FWR 2010: A How-To Guide

The big thing I'm trying to do with this blog (and the newsletter) is to improve communication. It has been brought to my attention that some people find the selection process for Regionals to be incongruous with other processes in refereeing. For example, the criteria to upgrade from Grade 8 to 7 is clearly listed on the website. Conversely, where can you find the details on how to get selected for FWR?

This is a fair argument and it got me thinking about how to correct this. What better venue than the blog and newsletter? So here in plain text is the process that I go through in making the decision of who is selected for Regionals each year. With that knowledge you can know what to expect if you "throw your hat in the ring" next time around.

1. Each year there is a Region IV planning meeting. At this meeting it is decided how many referees each State will bring to the tournament. This usually occurs in October leaving several months for the SYRA to plan on who to bring.
   
2. Once I have the number in mind I begin to build a list of potential referees. Some of these referees have emailed me their interest ahead of time. Others are referees that are "up and coming" and have been brought to my attention by other referees.
   
3. Of the available slots (this year we had 10) two are taken by the Female and Male Youth Referee of the Year candidates. Another slot is taken by your SYRA.
   
4. From there the final slots are slowly but surely filled. Usually two or three referees are on a standby list, just in case someone can't make it. Regionals is a big commitment; you must attend meetings, group runs and spend a week of your summer doing games for free. I require a lot of work out of this group.
   
5. Although there are no formal requirements, generally we will only take two or three "rookies" to Regionals each year. Priority goes to the younger referees as a general rule, but I can't take Grade 9's.
   
6. The list of referees are not just randomly picked by me. The State Referee Committee is involved. I take feedback from Assessors. I pay attention who attends the meetings and yearly clinic. I go and watch possible candidates do games. I email each DRA for feedback on who they think should go.
   

The most important thing is to let me know you are interested. Although I ask for input from the DRA's for a variety of reasons I don't always hear back. If you want to go to Regionals there is no reason you can't just let me know directly. That ensures that I know your interest right away. Don't be discouraged if you don't end up on the list this year. Keep working hard and it will pay off. So now is the time to start. If you want to go next year please email me for details. NM is hosting FWR next year so we should have more slots open. And keep up the hard work!