Training and Dues

2023 Season Training sessions (RECORDED, SO WATCH THE APPROPRIATE SESSION(S) TO GET CREDIT FOR YOUR ANNUAL CLASSROOM TRAINING REQUIREMENT)

• Training/orientation for new officials - you must attend one of the training sessions or watch the replay video (you must watch 100% of a replay to get credit for it, and you must answer the questions/tests embedded within the replay video).

  • Training for new officials, Part 1 of 2 - offered on Tuesday, November 8, 2022.  Click the following to watch the replay:

    • Part 1 of 2 <LINK> (video lasts 27 minutes)

  • Training for new officials, Part 2 of 2 - offered on Thursday, November 10, 2022.  Click the following to watch the replay:

    • Part 2 of 2 <LINK> (video lasts 1 hour, 50 minutes)

• Training/orientation for returning officials:

  • Returning high school game officials - Wednesday, November 9, 2022 or Thursday, November 17, 2022.  Click the following to watch the replay: 

    • HS game officials <LINK> (video lasts 47 minutes)

  • Returning youth game officials - Tuesday, November 15, 2022.  Click the following to watch the replay:

    • Youth game officials <LINK> (video lasts 1 hour, 20 minutes)

2022 Season Training sessions (OLD - - DO NOT USE, BUT YOU CAN WATCH THEM IF YOU WANT MORE TRAINING)

Returning officials - you must attend one of the four training sessions, or watch the replay video and answer the embedded questions within the replay video:

• Training for new officials, Part 1 of 2 – offered on Monday October 11, 2021 or Wednesday October 13, 2021 (you must attend one of these sessions if you are a new official)

• Training for new officials, Part 2 of 2 – offered on Monday November 1, 2021 or Wednesday November 3, 2021 (you must also attend one of these sessions if you are a new official)

• Training/orientation for returning officials – offered on Monday October 18, 2021, Wednesday October 20, 2021, Monday November 8, 2021, or Wednesday November 10, 2021 (you must attend one of these four sessions if you are a returning official)

• Makeup training – none; since the training sessions will be recorded, you can watch the replays and get credit once you have answered the embedded questions within the replays.

Note: Once the sessions have been held, the replays will be posted above so you can watch the replay video.  While you watch the replay, the video will pause for questions periodically, and you must answer the questions to proceed to the next section of the replay video.  We use a "streaming service" that allows us to track what percentage of the replay you actually watched, so there is no way for you to skip through the training without watching all of the replay.  If you want to get a feel for what the replays will look like, you can watch a previous year's video replays below, but you won't get credit for the upcoming season by doing so.

2022 Season Training sessions (recorded)

Returning officials (emphasis on high school games)

• 10/20/2021 (52:15) - click here for <LINK> ** If you missed any of the training, you can watch this replay, but you must answer the embedded questions within it to get credit for watching it.   When you finish watching and answering questions, you can close your browser.   The training committee will confirm your answers and grant you credit for your annual classroom training.

Returning officials (emphasis on middle school and youth games)

• • 11/08/2021 (1:02:42) - click here for <LINK> ** If you missed any of the training, you can watch this replay, but you must answer the embedded questions within it to get credit for watching it.   When you finish watching and answering questions, you can close your browser.   The training committee will confirm your answers and grant you credit for your annual classroom training

New officials (emphasis on youth games)

• • Part 1 of 2 (must watch both parts) 10/11/2021 (1:11:50) - click here for <LINK> ** If you missed any of the training, you can watch this replay, but you must answer the embedded questions within it to get credit for watching it.   When you finish watching and answering questions, you can close your browser.   The training committee will confirm your answers and grant you credit for your annual classroom training.

  • Part 2 of 2 (must watch both parts) 11/03/2021 (1:18:58) - click here for <LINK> ** If you missed any of the training, you can watch this replay, but you must answer the embedded questions within it to get credit for watching it.   When you finish watching and answering questions, you can close your browser.   The training committee will confirm your answers and grant you credit for your annual classroom training.

Hints and tips for officials

The following hints and tips are offered to help you appear more professional during a game:

• Never stand with your hands on your hips during a game.   This stance is perceived as disinterest.

• Do not stand with your hands in your pockets, which makes you look bored.

• Never laugh or joke during a game.

• Do not allow yourself to smile at any time when a player is injured on the ground, as this could make you seem insensitive to the player or happy about his injury.

Annual Dues payment

You must pay annual dues to be a member in good standing in TXLOA, and the annual payment is due once per season.   If you pay electronically, the preferred method of payment is Zelle (https://www.zellepay.com), which is a bank-to-bank payment app that you can load onto your smart phone.  Anyone with a bank account that has a Mastercard or Visa debit card can use Zelle.  Once you install the Zelle app onto your smart phone, you can transfer money electronically for free directly to "treasurer@txloa.net" through Zelle, although the minimum transfer amount using Zelle is five dollars.   If you choose to write a check, please mail your dues payment to the treasurer.  For any other type of payment, such as cash, money order, or a different form of e-payment, please contact the treasurer to discuss.

TXLOA

c/o Jeremy Effinger

17231 Sheffield Bend Dr.

Houston, TX  77095

• For dues received prior to December 31st = $75.00

• For dues received on or January 1st = $100.00 [Exception: Officials who transfer from other LOAs are exempt from paying the late fee.]

NCAA Men's Lacrosse Rules and Officiating Mechanics video

A good tool is the US Lacrosse officials pre-game checklist and suggested topics.   This two-page card is a good checklist of topics to consider when performing a pre-game discussion between the officials.

• View the US Lacrosse officials pre-game checklist

For additional information, please visit the USA Lacrosse website for Men's Training and Certification.

Another great resource is the "cheat sheet" showing all of the differences between the various lacrosse rulebooks and age/playing divisions.

• • View the lacrosse rules cheat sheet in Excel (after clicking this link, you can also download the file by clicking the "Down Arrow" in the upper right-hand side of the page)

  • View the lacrosse rules cheat sheet in Adobe Reader (contains red font for the key differences; green fill color means the rule wording is new for this season)

Hand Signals for Lacrosse Officials

The link below contains two short videos demonstrating the proper hand signals for officials in the game of lacrosse.   These hand signals are demonstrated by Gordon Corsetti, the former manager of the Men's Officials Education Program (OEP) for USA Lacrosse.

• View the video for lacrosse officials' hand-signals

• View the video for how to communicate with "big signals" rather than small signals

Pre-game Routine for Lacrosse Officials

The link below contains three short videos demonstrating how to conduct several components of the pre-game certification by the Referee (crew chief).   The videos narrated by Gordon Corsetti, formerly the manager of the Men's Officials Education Program (OEP) for USA Lacrosse and an official with the Georgia Lacrosse Association.

• Coaches' Certification - a description of what to ask each head coach pre-game to certify the players and what to write down.

• Coin Toss - describes how to conduct the coin flip procedure [SORRY, THIS VIDEO HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM YOU TUBE.]

• Player Lineup - describes the lineup of each team's starting players just prior to the opening faceoff [SORRY, THIS VIDEO HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM YOU TUBE.]

• Crosse Inspection (aka, "stick check") - describes how to conduct an official's inspection of a crosse to determine if the crosse is legal for play or not

Additionally, you can find guidance on the pre-game routine in the 2-man and 3-man mechanics manuals, which are published by USA Lacrosse:

• • Two-person mechanics manual - look on pages 13-17 for specific guidance on the pre-game routine.

  • Three-person mechanics manual - look on pages 13-17 for specific guidance on the pre-game routine.

Chief Bench Official (CBO)

The duties of the Chief Bench Official (CBO), if used, are described in the following two versions of the same document:

• • Chief Bench Official (*.doc) - <CLICK HERE>

• Chief Bench Official (*.pdf) - <CLICK HERE> 

Levels of Certification

USA Lacrosse offers three different levels of certification for lacrosse officials.

• Level 1 - (youth lacrosse games) - most of the officials are Level 1, which allows you to officiate youth lacrosse games (kindergarten through 8th grade).   Some of these games require two officials, and some of them require only one official.   Approximately 44-56% of TXLOA officials are certified at Level 1.

• Level 2 - (all Junior Varsity high school games; some Varsity high school games) - The Texas High School Lacrosse League (THSLL) establishes which games require Level 2 versus Level 3 officials.   Currently, only the top division (THSLL Varsity Division 1) games require Level 3 officials, and the rest of the THSLL games require only a Level 2 official.   Thus, most high school games require only a pair of Level 2 officials, although some will require of trio of Level 3 officials.   Approximately 21-39% of TXLOA officials are certified at Level 2.

• Level 3 - (some Varsity high school games) - these are the games that are mandated by THSLL to require a crew of three lacrosse officials (i.e., a three-person rotation).   The three-person rotation is used in college, so several (but not all) of the Level 3 officials are also certified by NILOA as college officials.   Approximately 18-29% of TXLOA officials are certified at Level 3.

Collegiate Level - several of the Level 3 officials are also certified to officiate college games.   However, the TXLOA is not the certifying body for college officials.   All of the college officials in the U.S. are certified by the National Intercollegiate Lacrosse Officials Association (NILOA), which is the officials' certifying body for collegiate games.

Training videos

Below are links to several useful training videos:

• USA Lacrosse Introduction to Officiating - an overview of officiating published on 1/23/2015.

• A Big Call is Still Just a Call - an online webinar presented by Brian Abbott on 3/29/2016.   Brian Abbott discusses importance of a solid pre-game as the cornerstone of the crew getting the call right at the critical moment of the game, and being able to focus and officiate after the "big" call is made.   Brian details his pre-game preparations and demonstrates how he approaches making calls on some of the biggest stages that college lacrosse has to offer [SORRY, THIS VIDEO HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM YOU TUBE.]

• Game Management - an online webinar presented by Spike Decker and Bill Devine on 3/31/2016.   Spike and Bill instruct on effective game management techniques and ways to help smooth over the rough edges of a game so that everyone has a better time.  Learn from Spike and Bill's expertise, which is applicable to every level of the game [SORRY, THIS VIDEO HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM YOU TUBE.]

If you have your USA Lacrosse membership login and password, you can also view these videos as courses from the Men's Officiating Course catalog.

1. Go to the Learning page of the USA Lacrosse website [FOR THOSE WITH A CURRENT MEMBERSHIP IN USA LACROSSE].

2. Enter your USA Lacrosse login ID and password.

3. Click on Catalog.

4. Click on Official Education and Development (OED).

5. Click on the subfolders that interest you.  Good choices are the subfolders for:

   • Level 1

   • Level 2/3

   • Professional Development Webinars

   • Rules Interpretations.

6. These folders contain "courses" (i.e., training materials) that you can take/watch free of charge.

Observation Program

Below are links to the USA Lacrosse observation forms:

• Level 3 Observation Form - <CLICK HERE for form that is directly editable in Adobe Reader format> or <CLICK HERE for Microsoft Word format> or <CLICK HERE for print-only version in Adobe Reader format>

• Level 2 Observation Form - <CLICK HERE for form that is directly editable in Adobe Reader format> or <CLICK HERE for Microsoft Word format> or <CLICK HERE for print-only version in Adobe Reader format>

• Level 1 Observation Form - <CLICK HERE for form that is directly editable in Adobe Reader format> or <CLICK HERE for Microsoft Word format> or <CLICK HERE for print-only version in Adobe Reader format>

• Junior Official Observation Form - <CLICK HERE for form that is directly editable in Adobe Reader format> or <CLICK HERE for Microsoft Word format> or <CLICK HERE for print-only version in Adobe Reader format>