Joe Paterno demonstrates his moral purpose through his coaching techniques, educational outlook, and family values. He is dedicated to a life of modesty, preaches commitment, and maintains his values despite his reputation or status in the public eye. His career has been marked by achievements both on and off the field; however, the greatest have been a result of his caring and nurturing personality towards people less fortunate than him. Joe Paterno has never been about dollar signs, rather the improvement of society.
The following story is an example of Paterno’s dignity and character. A reporter from Sports Illustrated once visited the Penn State campus to conduct an interview of Paterno and the football program. The reporter’s goal was to write a smear article to expose any wrong doing under the Paterno regime. The reporter stated “I don’t believe that his program can be that good or that his program is that clean. I want to do a story to prove that Joe Paterno is the biggest fraud ever to hit major college sports.” (Bergstein, 1998, p. 132). The reporter failed to find any violations or negative influences on the players. Paterno even asked the reporter, “if you find out any instances where we cheated or are cheating, promise that you’ll tell me about it…I want to get it stopped quickly.” (Bergstein, 1998, p. 133). This obviously demonstrates his sincerity in the morality of the program.
Joe Paterno has weathered the changes of college football, academic standards, public interest, and media pressure, yet still adapts to meets the needs of his organization. His current and continued success is a testament to his ability of foresight. Along the way, he has developed a relationship among his players, who respect him tremendously; his fellow coaches and colleagues, who remain apart of the program despite monetary incentives from other institutions; the fan base, who adore him; as well as the media, who thrive on his charisma and continue to pester him with questions of retirement. Paterno uses these relationships to build a community that strengthens not only the football program, but more importantly, the university. He strives to make himself and everyone around a better individual and is extremely successful at his goal. In my viewpoint, Joe Paterno is a great leader who is worthy of emulating.
References:
Bergstein, M. (1998). Penn State Sports Stories and More. Harrisburg, PA. RB Books Seitz & Seitz, Inc.
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Hi Matt,
ReplyDeleteI must begin by saying I love Penn State, but hookem' horns is my team!! All joking aside Joe Paterno is one of the...if not the best college football coach there is. It is amazing to read what he is really about and all his accompishments. I especially love, after all these years and all his fame, he is still a humble man who just loves the game!!
Holly
One comment you made stuck in my mind, “He strives to make himself and everyone around a better individual and is extremely successful at his goal.” As leaders, I believe this should be our major goal. Additionally, he has consistently let his morality guide his leadership style and has not allowed his personal or professional life to be corrupted by outside influence. It is this morality that molds his leadership style into one that strives to bring out the best in others. He is an excellent example of what we can all strive to be as leaders, especially in the field of education.
ReplyDeleteMatt,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading about the example you gave on the reporter looking for a negative issue to write about. In today’s media, they always find a way to write about something negative about someone who has done great things. Paterno is proof that if a coach maintains sincerity in their program, their team members will follow his lead.
Mike