Your career, whether Indoor or Beach, begins with a Level 1 Certification Clinic. Local Referee Clinics are officially divided into 5 sections and candidates must complete ALL sessions. The Ontario Volleyball Association (OVA) Local Referee Clinic is designed for students, teachers, players, coaches and parents interested in refereeing. Candidates will progress through an online theory course and exam, an in-person theory session and finally a practical session (tournament) where the candidates will referee matches as part of their final evaluations. The first level in the OVA Referees' development program, it is designed for any person aspiring to become a volleyball referee. The purpose is to enable the candidate to understand and apply basic rule interpretations. Local referees are allowed and expected to officiate as a first official at OVA 13U-16U youth competitions and elementary and high school leagues and tournaments; as well as work as lines people and score keep at College and University matches.

Indoor Volleyball KDVC typically holds one, single clinic each volleyball season near the end of September or beginning of October. However, if there is sufficient interest a second clinic may be added at the start of the girls season in November. More information about upcoming clinic dates and registration links can be found on our home page. Beach Volleyball Beach Volleyball events in our immediate area being almost non-existent, KDVC does not offer clinics for this discipline, as the opportunity is limited for officials to recover their expenses. Indoor & Beach Volleyball If you are willing to travel, additional clinics are held throughout Ontario and are listed on the OVA website: https://www.ontariovolleyball.org/referees-upcoming-clinics

OVA requires that candidates are 15 years of age or older. However, officiating requires a functioning level of maturity, responsibility, coping skills, and the ability to manage coaches and players. Therefore candidates must have the confidence and ability to communicate to the Head Clinician and OVA Staff directly, rather than having a parent or guardian do the communication on their behalf.

Registration in administered and managed by the Ontario Volleyball Association. Upcoming Clinics Prior to posting on the OVA website, KDVC first sends the registration link to our waiting list to ensure first priority registration. Registration is then made available to other waiting list candidates from Region 6 and then posted to the OVA website to fill any remaining slots. Make sure to check out our homepage and join our waiting list to get early registration access.

Typically, registration for a clinic will close once the maximum number of participants is reached OR 5 days before the In-Person Theory, whichever comes first. This is to ensure that both the Online Theory (4 Hrs) and Online Exam (1 Hr) pre-requisites are successfully completed and recorded.

The OVA Membership Registration System (MRS) is the primary source for OVA membership, tournament and event registration. The OVA provides a helpful list of How to Register in MRS guides to help with your registration. The MRS system uses a member’s email address as their user ID, so each member must have a unique email address to register. For example, trying to use a single, shared, family email for more than 1 registration will result in errors. Kingston and the surrounding are part of OVA’s Region 6 (R6 – East Ontario) Select/Add the Complementary role to avoid paying any referee membership fees at this time Existing members Players, coaches, club contacts, or other roles can update their current MRS profiles. New Members If you are not an existing member of the OVA you will first need to create your MRS account. For college and university students and military personnel moving into the area. You must use your local, Kingston-area address to register. This is the primary address OVA uses for assigning officials and is the location from which mileage is calculated for all events by both the OVA and KDVC.

Online Theory and Exam - $55.00 As part of the course fee, all candidates will receive: Volleyball Canada Rule Book, electronic link and hard copy Access to the Online Theory Course material Access to the Online Course Exam Note: Where these fees differ from those posted on the OVA website, the OVA rate applies.

Volleyball Canada/OVA Officials Membership Fees Successful candidates must upgrade their registration from Complementary to Indoor Official-Level 1 (Local) upon successful completion and pay the required fee. All memberships are non-refundable (OVA Refund Policy). Indoor Official - Local: $134.14

Volleyball Canada Uniform Expenses - $125.00 (minimum) Successful candidates will be required to purchase the Volleyball Canada uniform, plus shipping and applicable taxes, at their own expense. Referee Polo Shirt - $50.00 Required in year 1 Referee Pants - $75.00 Required by year 2, or year 1 if attending OVA or VC Championship events Referee Jacket- $99.00 Optional, limited availability Note: KDVC places a bulk order of all VC items and sizes at the start of each season for current and new officials to try on and purchase. The try-on period coincides with the Indoor local clinic. Additionally, we offer those officials staying and working in the Kingston area the chance to subsidize your uniforms and deduct them from your high school match fees to help offset your start-up costs. Additional Uniform Expenses* These items are part of your uniform, but not supplied by Volleyball Canada. All White (or mostly white), non-marking athletic shoes Expected by year 2 White Socks Equipment Expenses* These items are immediately required. Pealess Whistle (ie Fox40 or equivalent) Required by In-Person Theory Wristwatch with stopwatch/timer capabilities used for time-outs and set interval (cell phones not allowed) Required by In-Person Theory Coin used for coin toss (any coin will do) Required by In-Person Theory Optional Equipment Expenses* When working tournaments and league games, first-year officials will work with Senior Officials who should have these items to share. However, as you progress as an official, we strongly suggest that you invest in the following: Net chain or tape measure to measure net height Ball Gauge to measure ball pressure Line judge flags * Costs will vary by manufacturer and/or supplier.

Submit a Police Record Check All OVA referees,18 years of age or older, are required to submit a police check every three years. Depending on your location your provider may be one of the following: myBackCheck (E-PIC)​ Kingston Police Ontario Provincial Police See Registration - Mandatory Eligibility Requirements for Referees for full details. * Costs will vary by provider, typical range is $25 to $55

The OVA will send all candidates an email outlining how to Access the Online Course & Exam hosted by Easygenerator. IMPORTANT Once you click on the link, switch over to the “Sign Up” tab across the top to create an Easygenerator account that will let you access the course. The email address that you create the account with must be the same as the email address in your MRS account.

The Online Theory course will guide you through the content of the Volleyball Canada rulebook. It will help you better understand the rules and procedures involved in officiating a sanctioned indoor volleyball match. Each module will contain content with pictures and videos included. Quiz questions have been placed throughout to check your understanding. Complete the modules at your own pace. IMPORTANT Completion of all modules with 100% accuracy on all quiz questions is mandatory prior to writing the examination.

Time You will have 1 hour to complete the online exam. Prerequisites Online Theory must be completed Format Fill in the blank Multiple choice True and False

A score of 80% or higher is required to pass the exam. Although 80% is required to pass, KDVC recognizes that not all candidates learn in the same way. Candidates may be given the opportunity to continue the clinic and be reevaluated as needed.

In-Person Theory sessions are held in a gymnasium. ​ KDVC conducts our clinics in a gymnasium with candidates taking an "active" role in discovering the court, playing zones, nets heights, balls and equipment. Candidates will be engaged in a review of the court and playing areas, equipment, and participant safety. Candidates will be expected to practice their roles as R1, R2, Line Judge and Scorekeepers. Focus will be on whistle control and volume, as well as pre-, during- and post-match protocols. ​Where possible, the session will include a mini-scrimmage with one of our local schools/club teams with candidates getting practice opportunities before the In-Person Practical evaluations. Additionally, we will review the exam, with a specific focus on questions or concerns regarding your knowledge of, interpretation and application of the rules.

Candidates are asked to wear/bring the following: Comfortable, athletic clothes and non-marking athletic shoes Whistle (pealess) with a lanyard Wristwatch with timer for time-outs and set intervals (no cell phones) Cheap alternative is Giant Tiger​ Coin for coin toss Notepad & writing tool (pen, pencil, etc)

Candidates will referee at a tournament to be evaluated for the Level 1 certification. At minimum, candidates should be evaluated working as R1 and as a line judge. If time allows, referees should also be given the opportunity to work as a scorer or R2. KDVC has built strong partnerships with the high schools and coaches in our communities. For the Level 1 clinic we primarily work with Junior high school level tournaments. Coaches are made aware that the tournament is being used for evaluating new officials and are asked to provide their comments to the Clinicians only. Our coaches are very understanding and work with us to ensure that you receive the feedback you need to improve via positive interactions from your clinicians. They are, of course, encouraged to provide you with positive feedback directly. Our job is to facilitate your success. We do not expect you to be perfect, but we anticipate continuous growth and improvement throughout the day. Emphasis at the Clinics: Technical and human skill required Knowledge, interpretation and application of all rules Use of referees’ equipment and working tools Operating procedures and mechanisms of refereeing Game procedures and protocol

What to Wear Navy blue or black dress or yoga pants (no jeans) Navy blue polo shirt or T-shirt Sports shoes, white socks Wrist watch Whistle, with lanyard Coin ​ What to Bring Rule book Snacks and water, to keep up your energy throughout the day Notepad and writing instrument

For Indoor Volleyball there are 5 levels of certification: Local Provincial Regional National International For Beach Volleyball there are 4 levels of certification: Local Provincial National International The OVA Referee Committee has provided some expectations and recommended requirements that referees should strive for when moving from one level to the next. These can be found on the OVA's Certification Levels page.