Over in The USA Hockey Officiating Zone, Matt Leaf reviews what happened at the Annual Congress that affects the Officiating Program. Much of his article talks about an on-line registration and testing initiative that is being pushed by the District Referees-in-Chief. They are hoping to have a national registration process in place for the 2003-2004 season.

There is also some information about a deadline change for rule change proposals, a slight increase in the national registration fee, and the winner of The Chet Stewart Award.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 1:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Question: If I am a returning official, what registration materials is USA Hockey supposed to send me and when should I receive them?

Answer: USA Hockey now longer mails registration materials to returning officials at the beginning of each season.

Everyone has to register online with USA Hockey for each new season, whether you are a New official or a Returning official. You must also do the Open Book Test online each season. In the Atlantic District, you must register for a seminar in advance using the On-Line Registration Process. Visit the Seminar Schedule page to choose a seminar and begin the seminar registration process.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 12:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Shane Hanlon has created a set of Frequently Asked Questions for the On-Line Seminar Registration Process. If you do not find the information you are looking for, please contact Shane at shanlon@igi.net or by telephone at 610-495-9638.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 1:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Question: What should I bring with me to the seminar?

Answer:

All officials must bring:

• their AAHA Seminar Admission Ticket
  

• full officiating gear
  

• a hockey helmet
  
• hockey skates (no goalie or figure skates)
  
• suitable clothing to go on the ice
  

Posted by Dave Aiello at 1:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Question: What if I do not bring my AAHA Seminar Admission Ticket with me to the seminar?

Answer: You will not be admitted to the seminar.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 1:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Question: How do I know that I successfully registered for a seminar?

Answer: Your web browser will display an AAHA Seminar Admission Ticket containing your member number, name, telephone numbers, email address, and seminar details. The Seminar Admission Ticket reads includes the following instruction:

**** PRINT THIS PAGE ****

You will also receive an email containing a summary of the information that was displayed on your Seminar Admission Ticket. This email message can be used as a backup, in case you cannot print the Seminar Admission Ticket when asked to do so.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 1:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Question: Can I register for more than one seminar, so I have a backup?

Answer: No. The on-line registration system will only allow you to register for one seminar at a time.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 1:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Question: What if the seminar I want to go to is full?

Answer: You will have to choose another seminar. The on-line registration system closes a seminar when capacity is reached. Registration is on a "first come, first served" basis.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 1:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Question: Must every official in the Atlantic District register On-Line for a Seminar?

Answer: Yes, we have implemented a system to insure that we have enough materials, staff, and ice time at each seminar. We also feel this will speed up the registration process and give us more time to spend working on the materials.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 1:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tony Mariconda, the Atlantic District Referee-in-Chief, wrote this letter to all people interested in becoming ice hockey officials in New Jersey, Delaware, and Eastern Pennsylvania. If you are interested in taking the first step toward becoming an official, read on for more information.

Dear Potential Officials:

Thank you for interest in the USA Hockey Officiating Program.

Everyone must attend a USA Hockey Seminar each year (both veterans and new officials) in order to be a registered official. The program is usually a 7 to 8 hour day on Saturday or Sunday, with breaks and lunch on your own. The Seminar includes both classroom and on-ice training.

We usually run our Referee Seminars from mid-August to late October or early November. Choose the seminar you want to attend from our list of seminars starting in early July. All officials must register on-line with USA Hockey before they will be allowed to register for a seminar. Registration is on a "first come, first served basis" and registration for each seminar will be closed when the seminar reaches capacity. Please note that these seminars often fill up quickly.

There is no charge to attend a seminar, but you must register with USA Hockey and with the Atlantic District as a Referee (even if you are already registered as a Player and/or a Coach). This involves a fee of $35.00 to register with USA Hockey and a $25.00 fee to register with the Atlantic District. You can register with USA Hockey on-line at http://www.usahockeyregistration.com/ starting on August 1.

After you register with USA Hockey, you will receive a USA Hockey Rule Book and access to the Open Book Test. You need to complete the Open Book Test on-line. USA Hockey will process all of your information. If you successfully complete all aspects of the program, they will send you a Referee's Card along with a Crest for your Referee's sweater.

There are many Local Assignors in our District and we maintain a list of Officiating Assignors for Youth Hockey Programs in the Atlantic District on the AAHArefs website. Information about Local Assignors is also provided at Officiating Seminars.

You will have to book games on your own. Attendance at a USA Hockey Seminar is no guarantee of assignments. Officials make progress at their own pace, based on ability and availability.

If you have any questions, you can reach me at: tonyrefx3 [at] aol.com.

I hope to see you in the at the rink!

Tony Mariconda
USA Hockey
Atlantic District Referee-in-Chief

Posted by Dave Aiello at 11:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dave Aiello wrote, "As you know, the AAHA rolled out a new Seminar Registration application yesterday. With it came an entirely new web publishing system and a revised web site structure. The information that you used to find in the Administration section of the web site is not lost, but I have to put it back on to the site now that we have made all of the changes. I hope to get some of that done sometime next week."

"For those of you looking for access to the member database, please be patient. It will take a while for us to provide that access again, due to the architectural changes to the site. The priority now is supporting seminar registration and the reports necessary to determine who is registered for which seminar."

Posted by Dave Aiello at 6:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today, we are opening the Atlantic District On-Line Seminar Registration System for the 2002-2003 season. The newly-updated system will permit new officials to register on-line for seminars for the first time.

As a result of the new system, all seminar attendees will be asked to register for a seminar using the On-Line Registration System. More information will be provided in the next few days, so watch this web site for updates.

Posted by Dave Aiello at 7:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)