Updates and Changes

Sorry for the long delay in updating the MTOA Blog. Since the divorce between USTA and ITA, I have attempted to provide access to the changes so far. You will find them in the links on the right hand side of your screen. New items include:

• New MTOA Official Training Information
• Link to the USTA Learning Center Login (works most of the time, keep trying until it does) Does not work well in Firefox
• Future plans are to change the Online code violation form to instructions on how to enter code violations through TDM
• ITA information
• ITA Rule Book
• Zebraweb

If there is anything you feel needs to be added, please let me know. Terry Gatzki tmgatzki@gmail.com

2016 ITA Certification Information

Final ITA Webinars for a 2016 ITA Certification

 
The ITA has received numerous requests from various officials who were unable to attend an ITA class in 2015.  Accordingly, the ITA will host two "last chance" live webinars for any individuals who failed to attend an ITA class in 2015.  To be clear, these webinars will ONLY BE AVAILABLE for tennis officials who hold a current 2016 USTA certification (i.e., attended a USTA class in 2015), but were unable to attend an ITA class in 2015.  These webinars will be offered on the following dates/times:

          Saturday, January 9, 2016 at 8:00 p.m. (EST)
          Monday, January 18, 2016 at 9:00 p.m. (EST)

If you need to attend one of these webinars, please contact Anthony Montero atanthonymontero@yahoo.com and indicate which webinar you would like to attend.  Anthony will confirm your 2016 USTA certification and then provide you with the log-in information for the ITA webinar.  After both webinars are completed, Anthony will forward a list of participants to the ITA and the we will then forward the Rulebook to these officials who will be newly certified.

THANK YOU for your quick help in sending this out...

Play on!,

Kevin Foster
254 709 3058

New Education, Certification, and Information from USTA

Topic

• Education
• Certification
• Clothing Program
• Friend at Court

Education

Online Courses

Over the next two years, we will be replacing traditional USTA in-person certification schools with online education modules.  We have partnered with the USTA Learning and Development Department and E-Path to develop these online modules, which will be rolled out as they are completed.  

In the past, the USTA National and Sectional TEs held 1-2 day in person training schools.  The online modules are more convenient, allowing Officials to complete them at any time and at their own pace.  They are cost effective for both the Sections and the Official.  In addition, the teachings are consistent regardless of where the Officials are located.

By delivering the education via online, the USTA Sections can now use the resources that were allotted to National Schools to conduct specialized and localized officiating training.  In-person training can focus on putting Officials in the field and enhancing their skills (more on that below). 

The modules being developed and their projected completion dates are:

*These dates are subject to change

In-Person Sectional Training

By moving the initial training to more robust and consistent online modules, we can now take the in-person training to a new level. The new approach will allow the Sections to maximize the funds allocated to training Officials by holding training workshops for specific disciplines.   Based on the officiating training needs of the Section, they will have the power to decide when, where and for which discipline to hold trainings in.

The in-person training workshops are being developed with the help of the USTA Learning and Leadership Development Staff and Subject Matter Experts for each officiating discipline. The USTA will provide training materials for each course. Through an application process we will identify, train and approve Officials to teach specific workshops across the country.  By the end of the process, we will have a network of trainers that will be locally available to all Sections.  

In-Person National Training

The USTA Officiating Department will be moving to the Home of American Tennis in 2016. We will leverage the capability of the facility by developing National Level training with the launch of the USTA Officiating Academy at the Lake Nona Facility.  Officials looking to advance to the highest levels of tennis will be invited to attend multi-day trainings where they will learn from the best Officials in the world in a state of the art facility.  The Sectional Trainings being held around the country will help feed promising Officials to these National trainings.  In return, these Officials will become the next generation of tennis Officials.

Certification

In an effort to have a National Standard, USTA Officiating is focusing more time on the requirements a person must complete before becoming a Certified Official.  This will ensure consistency and more than adequate training before a provisional Official goes on court.  This will help Sections focus further training on these Officials as they progress in their disciplines.  The three basic requirements to become an Official have been slightly modified to reflect the new online modules:

1.     Be a USTA Member.

2.     Complete the online Safe Play Training, which includes passing a criminal background check.

3.     Complete the Introduction to Officiating, Rules and Regulations modules, and Roving Umpire 1 (once available) to complete the testing requirement for Provisional Certification.

As we previously mentioned the online modules will be available in January. Until they are launched, we ask that you have any of your new recruits go through the SafePlay Training and Background Screening, which in some cases can take 10-business days to complete.  The USTA Officiating Website will have the new 2016 Friend at Court as well as supplemental documents for all Officials to get acquainted with the rules prior to completing the courses.  

In order to maintain their certification, all Certified Officials will be required to complete the following courses by October 1, 2016:

• Introduction to Officiating
• Rules and Regulations 1
• Rules and Regulations 2
• Rules and Regulations 3
• Roving Umpire 1

The Sectional Chairpersons will be given access to the names of all Officials who have completed the online modules.  We are in the process of determining how those records are transferred into the individual NUCULA accounts so that Sectional and District Chairpersons can also view the information in NUCULA during the re-certification period.   

Clothing Program

We are about to launch the USTA Umpire Clothing Program next week.  This has been a long process, and we appreciate your patience as we worked out all the details.  We are confident that the Officials will be happy with the items we have selected, the website created, and the high customer service level S&H provides. In preparation for the launch, we have also created a clothing guide that includes pricing, size chart, and any additional information about each item. Click here to view the clothing guide. 

As we mentioned before, the roll-out will be tiered.  We have prioritized the Pro Circuit Officials working in January as the first group to receive the link for the Clothing Program Website.  Those Officials will have one week to place their order before the rest of the USTA Certified Officials receive the link.  This will ensure that they will receive their uniform before their first assignment in January. The clothing information and link will then be sent to all Certified Officials on December 16th.  

Friend at Court

We anticipate the Friend at Court to be mailed to all Certified Officials at the end of the month. In preparation for this, we will be pulling the mailing list from NUCULA on December 15th.  Please remind all the Officials in your Section to make sure their mailing address is correctly displayed in NUCULA. Also, remind them that if they are listed as uncertified, they will not receive the 2016 Friend at Court. We appreciate your help in coordinating the mailing.

As you know, the Friend at Court has been revamped.  Some comments, the majority of Regulation VII, and ITA Regulations have been moved online and will be available on the Rules page of the usta.com/officiating website or USTA resources page at http://resources.usta.com/category/usta-rules--regulations .  

Please direct your questions to Kevin Foster kevtennis@aol.com