Dear Fellow Official:
I hope you are enjoying your summer.
Referee registration for the coming season is around the corner! I am sending this out to all Illinois officials so they may prepare for the registration which will commence on August 3.
At the USA Hockey Annual Meeting conducted in June, a few requirements were put in place for the upcoming seminar/registration period. This coming year, USA Hockey requires at least the following of all officials in order to be complete:
a) All officials must register with USA Hockey online. Prior to registering with USAH, there will be an informational video that will outline the requirements and commitment that an individual must make in order to complete his/her registration;
b) Registration will include classroom, ice and online components;
c) Levels 2, 3 and 4 will complete a closed book exam during the seminar they attend;
d) Level 4 will complete an on-ice skating exam;
e) All officials will complete an open book online exam through USA Hockey;
f) All officials 18 and older must be screened; and
g) Completion of the Safe Sport program on or before the end of a 2 year cycle.
And of course, all Illinois officials must register with IHOA.
There is a change to the USAH open book exam policy which is applicable this year. A Level 1 official will still have to answer the first 50 questions and Level 2, 3 & 4 officials will still have to answer 100 questions. However, the passing score for a Level 2 official has been modified to 80 from 85. All other passing scores remain the same as last year. The passing score for a Level 1 official is 35/50. The passing score for Level 3 and 4 officials is 90/100.
When an official is taking the open book exam there is immediate feedback after each submitted question is answered. If the official answers a question incorrectly, the rule reference for that missed question is provided with the appropriate rule book language. After completing all of the required questions for the level applied for, a summary will be sent of all of the missed questions with their rule references. If a passing score is obtained then the open book exam requirement will be satisfied. If the result is a failing score, then the official will also receive a summary of the missed questions with rule references. After the 7 day waiting period has passed following the open book exam failure, the official will only have to retake those questions that were missed on their first open book exam. The retake questions will be based on the same rule reference as the originally missed questions, but will cover a different aspect of the rule. An example would be if an official missed 12 questions their retake exam would only contain 12 questions on the rule references that they originally missed. Once all of the retake questions are answered, the number of correctly answered retake questions will be added to their original test score to hopefully obtain a passing grade at the level they applied for. As a reminder, there is no third attempt to pass the open book exam.
As for the USAH online video component, it appears as though USA Hockey is attempting to shorten and modify the videos from last year. The actual videos and time frame of the videos are not yet available so I will update you when more information is forthcoming. The most recent statement from USAH regarding the availability of the videos this coming season is that they will be ready in time for August 4, 2015. As a point of reference, here are the USA Hockey online video requirements from last year:
Level 1: 2 hours of online education;
Level 2: 3 hours of online education;
Level 3: 4 hours of online education; and
Level 4: 3 hours of online education.
Please remember these online requirements are in ADDITION to the classroom and ice time here in Illinois. My suggestion would be for all officials to complete the USAH online education portion of the seminars as soon as they are available from USAH. Once a returning official commences the online video portion, he/she will have 45 days to complete the presentations. A new official will have a 60 day period within which to complete the presentations. If an official does not complete all of the modules in the allotted time frame, the official will have to restart all of the module training from the beginning.
Here are the IHOA seminar dates and locations for the coming season. This information is also found on the IHOA webpage under the “Seminar Information” tab.
Date Rink Name City Levels
8/15/15 Leafs Centre West Dundee, IL 1,2,3
8/16/15 Fox Valley Ice Arena Geneva, IL 1,2,3,4
8/22/15 Arctic Ice Arena Orland Park, IL 1,2,3,4
8/23/15 Rocket Ice Arena Bolingbrook, IL 1,2,3 & 1,2 Girls
8/29/15 Glacier Ice Arena Vernon Hills, IL1,2,3
8/30/15 Sears Centre Hoffman Estates, IL 1,2,3
9/20/15 Skatium Ice Arena Skokie, IL 1,2,3,4
10/17/15 Centennial Recreation Complex Wilmette, IL 1,2 Girls Only
10/17/15 Owens Center Peoria, IL 1,2,3
10/18/15 Campus Recreation Ice Arena Champaign, IL 1,2,3,4
As we all know, seats at these seminars will fill quickly, so it’s in your best interests to register as early as possible in order to obtain the seminar of your choosing. And remember, this year registration starts on August 3, 2015.
Please enjoy the summer and we look forward to your continued participation as an ice hockey official this coming season.
Michael Barrett
Illinois Referee in Chief &
Supervisor of Officials
Categories: Officials