The Coaching Education Program leadership recently developed these statements, which help to explain what the program is about.  These are:

PURPOSE STATEMENT
Educating coaches in pursuit of excellence in ice hockey.

MISSION STATEMENT
The USA Hockey Coaching Education Program is committed to developing coaches who will be effective instructors and role models, through a comprehensive education program at all levels of the sport.

VALUES STATEMENT
The USA Hockey Coaching Education Program embraces the following values to establish the moral and ethical priorities that guide the program:

Readers who look carefully at the above statements will understand that coaching is a vocation, or pursuit, that is not to be taken lightly.  The influence of coaches on young people is profound, and long lasting.  Many athletes who are adults today can still recall the coaches (and teachers) of their youth, and with the wisdom of age, can classify these influences in their lives accordingly.  
Thus, the Coaching Education Program is primarily about teaching.  Many new coaches have some hockey experience, usually as a player.  Most have little or no experience as an instructor or teacher, and others have little or no experience as an administrator, or as a human-relations specialist.  All of these skills must be mastered as a coach, and these form the basis for the program curriculum, which is based on a progression from "beginner" (Level 1) to "master" coach (Level 5).