Knowing the rules is only the first part of education. Participants at the NASO conference were well aware that one of the greatest problems facing officiating today is the number of people who are quitting the avocation compared with the number of people coming into the ranks. To those with a love of officiating, it can be unfathomable why officials don’t continue to do their jobs with high interest and vitality. To Zaborniak, the reason rookies become veterans is simply because they enjoy what they are doing. “In order to get people to a point where they enjoy what they’re doing, we have to train them,” he said. “Because when we train them, they become confident and go out on the field or floor and have fun.”
Zaborniak, a leader in developing educational programs for officials, breaks it down into three components: initial training, continuing education and coordinated effort.
__Historically, when officials think of education and training, the focus has been on-the-job training, centering on rules and mechanics. “In today’s world, that’s not enough,” said Zaborniak. “The expectations for officials, at the seventh and eighth grade levels as well as in community youth leagues, are greater than they ever have been.”
__In Ohio they are trying to meet those expectations by providing 30 hours of classroom and field time, as well as test taking, in order to prepare new officials. “When those people complete that training, they should feel minimally competent to go out and officiate at our lowest levels of interscholastic contests,” explained Zaborniak. Prior to beginning the training program for basketball, football, volleyball and soccer officials, an Ohio study found that the state lost 78 percent of its officials in the first three years of work. Success of the relatively new program is still being measured, but Zaborniak remains a staunch advocate of officiating education.
__“We need a comprehensive education and training program for all officials so that as they move up the ranks they continue to enjoy what they do,” said Zaborniak. Not only do those programs need to include ways for officials to be involved in local associations, but also they need to make them aware of the changing legal aspects of the profession.
__How do programs for experienced officials vary from those offered to newcomers? Zaborniak said his staff tries to work “mostly on communication skills and attitudes. Anybody can learn the rules and there is no excuse for us not knowing them. But all officials, especially those with years of experience, need to continually reinforce effective communication skills and positive attitudes.”
__Zaborniak challenges officials to remember when they participated in school athletics as students. “As you were going through that period, you probably thought it was the most important thing in your life at the time. We can’t forget that as officials,” he said. “Officials must not go into a seventh grade game and think, ‘It’s not that important,’ because to those kids and coaches, it really is. Our officials are out there doing a very important job. So, particularly for veteran officials, we have to put the fire back in their bellies.”
__Only by having programs that train new officials, continue to educate veterans and encourage local associations to keep individuals involved, and adequately train new officers, will the profession make an important enough impact to meet the increasing demand for referees and umpires. “None of us would have stuck with officiating, if we knew when we started how little we really knew,” said Zaborniak.