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2022-23 Officials Registration Underway with New Benefits to Help Grow Ranks
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 23, 2022
The Michigan High School Athletic Association is accepting registrations online or by mail for game officials for the 2022-23 school year, and is providing a pair of significant new benefits intended to attract new officials and bolster the number of current officials who work multiple sports.
The MHSAA annually receives registration by more than 9,000 officials, but dipped below 8,000 for 2020-21 as school sports navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021-22 school year saw a slight bounce back to 8,128 officials registered – an increase of two percent compared to the previous year – and officials who register for the upcoming school year will receive additional perks that will further boost the already high level of support provided to those serving MHSAA member schools.
Beginning this summer, all officials who register may sign up for up to two sports as part of that registration. Officials previously registered separately for each sport they wished to work, providing 13,896 sport registrations total in 2021-22 – or with every registered official signing up for approximately 1.7 sports on average.
Officials also will receive membership in the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO), which comes with a variety of educational and training resources including a subscription to an MHSAA-branded “Referee” digital magazine, and the NASO’s Shield liability insurance that will provide $6 million in coverage for officials while they are working both MHSAA and non-MHSAA events. The previous MHSAA-provided liability coverage, while still substantial, covered those officials only during MHSAA events.
“We are excited about the potential of these new benefits to not only attract new officials, but drive growth of our officiating pool from within,” said MHSAA assistant director Brent Rice, who supervises the officials program. “We hope our current single-sport officials will take advantage of this opportunity and help us bolster our numbers in other sports. Add in the resources and insurance from NASO – the largest officials advocate in the world – and we hope this package attracts officials to join us and stay with us at a time when we are facing our greatest need for these indispensable contributors to school sports.”
For all new and returning officials, a $70 fee covers registration for up to two sports. Officials may register for additional sports at $16 per sport.
To avoid a $30 late fee, all fall sport registration applications must be received by Aug. 16, 2022. Winter sports registrations must be received by Nov. 11 to avoid the late fee, and spring sports registrations must be received by March 17, 2023.
Online registration can be accessed by clicking “Officials” on the home page of the MHSAA Website. More information about officials registration may be obtained by contacting the MHSAA by phone at (517) 332-5046 or by e-mail at [email protected].
There is an officials' registration test for first-time officials and officials who were not registered during the past school year, derived from the MHSAA Officials Guidebook. New officials and those who didn’t officiate during 2021-22 also must complete the online MHSAA Principles of Officiating course. Additional exams must be taken by those registering for football or basketball for the first time or those who were not registered for those sports during the previous school year. Links to the Officials Guidebook, Principles of Officiating presentation and the football and basketball mechanics manuals can be found by following the “New Officials” link on the Officials page of the MHSAA Website.
There also are opportunities to officiate for students at least 14 years old and in grades 9-12 through the MHSAA Legacy Program. Juniors and seniors may officiate subvarsity contests, while freshmen and sophomores may officiate contests at the middle school/junior high levels. Mentor officials will work events with Legacy participants to provide guidance and support. Find information on the Legacy Program by clicking “REGISTER NOW” on the Officials page of the MHSAA Website and following the “Legacy Official Information” link.
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Be the Referee: Toe the Line on PKs
October 15, 2020
This week, MHSAA officials coordinator Sam Davis explains a change in soccer affecting goalkeeper movement during penalty kicks.
Be The Referee is a series of short messages designed to help educate people on the rules of different sports, to help them better understand the art of officiating, and to recruit officials.
Below is this week's segment - Toe the Line on Penalty Kicks - Listen
Here’s a high school soccer rules change for the upcoming season. Rules for the placement and movement of the goalkeeper on a penalty kick have been rewritten to make it more clear what a keeper can or cannot do.
As in previous years, goalkeepers can move laterally along the goal line prior to the taking of the penalty kick. But new this year, goalkeepers need only have one foot on (or in-line) with the goal line at the time of the kick.
This allows keepers to lunge before the ball is kicked, as long as one foot stays on the line. Previously, the goalie needed to keep both feet on the goal line or in line.
Past editions
10/8: Disconcerting Acts - Listen
10/1: Ball Hits Soccer Referee - Listen
9/24: Clocking the Ball from the Shotgun - Listen