In the February 16, 2022 issue of “The NFHS Voice,” Dr. Karissa Niehoff, Chief Executive Officer of the National Federation of State High School Associations, stated nearly 50,000 sport’s officials have quit since the 2018-19 academic year. Although these 50,000 represent officials across all high school sports, a fair amount of this total occurs in basketball. Closer to home, here in Iowa, both the Iowa High School Athletic Association and the Iowa High School Girl’s Athletic Union consider basketball officiating shortages to be a serious concern.
According to Niehoff’s article, “Interestingly, about the same number of individuals – between 50,000 and 60,000 – have expressed an interest in officiating the past four years through the NFHS’ #BecomeAnOfficial Program, but the number of officials actually coming in the front door do not come close to matching those going out the back door.” This seems to also be true in Iowa.
We just aren’t attracting and keeping enough young officials.
So what do we do to reverse this trend?
There are at least six steps we need to take as officials to build a strong, successful pipeline to serve the needs of Iowa’s and the nation’s high schools.
The first step is to identify and attract young talent to try basketball officiating. Veteran officials could follow a recruiting plan whereby we meet with graduating seniors from boy’s and girl’s high school basketball program, and any other high schooler interested in officiating, to sign them up and onboard them into the basketball refereeing pipeline.
The second step is to pair these new officials up with veteran officials through an officiating mentor program. The Des Moines Officials Association started a mentoring program last year. I mentored two young referees this year, but I know more young basketball officials could benefit from being mentored by a vet.
The third step is to create an effective evaluation system with the end goal to identify those referees ready to move to the next level of officiating. The evaluation team could be made up of the young official’s mentor, sub-varsity assigners, other active referees, and representatives from officiating groups like the DMOA or the state associations. Each young referee should possess a plan for their continued development, whether they are working junior high, junior varsity, varsity, or beyond.
The fourth step is to form crews designed to elevate younger officials to the next level. A veteran official doesn’t have to work their entire schedule with a crew of two other veteran officials. Instead, a veteran official (maybe the mentor) can team up with two or three young officials for the season. One of these young referees might be starting their first varsity schedule, one might be working a mixture of varsity and sub-varsity basketball. The other might be working strictly sub-varsity. The power of the 3+-member crew is that there is power in mixing and matching the crew’s talents based upon the needs of the games assigned. Maybe one night the veteran official works with the sub-varsity official covering a junior high doubleheader (or tripleheader). Maybe the next night the veteran, the varsity beginner, and the referee with the split schedule work a varsity doubleheader with the sub-varsity official in the stands observing. Maybe the next night, the veteran official referees the girl’s game with two others, and the varsity beginner referees the boy’s game with another two.
Of course, there will be times when games demand two or three experienced referees to call the action. But my experience refereeing high school basketball in Texas, Vermont, and Iowa suggests these types of hotly contested games might take up 20% of the entire season schedule.
The fifth step is to have an aggressive plan to move those officials most talented to higher levels quickly. Too many young referees quit officiating because they don’t see a pathway for them to move to the next level. True, talent is required to make that move, but our promotion system seems a bit dysfunctional when it comes to advancing talented officials quickly.
The final step is for veteran officials, including myself, to move aside to free up regular season and playoff assignments to be available for young referees. Would I like to referee the Iowa state tournament final? Of course I would. But with this being my 45th year upcoming refereeing basketball at multiple levels, I now know my role in the sport is different from when I was trying to establish myself as a Division 1 college official.
We can’t have it both ways folks. We can’t complain about not having enough officials, while we are unwilling to do what is necessary to increase our numbers. Either we do the things necessary to build numbers in high school basketball officiating, or we hurt kids along the way. And the necessary steps are attracting young talent, pairing that young talent with veteran mentors, establishing an effective evaluation system, committing to the crew of 3+, developing an individual growth plan for each referee, and expecting veteran referees to share regular season and playoff assignments with younger, and sometimes more talented whistle-blowers.
Kids like to play, and part of successful play is fair, consistent, and positive officiating.
And that’s “The Primary Focus”.
Thanks for such a well written article Scott! You are practicing what you wrote and I appreciate your encouragement while I try to encourage others to join the officiating ranks.
Paul!
You are the first to post to The Primary Focus. Congrats!
Can you share more about how you are encouraging others to join the officiating ranks? No doubt, one-to-one recruiting is probably the best way to go. I’m interested in your strategies.
SVB
This is my first season as a basketball official. I had never officiated a game at any level until November 5, 2023. There is a huge lack of guidance through this whole process and maybe that is what turns new officials off from being one. The upfront cost is pretty great as well to pay for registering and getting all of the gear that is needed. I learn more by doing and watching than reading a book of rules. Having veterans mentor the new officials and moving up the good ones to better games is a great idea. I know for me I will want to continue to advance as a ref and not just stay stagnant. If we want more officials in any sport we need to guide them like it’s a real world job. We need to talk to them when they apply. Help them in any way so they understand how to get games scheduled instead of hoping they can read the IHSAA website to get the info that they are needing.
Matt,
Thanks for posting and welcome to basketball officiating. I’m starting my 45th year and I can tell you it’s been one of the most enjoyable activities in my life.
I like your ideas around the “personal touch.” My question is how do we standardize this a bit more so everyone, including yourself, receives the proper attention necessary to enjoy the experience and advance a bit?
And you’re right, the up-front costs can be prohibitive. I know of other associations that have “second hand” uniforms and equipment available for new officials. It’s tough to invest when you aren’t sure this avocation is right for you. Some associations have even taken their “second hand” shop online!
Let us know what you’re thinking!
SVB
Great article, Scott! We can’t let the problem get worse. Thank you for highlighting what we as officials need to do. 👍🏻
Thanks for posting Mike!
The question I have is when will some of the ideas I suggest in this article become “have to do’s” instead of “nice to do’s?”
I’m not saying this is the perfect plan, but we need to start “doing something about the problem” instead of just “talking about it.”
SVB
Good stuff Scott. In central Iowa, I believe we are moving in the right direction with many different opportunities for newer officials to get involved and be training effectively to move up. You mentioned one such program, the DMOA formal Mentorship Program. In both football and basketball, all we need are folks to step up…but as mentors willing to give back and as mentorees, looking for support and direction from veteran officials. The DMOA will play “match-maker” and there is no cost to the program.
The other opportunity to help get new officials started is our DMOA “Earn and Learn” program. In partnership with Prairie Trail Sports Complex in Ankeny, the DMOA has agreed to assign youth basketball games on the weekends, again matching new officials with veterans for on the court training. In addition, we offer a classroom session on mechanics prior to the start of each weekend session. The environment provides just what newer officials beginning their journey need: classroom mechanics training reinforced the same day by working a low-risk assignment with a veteran official.
Interested in becoming an official or participating in either of the DMOA developmental programs? Just reach out to any DMOA member, or specifically to current Board Members: Dave Rittman, Director of Training and Development, Jason Alons, VP-Basketball or Larry Jacobus, Executive Secretary. Hoping your season is off to a great start! Prepare well, perform well!! Best of luck on a rewarding experience and thanks for your officiating efforts.
Hey Dave,
What are the chances of the state associations sharing the DMOA model (recruiting, mentoring, training) with other groups across the state? SVB
Great article Scott! Everything you said is spot-on. I know Dave Rittman has really taken the lead in our association with recruiting new officials and then coming up with a plan for retaining them. However it does take a village and it does take a plan – which I feel like you have outlined in detail.
Thanks for your comment Larry. I’m not saying what I have here is a perfect plan, but what are the chances of the DMOA taking something like this forward to the IHSAA and the IHSGAU to share with other officials across the state. It seem like the state needs a model moving forward. Thoughts? SVB