Starting a Junior Club

Starting a Junior Club

Each club within Badger Region is an independently run business under the umbrella organization of Badger Region Volleyball Association. When you start a junior club program in Badger Region, you are also joining USA Volleyball and benefit from our structure of competition avenues, policies, rules, procedures and membership regulations. To enforce this structure, we reserve the right to sanction/fine a club and potentially revoke their region affiliation for failure to comply.

If you are interested starting your own junior club program and joining Badger Region/USA Volleyball, we have the resources and tools to get you off on the right foot. That goes for one-team clubs that might be feeder programs for local high schools, or larger clubs with the intent to compete on the national level. Once you’ve made the leap and joined Badger Region, our toolkit will guide you as you run the club.

STARTING A CLUB

  1. Read the Junior Club Director Handbook (revised Nov. 2023): hard-copy, must-read of the basics.
  2. Read the Tournament Director Handbook: how to register players and fill rosters.
  3. Fill out the Badger Region Club Registration Form: activates your club in USAV/Badger.
  4. Register as a member with Badger: $55 annually +$14 per year for a USAV background screen.
  5. Attend the Junior Club Director Meeting: usually held in August (virtual and in-person opportunities)
  6. Familiarize yourself with the Badger Region Board of Directors and staff
  7. Be familiar with forms and policies: follow the link to view all relevant items.
  8. Request a Certificate of Insurance: you need this for your playing facility.
  9. Register for tournaments: instructions to help with this important CD duty.
  10. Host tournaments: all you need to know to host your own tournament.

STRUCTURING YOUR CLUB

  1. Create a budget: consider what it will cost to run your club.
  2. Have a refund policy in place
  3. Have a conflict resolution process in place
  4. How will your club be structured? Club director? Board of Directors? Recruiting Coordinator? Fundraising Coordinator? Team parents? How many coaches per team?
  5. Certify your coaches: there are many steps to certifying a coach. Make sure they have a membership, IMPACT certification, SafeSport training and background screening (if they are older than 18 years old)
  6. Classify your coaches properly: Are they employees or independent contractors?
  7. Prepare your coaches: Check the list of all the things coaches are required to have at events.
  8. Junior Club Ref/Scorer Training: clubs must provide members w/training (click link for options).
  9. Utilize our Junior Club & Coaching Toolkit: a resource for managing your club.

TIPS FOR YOUR CLUB

  1. Think about your brand: every club offers something a little bit different.
  2. Pick a club name: research existing clubs and select a unique name. (The Region has the ability to disallow duplicate club names or club names that are not appropriate)
  3. Secure gym space: gym space is a hot commodity; start securing it early.
  4. Create a club website and social media handles.
  5. Set tryout dates: note tryouts have a regulated start-date.
  6. Schedule a player/parent info meeting: hold this before tryouts.
  7. Promote tryouts: resources to help you promote your club and considering hosting tune-up clinics
  8. Uniforms /Equipment: order early and don’t skimp. Know the rules to what is allowed on jerseys.