Joe Paterno was the head football coach for the Penn State Nittany Lions from 1966 to 2011 and was affectionately known by the students and alumni as JoePa. JoePa coached five undefeated teams and two national championship teams. He led the Lions to more victories and bowl appearances than any coach in history, but those were not his greatest accomplishments. Joe Paterno was a true servant leader. I know that Joe faced some criticism late in his career because of the actions of one of his former assistant coaches, but those accusations have not yet been proven in court so I will not address them here. Penn State football boasts an impressive 87% graduation rate, which is far higher than the national average of FBS schools which comes in at 67% (Penn State Athletics 2011). JoePa’s players often credit him with the success they carried on through life. Lydell Mitchel, a former running back for Penn State said “we came to Penn State as young kids and when we left there we were men and the reason for that was Joe Paterno.” (York Dispatch 2012)
A servant leader is a leader that has a need/desire to serve others so that they can develop themselves and therefore perform to meet organizational needs (PSU WC 2013). Servant leaders place the good of their followers over their own self-interests and emphasize follower development (Northouse p.220). Too often in collegiate sports today, young men come to a university on a scholarship to play sports and when their eligibility is up, they are not prepared for life after sports. Joe Paterno emphasized education. He understood that the majority of these young men are not going to play pro sports and their future lives will depend on the education they receive. The Penn State football program was one of only two division one programs that have never had NCAA sanctions imposed on them. That was a direct result of the way Joe ran the team. He always emphasized being a good citizen and expected the same from all of his players. He left the program in a better place than when he came to it. JoePa was attentive to the needs of his players; he empowered them to become men, and guided them to become better human beings.
Beyond sports, Joe was active in the community. Joe will be remembered for the more than 20 years of support and love for Special Olympics athletes. He and his wife Sue donated 4 million dollars and were instrumental in the raising of another 13.5 million dollars for the expansion of the Pattee Library, which was subsequently named after him. Joe used his position for the betterment of the people around him.
Joe Paterno embodied the concept of the servant leader. He left behind a legacy that will not soon be forgotten. If more coaches followed the roadmap presented by one of the greatest coaches and men in college football history, collegiate sports would be a better place.
References:
Northouse. P.G. Leadership: Theory and Practice – Sixth Edition. (2013). Sage Publications: Thousand Oaks, CA.
Penn State Athletics (2011) Penn State Football Tied For Best Graduation Success Rate Among BCS/AP Top 25 Teams retrieved from http://www.gopsusports.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/110211aaa.html
The Pennsylvania State University World Campus (2013) Psych 485 Lesson 11 Servant Leadership retrieved from https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/sp13/psych485/002/content/11_lesson/03_page.html
York Dispatch (2012) Quotes from coaches and former players on Paterno’s death retrieved from http://www.yorkdispatch.com/news/ci_19793551
Gerald,
First, thank you for opening my mind to this subject. I honestly do not know much about JoePa’s non-football philanthropic activities (I prefer not to get them from the media). Your provided definition of Servant leadership definitely fits the bill, as others have already noted.
There is one interesting thing: You blog about JoePa’s servant leadership and true caring for his players, come close on the heels of the Mike Rice/Rutgers situation. Comparing these two men made me think, Do college coaches employ their own vision of servitude? Their goal is to win (yes, JoePa had greater things in mind, fortunately), but isn’t Mike Rice (Bobby Knight and Mike Montgomery, as well) doing the same thing, although more infamously? Rice’s players seem to defend him.
Russ
I think your example of JoePa as a servant leader is very appropriate. Although at the end of his life, and career at Penn State, he was harshly criticized for the actions of Jerry Sandusky, there is no doubt that he was still a servant leader during his time as the Nittany Lion’s football coach. Much like you said in your post, he was committed to the futures of his athletes not only on the field, but also in their educations. Without JoePa, it is unlikely that the graduation rate for Penn State athletes would have been anything near the 87% graduation rate it was at when JoePa ended his career.
Servant leadership is defined in Northouse saying that “servant leadership emphasized that leaders be attentive to the concerns of their followers, empathize with them, and help them develop their full personal capacities,” and JoePa can be said to be an excellent example of this kind of behavior (Northouse, 2013, p. 219). Furthermore, he was not only concerned with the future of his football team, but also the University and the student body as a whole. Throughout his lifetime, JoePa donated millions of dollars to the betterment of the University’s educational programs and facilities in order to help his subordinates grow. Finally, he also created the Paterno Fellows Program for students who excelled in academics to give students additional opportunities to further their education. This showed that his leadership at the University was much more than just in the athletic department. Joe Paterno’s leadership could be seen throughout the entire university, and there is no denying that his leadership was mainly concerned with serving those around him.
Resource
Northouse, P. G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and practice (6th ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Sage.
JoePa is an excellent example of servant leadership. Paterno dedicated his life to the students of The Pennsylvania State University. Not only the many years dedicated to the school but also as you mentioned, financially he gave back to the students and the university. For example in 1997 he donated $225,000 for the Paterno Library and in 1998 he donate $3.5 Million for faculty positions, scholarships, and building projects. He gave back to the university that he loved (ESPN, 2012).
His emphasis on the student and their education over the athletics helped ensure the students would succeed in their education. If they didn’t make the grades, they didn’t play even it jeopardized a win for the team.
References
Penn State Nittany Lions coach Joe Paterno timeline. (2012). ESPN.com. Retrieved from http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7208942/penn-state-nittany-lions-coach-joe-paterno-timeline