WYSA TRYOUT COMMITTEE 1998 - 1999

The initial task of the Tryout Committee was a fact finding one. The members contacted various associations with the questionnaire concerning tryout procedures. This information was utilized as part of the decision making process when formulating the recommendation which will be presented tonight.

The results of the questionnaires are as follows:

Question 1. Who runs tryouts? 49% used a rating committee consisting of head coaches of only that level or head coaches assisted by other levels’ coaches as a rating committee appointed by the Board of Directors.

Question 2. What are tryouts based on? 90% are based on Association Criteria.

Question 2. How many hours of tryouts? 50% have 3 hours.

Question 3. When are tryouts held? 71% are held in the spring.

Question 4. Who decides number of players? 33% are decided by the Board of Directors and 38% are dictated by the number of registered players.

Question 5. Who decides the number of goalies? 40% are dictated by the available players and 30% by the head coaches.

Question 6. Is game play factored into tryouts? 50% responded yes, 50% responded no.

Question 7. If yes to 6, how is it factored in? 66% use a report card from the current head coach.

Question 8. How long has the current system been used? 40% have been using present system for over 3 years.

Question 9. How many players are misplaced? 77% of associations surveyed indicate less than 5%.

Question 10. What percent of parents/guardians are unhappy? 68% responded less than 5%.

Question 11. How are head coaches picked? The Board of Directors selects the head coaches for 50% of the associations.

Question 12. When are head coaches picked? 78% select head coaches after tryouts.

Question 13. Do you have a coaching coordinator? 83% responded yes.

Question 14. Does the association work with the high school coach? 61% responded yes.

Question 15. Why did you change from the previous method? The various responses are listed below:

• To lower the percentage of unhappy parents.
• To eliminate political picks and or favoritism
• When coaches were named before tryouts, more players were misplaced.
• Board was unhappy with previous method.
• New Board of Directors in place.
• The association just wanted a change.
• The changes evolved as numbers in association increased.

Question 16. How many players are in the association?
The average was 214.

The Tryout Committee considered the information obtained from other associations as part of our basis of the following recommendation. The Committee at length considered the responses and how they related to the Wakefield Youth Skating Association and its current tryout procedure. Consequently, the Tryout Committee recommends the following tryout procedure for the 1999 spring tryouts.

 The Board of Directors will select the head coaches for each division and level by the end of February. After the selection of coaches, the director of each division will provide the coaches with any applicable schedules to allow the head coaches sufficient opportunities to observe any eligible players in game play. The Tryout Committee recommends that a minimum of two games be observed.

The head coaches of each division become the Tryout Selection Committee for that division. This committee will be responsible for selecting each team in that division. The tryouts will be conducted over three hours for each division consisting of both organized drills and scrimmages. The head coaches as a committee may decide how to organize the tryout process. On-ice assistance is recommended to allow observation from the bench area. Pinnies with numbers will be assigned to each player trying out for identification purposes.

The Tryout Committee will use a Standard Evaluation Sheet to rate each player on various skills. (See separate example) This will ensure a consistent evaluation of each player. The evaluation will also include input from the prior years’ coach.

After completion of the on-ice tryout procedure, the head coaches of each division will meet to select the teams. The director will be present at this meeting to insure that the proper selection procedure is practiced. At this time the evaluation ratings will be tallied. These ratings will be used as a basis to determine placement.

The Selection Committee will begin by selecting the "A" team. The committee members would then vote for every member of this team with a majority ruling in effect. In the case of a tie vote, the head coach of the "A" team would then be allowed to cast the deciding vote. The committee then would proceed to vote on the "B" team in the same manner. Again, the "B" coach has the deciding vote in the case of a tie. The Committee would continue to select the subsequent levels as necessary.

Following completion of the selection of each division, the director shall retain the evaluation forms. Once the head coaches have notified the team members of their selection and no official challenges have been made to the Board of Directors, the directors shall destroy the evaluation sheets.

Tryout Committee Recommendation:
The Tryout Committee recommends that the Wakefield Youth Skating Association employ the above tryout procedure for a minimum of two years. After this time, the Board of Directors or an appointed committee should review the procedure.

The Committee recommends that the Board of Directors inform all members of any changes in the procedures before the scheduled tryouts. It is very important that the parents and players have this information prior to the tryouts.

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As the Tryout Committee reviewed and analyzed the information provided by the contacted associations one prevailing idea surfaced. Eighty one percent of the associations had a full time Coaching Coordinator.

The Coaching Coordinator was active during the tryout process and throughout the entire year. This coordinator played a vital role in keeping communications open between the Board of Directors and the head coaches. Consistent procedures and policies within the association proved to be a positive experience for these organizations.

Though it was not a task of the Tryout Committee, the Committee recommends to the Board of Directors the creation of a position of Coaching Coordinator. This will necessitate the creation of a job description. Either the Board of Directors or an appointed committee could complete this task. The position would then have to be advertised in the appropriate manner. The Board of Directors could then appoint the appropriate person. The Coaching Coordinator could be a head coach in the association and would not be a member of the Board of Directors.

 Respectfully Submitted,

Tryout Committee

D. McGowan, Chairperson, P. Boyson, E.Carnevale, K. Crocker, B. Gorton. B. Griffin

J. Pickens, M. Roberto, S.Tracy, S. Wetmore, B. MacKay, Board of Directors representative

Additional Topics

As the Tryout Committee debated the previous recommendation, many ideas were discussed. We agreed that the tryout process would constantly have to be re-evaluated as the association grows. Some of these ideas were considered important but are not included in the formal recommendation. The committee members agreed that the association should consider the following.

The responses of the questionnaires concluded that 78% of the contacted associations selected the head coaches after the tryout process. The associations expressed the belief that this eliminated a large percentage of misplaced players and unhappy parents. Under this system, the Board of Directors could select the coaches for each division. Using these coaches as the Selection Committee, the teams would be selected as recommended. After the selection process is completed, the Board of Directors would then assign the head coaches for each level within each division.

When the number of players trying out reaches a maximum as determined by the Selection Committee, the Committee should split the players into groups for proper observation.

The Board of Directors should emphasize to parents and guardians the importance of tryouts. A position on a team one year is not guaranteed the following year. Unless there is a personal or medical reason presented to the Board of Directors, a player should attend a minimum of one tryout.

After spring tryouts, some spots could be left open on upper level teams. These positions could be available for any players showing great improvement of new to the association. This would require one tryout in the fall.

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Raw Data from Questionnaires
(Total responses underlined, Majority Answer = Bold)

Question 1. How does your association run tryouts? 24 responses

1. Head coaches only 3= 13%
2. B. Head coaches + Rating Comm. 4=16.5%
3. Rating Comm. Only 8=33%
4. Outside Evaluators 5=21%
5. Combinations 4=16.5%

Question 2. What are tryouts based on? 20 responses

1. Head coaches criteria 2=10%
2. Association Criteria 18=90%

Question 3. How many hours of tryouts per level? 24 Responses

1. 1 hour 1=4%
2. 2 hours 7=30%
3. 3 hours 12=50%
4. More than 3 hours 4=16%

Question 3. When do you hold tryouts? 24 responses

1. Spring 17=71%
2. Fall 6=25%
3. C. Spring & Fall 1=4%

Question 4. Who decides the number of players per team? 24 responses

1. Board of Directors 8=33%
2. Head Coaches 4=16%
3. Others (numbers) 9=38%
4. D. Committee 3=13%

Question 5. Who decides the number of goalies per team? 23 responses

1. Board of Directors 5=22%
2. Head Coaches 7=30%
3. Other(Numbers) 9=40%
4. Committee 2=8%

Question 6. Is prior season game play factored in? 24 responses

1. Yes 12=50%
2. No 12=50%

Question 7. If yes to Question 6, how? 12 responses

1. Report card from current head coach 8=66%
2. New head coach watches games 3=25%
3. Other 1=9%

Question 8. How many years has the current method been used? 23 responses

1. 1 year 3=13%
2. 2 years 4= 17%
3. 3 years 7=30%
4. More than 3 years 9=40%

Question 9. What percentage of players are misplaced ? 22 responses

1. Less than 5% 17=77%
2. Less than 10% 3=14%
3. Less than 15% 2=9%
4. Less than 20% 0
5. More then 20% 0

Question 10. What % of the parents/guardians are unhappy? 22 responses

1. Less than 5% 15=68%
2. Less than 10% 3=14%
3. Less than 15% 0
4. Less than 20% 1=4%
5. More than 20% 3=14%

Question 11. How are head coaches picked? 24 responses

1. Board of Directors 12=50%
2. Parents 1=4%
3. Selection Committee 6=25%
4. Others 5=21%

Question 12. When are head coaches picked? 23 responses

1. Before tryouts 4=17%
2. After tryouts 18=78%
3. During Tryouts 1=5%

Question 13. Do you have a coaching coordinator? 24 responses

1. Yes 20=83%
2. No 4=17%

Question 14. Does the association work with high school coach? 23 responses

1. Yes 14=61%
2. No 9=39%

Question 15. Why did you change from previous method?

Various responses listed previously.

Question 16. How many players in associations?

12 responses with an average of 214 players. (Wakefield 99- 00 = 225)