Documents Relied upon by
the Committee: Agenda, 8/2/01;
E-Mail letter of Mike Chandler regarding discipline & sanctions at Boys
Championships; Boys’ Championships Qualifying Proposal (5 pages); Foreign
Team Registration Form with Code of Conduct; Memorandum letter from Niels
Pederson
NOTES:
1.
NATIONAL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Trying to make sure the boy’s
schedules are as complementary as they can be.
Searching for East Coast Site for the tournament.
Been held in Chesapeake, Rochester, and Penn State (Keystone Region);
conflicts were Chesapeake and Chicago; and St Louis Tournament conflicting
with Asics; California conflicted with AAU championship.
Goal:
Mikasa and Shang’s Extravaganza not on same weekend.
Suggestion:
President’s day weekend for three-day tournament.
This would mean 3 weekends of travel.
Shang: No control over
dates, at mercy of the University. Last
weekend of February, or the 1st weekend of March.
Not a lot of flexibility.
Discussion:
Keystone teams cannot participate after start of March due to High
School season. Niels may be able
to change. In 2002, Penn State
will be hosting men’s NCAA Championship (1st week of May.)
Would like to have a boys’ tournament as a wrap-around event, but
would conflict with Ohio Valley High School.
Need better dissemination of information.
Boys’ East Coast
Championships – If PIAA could ever modify their schedule, it would open a
lot of opportunities for teams to participate.
All the top teams try to go west to SCVA’s event.
2. SECURITY
DEPOSITS FOR TEAMS
There were 21 incidents at
Boys Championships this past year. 8
were from Puerto Rico, 8 SCVA, 1 from Old Dominion, …
With so many teams from
outside of USA causing so many problems, it is suggested that future
requirements would have the Federation (Puerto Rico) accept responsibility for
all travel and lodging arrangements, so as not to negatively impact USA
Volleyball, or its Championship Event. Puerto
Rico sends many; competitive teams, and the combination of delegating
responsibility for their off-court behavior, as well as maintaining
appropriate competition sanctions or penalties could balance the conflicting
concerns. USA setting firm policy
for conduct, on and off the court, is essential to encourage and require the
teams, clubs, parents, and leadership to take control and responsibility for
their teams.
Suggested that Security
Deposits coupled with the $800.00 entry fee is a strong financial burden on
the clubs, and possibly strict, zero tolerance discipline could suffice.
Consensus of the group was
against deposits, and in favor of vigilance and discipline of misbehavior.
Punishment of the team would be up to the Region, but National Ethics
and Eligibility could impose sanctions beyond the event at which the
misconduct occurred.
3.
LIFTING RESTRICTIONS FOR AN “OPEN” CHAMPIONSHIP
Tabled until one of
tomorrows meetings.
4. SEEDING
a.
General. Out of the top12
teams seeded only 2 were out of line, an 83% success ratio.
The Re-entry fixes that. Colin
complimented the seeding.
b.
Seeding. Tournaments NEED to
report their results for seeding purposes.
Might need a financial penalty of, e.g. $50.00, for failure to report.
Recognized there is no method of balancing for number of tournaments a
team enters.
c.
Mandatory Results Reporting. Team
Codes as a method of enforcing continuity of results reporting. Motion to recommend requiring mandatory results, and on
failure to submit, a $50.00 penalty would be due before the team can compete?
No. Deadline to flush out
issues by September, to get the tournament information to the Administrative
Council. Suggested that
Tournament Directors participate in the determination of a policy to enforce
submission of results. Suggested
to have 4 Tournament Directors designated by USAV to submit their seedings to
the seeding committee. The
committee discussed a workable turnaround time for reporting of the seedings,
based on a schedule. Final
consensus toward getting better and more complete information to the National
office to accomplish the seeding.
The Eastern Tournament
Hosts will collaborate on their seedings and submit a report to the National
Office of the suggested East Coast Team seedings.
c.
Using Web Pages. See online tournament reporting, results reporting, and
qualifiers set up through USA web site below.
5.
DISABLED
ATHLETES
Identification
of Disabled athletes. We need to
determine more persons who would be qualified, willing and interested in
participating in both the standing and sitting Olympics.
Suggestion of Shriners Hospitals for joint cooperation for identifying
athletes for the Disabled teams. Shriners
Hospitals submitting information among their 20 member organizations for
Disabled athletes, as well as continuing efforts through the YMCA programs.
Planning to have both mens’ and womens’ teams in 2004.
Looking first for interested athletes, then seeking to give them
training and experience in volleyball. We
need to explore the significant potential for Junior National Championships,
for both sitting and standing competitions.
6.
DETERMINATION OF OPEN BIDS
Since it is a USA
Volleyball event, USA teams all have first preference.
Second preference is to United States Territories, then border
countries, and lastly other countries for both girls and boys.
This is without quantifying the number of teams from each of the
countries. We cannot modify these
guidelines because of the USOC, and the Amateur Sports Act Regulations.
USOC and Amateur Sports Act prohibit exclusion from competition based
on country of origin.
This could be applied
consistently by adjusting the teams among divisions, so long as we do not
exclude them from the tournament. What
criteria could be used to balance the acceptance and divisions of teams?
Territories and foreign countries are often the first to enroll, since
their participation requires such a level of planning and financial
commitment.
Could be addressed by
accepting entry participation based on performance standings, which must be
submitted, and the At-Large bids would be accepted or denied on the basis of
results seedings. Mike Chandler
suggests that the representatives cooperate and participate in developing not
only the concept, but in formalizing and articulating a specific proposal that
would be forwarded to the Administrative Council based on a suggested
deadline.
The office had zero
tolerance for late entries this year.
Colin requested that
Shannon Rios, based on her seeding experience, prepare a rough outline of
criteria that the boys’ committee participants could consider during this
weekend’s meeting. Shannon
agreed to bring criteria to tomorrow morning’s meeting.
In response to a question,
Mike Chandler indicated he would like to have all documents prior to the event
including chaperones, medical releases, hotel accommodations. This is a
preference, but not a feasible requirement.
Minimum criteria for consideration of entry are the Online
Registration, plus receipt of the entry fee.
Of all the collateral forms, the most important form that should be
available in advance would be the medical release forms.
Impact, required of the
head coach, and suggested for the assistant coach, who may then act if any
problem occurs in the head coach appearing at or remaining the event.
The committee should consider whether assistant coaches should also be
required to be IMPACT certified.
We need a system to verify
rosters and qualifications online. One
idea would be to use the USA online system for Regional qualifiers, which
would enable verification of rosters and qualifications. Cost of setting it up is minimal, but the system could only
handle the multi-day, big events, until its capacity is upgraded.
Eventually, every Region
will have the capacity to run their events through the USA Volleyball web
site. All of the boys’ J.O.
teams, 264 teams, including the foreign teams, used the online registration
system. Only the teams that went
to the tournament submitted rosters.
7.
SUPPORT FOR DISCIPLINARY ACTION BY ARBITRATORS
With reference to the Mike
Chandler letter regarding progressive escalation of sanctions from 1st
offense with a competition penalty (forfeit game/match); individual event
disqualification; club or team disqualification, the committee discussed the
importance and application of sanctions.
The definite performance sanctions seemed to have a positive general
and specific deterrent effect on abhorrent behavior.
USA Volleyball needs to
follow through and assess collateral and supervisory responsibility on the
coaches and club directors to encourage their aggressive compliance and team
discipline to avoid these problems in the future.
This compliance must be enforced early in the disciplinary action by
notice, warning and as appropriate sanctions against coaches, club directors,
and chaperones.
To insure the effectiveness
of the disciplinary action by arbitrators, the appeal ability of the
arbitrators’ action must be limited to stop frivolous and dilatory appeal
processes.
Mike Chandler suggests
sending a letter to the Ethics & Eligibility committee to determine how
and when the team/club should be subject to disciplinary process for egregious
or recurrent violations of the code of conduct.
The committee fully supports and endorses Mike Chandler’s
suggestions, and would add provisions to extend the process more vigilantly
against coaches, chaperones, and club directors.
8.
CRITERIA FOR OPEN DIVISION WHEN TEAMS OVERSUBSCRIBED
See item #6 above
9.
EVALUATING RULES PUBLISHED IN PRE-TOURNAMENT BOOK
The ROD likes to evaluate
the pre-tournament manual. Can we
list the changes separately on the web site?
Need some volunteer
reviewers to fact-check, edit, and proof the pre-tournament book to insure it
is published as was intended, and consistent with the minutes of the meetings.
Chris Clauss and Mike Hullett will assist in the editing.
Cannot publish formats further in advance until the teams are
registered. Scorekeeper
requirement should be prominently shown as a result of changes in the
application of the rule.
It is imperative that
player numbers are reported correctly for the tournament publications to
ensure the opportunity for collegiate recruiters to see players. The time allowed this year was too short to have opportunity
to proofread and corrected in time for publication at the tournament.
Need a Motion to move the
deadline to be NO LESS than 21 days prior to the start of the tournament.
This will allow the Commissioners an opportunity to review and verify
their Region’s information. Motion
deferred until tomorrow, to allow for California participation.
10.
CHAMPIONSHIP COURT
There was a problem with a
lack of rising bleachers for the championship courts at boys’ J.O.’s in
Phoenix. The cost of the
bleachers was unknown until immediately prior to commencement of the
tournament, and the presented price was astronomical, and well beyond
feasibility based on the event budget.
11.
FOREIGN TEAMS.
Foreign team insurance
reciprocity is applicable only to HEALTH INSURANCE, not to liability, or
sports accident. ANY foreign
teams participating in USA Volleyball events must complete the Foreign Team
Registration Form, pay a $100.00 per team fee, and complete these steps in
sufficient time prior to the competition that the USA Insurer can complete the
appropriate Rider coverage.
The form, and the fee must
be completed for EVERY event the team participates in. The border countries, and US Territories were notified last
season. The information and
requirements will be published on the USA Volleyball Web site in both English
and Spanish.
Agenda Item #3 is tabled until 8/3/01. at
8:00 a.m.
On Motion of the Chairperson, approved
unanimously, the meeting was adjourned at 9:45 p.m.
