Our Story
CoachingSchool began as a project of the National Institute for PLAY, where I served as Vice President of Marketing.
At the time, I was also coaching my young children in recreational soccer. When I began applying the science of play to our practices, something remarkable happened:
The kids learned faster, laughed more, and performed beyond what I thought possible at their ages.
What we initially thought was simply my coaching style turned out to be evidence-based coaching in action.
That discovery became the foundation of CoachingSchool.
Our work expanded through collaboration with the U.S. Olympic Committee’s Coaching Department, incorporating research and expertise in learning, child development, performance, and coaching.
Our greatest national impact came through our work with the USTA and the rollout of 10 and Under Tennis. We contributed live coach education and instructional content, helping introduce coaches to a more developmentally appropriate approach to teaching children.
Through national and international presentations, coach training, and parent education, we’ve continued sharing one central idea:
Knowing your sport is not the same as knowing HOW to coach kids.
In addition to coaching at the Rec level for 20 years, Gary has presented at numerous USTA national and Section events, as well as international coaching conferences. He also contributed content to the Learn to Rally and Play manual.
Over the years, we’ve provided coach training and parent presentations for private clubs, leagues, and recreational programs throughout the United States.
We’ve also learned from, interviewed, and studied influential researchers, coaches, and programs to bring evidence-based principles into everyday youth sports coaching.
We often say,
“Coaching kids is like buttoning your shirt wrong.
If you start wrong, you’re going to end wrong”
With CoachingClass, learn how to start right AND end right.
Training Program
Three free lessons. Evidence-based principles. A better way to coach kids.
Years of Experience
Practical experience coaching with evidence-based material and still teaching/learning
Parent Guides (Passports) Sent
We have provided over 12,000 Parent Guides, or Parent Passports (previous version) to help parents navigate youth sports.
Today –
A Different Kind of CoachingSchool
After years of teaching coaches through paid programs, we’ve decided to make our core CoachingClass training available to everyone, completely FREE.
Why?
Because better coaching shouldn’t depend on a volunteer’s ability to pay for training.
We operate CoachingSchool as a social business. Our goal isn’t to sell coaching education. It’s to help more adults understand how kids learn, develop, and perform—and create better experiences for the children they coach.
We still believe that meaningful certification has value, which is why we offer affordable assessments that allow coaches to demonstrate what they’ve learned.
And we’re still learning and teaching ourselves. Today, I also work as a certified ski instructor at Beaver Creek, part of Vail Resorts in Colorado, where I continue putting these same principles of learning, confidence, and performance into practice.
CoachingSchool’s goal is simple: Better coaches. Better experiences for our kids.
What Others Say About CoachingSchool
Gary Avischious is a master coach and coach educator. As a highly successful youth sports coach himself, he loves kids and knows what makes them tick. Leaving no players out, he uses non-traditional methods of creativity, play, and even a little of goofiness to lead, inspire and, yes, entertain his players.
We all have heard that the number one reason kids play sports is to have fun, and Gary takes a huge step beyond most coaches and shows you how he makes it fun for his players through innovation and the freedom of play. He displays his passion of the sport and does everything possible to get kids to love the game enough to work extra hard during practices and play on their own outside scheduled practice and competition dates.
If you are looking for a model youth sport coach, and someone that can teach you and your coaches, you need to look no further than Gary Avischious and CoachingSchool.
Kirk Andersen, Former Director of Coach Development – USTA
CoachingSchool is one of the best things to happen since the internet for youth development. Gary Avischious just gets it – he’s truly blended the art and science of how kids learn. Most old models focus on what to teach, but Gary’s all about creating a playful, non-threatening environment, which is so crucial.
CoachingSchool is packed with awesome, relevant activities that keep kids learning and, even better, keep them loving their sport. I’ve been using Gary’s wisdom, especially his ‘buttoning your shirt’ advice, for two decades while designing youth tennis programs at Midtown, Junior Tennis Champions Center, and Life Time.
Ajay Pant, USTA Coach of the Year honors, Owner of Karundy Consulting
CoachingSchool is a game-changer in the world of youth sports—and in the lives of the kids who play them. In a time when nearly 70% of kids are quitting sports by age 13, CoachingSchool’s training offers a powerful antidote. The resulting retention has lifelong ripple effects: better health, stronger social bonds, and a deeper sense of self-confidence that reaches far beyond the field or court.
CoachingSchool has given me the tools to not only become a better coach, but to build programs that genuinely serve the kids and families in my community. The tools are not just motivational snippets—they’re actionable insights that help create a sports culture where kids want to stay.
CoachingSchool is more than education— for me, it’s a movement. One that’s desperately needed if we want to reverse the dropout trends and give kids the lasting benefits of sport. For coaches who want to make a deeper impact, there’s no better place to start.
Susan Nardi, Tennis Professional
The virtual workshops from CoachingSchool worked remarkably well for us at USTA Texas.
The combination of the CoachingSchool website, videos, supporting materials (discussion questions) and the live, virtual sessions, kept our coaches totally engaged. Our retention rates for Gary’s sessions were the best we have seen. I would highly recommend Gary and the CoachingSchool content to anyone at a club, facility, association, or Section level, wanting to develop their coaches in a group environment!
Mike Carter, Section Coaching Development, USTA Texas