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General items of interest to all officials that don’t fit in the categories above.
Why I Love Officiating
No matter what sport or level we work, we are bonded. We are drawn together by a passion for officiating those outside the industry...
Summit @ Home Program Resonates
The Summit @ Home, which ran from Aug. 24 to Aug. 27 was a resounding success. Nearly 10,000 officials from around the U.S. and...
AVP Officials Meet the Challenge of Champions Cup During Pandemic
Turn on NBC in the summer during a normal year and you are likely to see some of the top volleyball players in the country competing on the sand. In...
Pastoral Care in the Officiating Community
A
s COVID-19’s reach expanded globally during the spring of 2020, people and the organizations of which they were members scrambled to adjust to everything...
Protecting Officials: Insights from NASO President Bill Topp on the Officiating Crisis
In a recent Athletic Business interview, NASO President Bill Topp addressed one of the most pressing challenges facing sports today: the officiating crisis. From dwindling...
Transition Game
Basketball has taken Ka-Deidre “Didi” Simmons around the globe. After a stellar collegiate career at Seton Hall University that saw her graduate as the...
2023 Sports Officiating Summit historic success
The 2023 Sports Officiating Summit put on by the National Association of Sports Officials in Riverside, Calif. from July 30-August 1 was an event...
The Top Officiating Stories of 2020
Pro Sports Delay Seasons
Professional leagues such as the NBA, NHL and MLS put the remainder of their 2019-20 seasons on hold in March when...
Officials Help Keep a Park District League in Operation
A few years back, the park district in our community started an indoor soccer league and offered players in the area the opportunity to...
Subject to Interpretation
Anyone who has ever attended a local association meeting knows rules debates can be intense.
“Discussions” over minutiae in the rulebook or casebook are often...
Keeping Players Safe is JOB ONE
W
hen it comes to player safety, photos (and film clips) speak a thousand words.
A video montage created for a session at the 2016 NASO...
Big Data’s Increasing Role in Sports Officiating
Rusty Acree got a call from Bill Carollo this past year, asking him to provide three years of Power Five (P5) replay data from...
Defining the “It” Factor
Rules knowledge, mechanics and making the right calls are important. Missing any of those elements can break your career, but having them won’t make...
2023 Gold Whistle Award: Violet Palmer
Violet Palmer, coordinator of women’s basketball officials for the Pac-12, West Coast, Western Athletic, Big Sky and Big West conferences, received the 2023 Gold...
Inventive Incentive
L
ate last winter the math became clear for Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) State Commissioner of Officials Brian Gessner.
“We’re not doing a very good job...
Time to Get It Right
Officials are taught to maintain focus and concentration from the moment they walk on the field or court to the final whistle and sometimes...
Recruiting & Retention: What Worked…What Didn’t
By Scott T. Glass
Nearly every officials association in the country is experiencing serious membership shortages. Recruiting new officials is a complex, deliberate organizational task...
Ernie Yarbrough Accepts Mel Narol Medallion
The award was presented in Atlanta on Tue, July 30, during the Celebrate Officiating Gala, sponsored by Fox 40.
Our Guide to High School Replay
Since its regular season introduction to pro football officiating in 1986, replay has found its way into nearly all of the major professional sports. Even the so-called beautiful...
Why Teachers Make Great Officials
There has always been a sizable contingent of teachers within the officiating community. Part of the reason is circumstances; teachers are finished with work and often available to handle...
When a State Draws the Line on Sportsmanship
It’s no secret that sportsmanship issues are an ongoing issue in high school athletics. The North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) decided to address the issue head on....
Sarah Thomas Accepts Inspire Award
The award was presented in Atlanta on Tue, July 30, during the Celebrate Officiating Gala, sponsored by Fox 40.
Doors Opening Wider
Clockwise from top left: Amanda Bender, Maia Chaka, Kelly Dine, Sara Woods, Kaili Kimura
By Tim Yonke
In what could be a blueprint for women seeking...
Can We Improve the Culture of Sports?
“I did not like being a referee one bit, and I’m very happy to be done with it. It was very stressful, and I...