January 13, 2016
The WFTDA Officials Certification Committee has launched a new section on wftda.com to provide a more comprehensive outline of the WFTDA Officials Certification program and has made some adjustments to better serve the roller derby officiating community in 2016.
The Referee and NSO Rules and Procedures tests are being updated to make some minor fixes and adjust for the new Skater number requirements for sanctioned, SFC and mock-sanctioned games. Those who passed the 2015 test and have not yet gone up for certification do not need to retake the test. The new tests will be released in the coming weeks.
The NSO Endorsement tests are now assessments rather than pass/fail. An Official applying for certification only needs to take the Endorsement Assessment to give the WFTDA Certification Panel an idea of their abilities. For these, WFTDA Certification recommends +/- 15 games for the Head NSO endorsement and +/- 30 games (five per position) for the other positional endorsements. Some Officials may be granted certification with fewer games depending on experience and performance.
Effective for games after January 1, 2016, the league affiliation of an evaluator will no longer be restricted for evaluations that count toward certification minimums. A Skater-Authorized League Representative, Head Referee or Head NSO from any league may write evaluations and they will count.
WFTDA Certification has released a new Appeals Form to assist an Official who wishes to contest WFTDA Certification decisions.
The new web section with all this information can be viewed at wftda.com/officiating/certification.
Real. Strong. Athletic. Revolutionary.