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General items of interest to all officials that don’t fit in the categories above.
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...
Employee or Independent Contractor?
Update: June 14th, 2019 - View the court's ruling
Some of history’s bloodiest conflicts were started over a small insult. A pastry chef not receiving...
Benefits and Landmines of Working Multiple Sports
More and more, we seem to lose sight of the fact kids might be playing three sports just for the fun of it. Now,...
Spark the Fire to Create Lifelong Officials
We need more officials, plain and simple. The not-so-simple part is figuring out how to spark the fire in new recruits that will keep...
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...
Rushing in to Assist
In September 2017, Hurricane Maria tore through the northeastern Caribbean. The deadly Category 5 storm hit Puerto Rico especially hard, causing billions of dollars...
You Think Writing Rules Is Easy?
When I think about the process of writing rules, I remember a "The Far Side" cartoon in which some solemn-looking American colonists were gathered around another...
I’m Working With Whom?
Partners and crewmates come in all different shapes, sizes and personalities. There are a lot of good ones out there, but then there are...
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...
Alaska’s Officials Brave Harsh Weather To Get the Job Done
They practice their craft closer to Siberia than to Seattle. Their dedication helps stoke the fire and keep alive beneficial activities that might otherwise...
Officiating Organizations Stand Out at the Summit@Home
Often in officiating we only hear about officiating companies or organizations when they have a booth at a camp or clinic we're attending, or...
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...
Why would anyone want to be a referee?
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Why in the world would anyone want to be a referee? That’s the question prominent ESPN Senior...
The Buzz on Officiating Drones
Drones are making themselves useful in a wide variety of industries and occupations — on construction sites, in roofing, with reforestation and even in...
Video Changing the Face of Officiating
One of my favorite books is Instant Replay. The author, Jerry Kramer, was an All-Pro guard for the Green Bay Packers. In 1968, he...
Rule Changes That Changed Everything
Officiating standards and practices have changed considerably over the course of time. So have the rules all of us are expected to know and enforce. The evolution of the rules...
Get Great Series: Better by Next Year
If someone told you a they had a way to get better by next year, would you do it no matter what it was? ...
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...
Military Intelligence
Bob Delaney, vice president of referee operations and director of officials for the NBA, sees something special in officials with military backgrounds.
Teamwork and trust...
Embracing Technology in Sports
No matter what sport you officiate, or even at what level, technology has become an integral part of sports. You have heard the popular expression, “Get...
Master of the Rules
Mastery of playing rules doesn’t just mean ‘knowing’ what a rule reads
Rod Serling might have put it this way:
Imagine you’re attending your final year...
NFHS Executive Director Weighs in on Support of Officials
Dr. Karissa Niehoff needed no prompting to address the elephant in the room.
“We’re definitely supportive of the great work that our officials are doing,...
Is There Still Room for Personality In Signals?
In the old days, style and flair in officiating was easy to recognize. It was prevalent in a lot of games. Today, most assigners...
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...
