kentucky Sports Radio spoke with are confident they will still be able to disseminate widespread messages to their players about events they need to attend. The biggest point of frustration has been in the implementation process.
The law was signed in April and went into effect about three months later during the dead period without much guidance at all from school districts to their coaches and teachers. JCPS released temporary guidelines on Wednesday that will change once again on Aug. 1.
A common theme from my conversations was, “What are we supposed to do?” Nobody really knows. The popular highlight service, Hudl, has a communication product that schools hope will receive clearance for use, but much is still unknown before the KHSAA Dead Period ends July 9.
The Transfer Issue
The part that no one wants to talk about, especially in the KHSAA, is the transfer portal culture in high school sports. At the halfway point of the last school year, nearly 1,000 high school athletes transferred schools. Did they reach that decision of their own accord? Of course not.
It puts coaches in a pickle. To have the best team, you need to recruit the best players, which includes transfers. But how do you do that if it means you’re breaking the law? Transfers in high school sports aren’t going anywhere. This will become an issue in some form down the road.
An SB 181 Exemption
The language in SB 181 includes a clause that creates a loophole. “A parent may submit written consent for a designated school district employee or volunteer to communicate electronically with a student outside of the traceable communication system.” If a parent wants to allow their student to speak directly with a coach, they must sign a waiver for every single coach.
In the first year of this new Kentucky law, waivers will be widely used. It takes time for parents, students, and coaches to get acclimated to a new communication app on their phones. In sports like basketball and volleyball, getting waivers signed should be no problem. That’s not the case if you’re coaching 80 football players.
A Needed Change
High school coaches dedicate their lives to serving young adults in their communities. It’s not a job you take for the money. It’s a vocation, a calling to help others succeed in a competitive environment. They often spend more time with a kid than their parents, and that’s exactly why those kids need protection from predators who take advantage of that privilege.
Change is met with friction. The quick implementation is creating problems, ones they will be able to overcome.
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