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Who we are

The Texas Lacrosse Officials Association (TXLOA) is the USA Lacrosse-approved training and certifying organization for the sport of men’s and boys’ lacrosse in the Greater Houston area.   TXLOA spans several age/playing groups – boy’s youth (K-8), men’s high school (Varsity & JV), and men’s post-collegiate club.

Mission

• Recruit, train, and certify officials for the sport of lacrosse.

• Provide mentoring to officials and help them develop their craft skills and knowledge of the rules of the game.

• Help officials to conduct themselves as positive role models to coaches, players, parents, and fans with an emphasis on safety, sportsmanship, fairness, and professionalism. 

Founding documents

• • TXLOA Charter (adopted June 24, 2013)

• TXLOA Bylaws (adopted June 15, 2018)

How to become a lacrosse official

If you are interested in becoming an official for the sport of lacrosse, please contact our head of recruiting, Mike Alsobrooks, at recruiter@txloa.net no later than November 30th of each year.  The pre-season training usually occurs in October/November, and observations will occur at the pre-season tournaments held in November-January.   The regular season starts in February and runs through the end of April each year, which is then followed by playoffs in May.   Additional information about becoming a lacrosse official is described on the USA Lacrosse website .

Checklist

1. Get your USA Lacrosse (usually “Adult”) membership (mandatory) by registering online at www.usalacrosse.org and click on “Membership” and then click on “Join/Renew.”  Then follow the rest of these instructions:

   • In order to become an official, you must become a member of USA Lacrosse, which costs $60 per year.   This is so you are covered for insurance purposes.   USA Lacrosse mandates that you must be at least 14 years of age to become a lacrosse official.   To become a member of USA Lacrosse, you must go to the USA Lacrosse Membership website and click on the “JOIN NOW” box.

   • While applying to get your USA Lacrosse membership, you will be asked if you are a player, coach, official, or fan.   Put a check mark in the “Official” check-box.   You can also check other boxes, if applicable, but you have to make sure you have a check in the “Official” box, too.

   • While applying to get your USA Lacrosse membership, you will be asked which game is officiated.   Put a check mark in the “Men’s / Boys’ Game” check-box.   Also, check the “Youth” and the “High School” check-boxes, which are the correct levels for TXLOA games.

   • While applying to get your USA Lacrosse membership, you will be asked which lacrosse officials association you will belong to.   Look for “Texas Lacrosse Officials Association” and select it.  If you don’t see it, then select “Texas” in the state pull-down list, and then place a check-box in the “I don’t see the LOA.”   Then manually type “TXLOA” into the space.

   • While applying to get your USA Lacrosse membership, you will be asked which rulebook you would like to receive.   I recommend you select the "NFHS Boys Lacrosse Rulebook" if you are a new official or the “NCAA men’s rulebook ”if you are a high-school-only official.   The rulebook you select will be mailed to you free as part of your USA Lacrosse membership application.

   • While applying to get your USA Lacrosse membership, you will eventually be asked to provide online payment.   Do this to complete your application to USA Lacrosse.

   • Your USA Lacrosse membership will be approved instantly, and two emails will be sent to your email inbox to confirm your membership.

   • Send the TXLOA Secretary (secretary@txloa.net) the second email, which is the one that contains your name, USA Lacrosse membership number, and membership expiration date.   The proof of membership is needed for TXLOA's records.

2. Forward the confirmation email you receive after registering with USA Lacrosse to the TXLOA Secretary at secretary@txloa.net.

3. Go to the www.txloa.net website and click the Apply to Join tab on the left pane to submit a short application form.   This will get you on the contact list for pre-season training and announcements.

4. Purchase your lacrosse referee gear.   We suggest you go to one of the vendors listed on the Links tab to purchase your officiating gear.   Make sure you purchase gear for lacrosse - and not football- officials.

5. Attend and pass the lacrosse training sessions, held at a date to be determined.   See the Training and Dues tab for more information.

6. Take the online “Lacrosse Official’s” test (which will be sent to you by our training department) and receive a passing score.

7. Attend pre-season tournaments to shadow experienced officials during lacrosse games.   Master the basic mechanics of officiating lacrosse.

8. Receive notification from LeadClinician@txloa.net that you have been certified to officiate and at what level(s).

9. Finally, the Assigner will add you to the TXLOA account in the game-scheduling system, which is Arbiter (www.arbitersports.com), so you can be assigned games and accept them.