What is Alberta Soccer doing for female referee development?
Currently, females make up 28% of the referees in the Province, despite representing almost 32% of the registered players. Alberta Soccer recognizes that it must approach referee recruitment and retention in a variety of ways as it works toward a more gender-balanced referee pool.
‘All Female’ Outdoor Refresher courses will be hosted in Edmonton (April 2nd – Course #1753) and Calgary (April 7th – Course #1754) at no cost to attendees. Returning referees will register for these courses via their Ref Centre accounts.
‘All Female’ Entry Level courses will be hosted March 28/29th in Edmonton (Course #1738) and Calgary (Course #1739). These courses are open to any female who is 14 years or older by May 15th, 2020. The cost is $110.00 for students 14 & 15 years old and $ 131.25 for those 16 years or older. Interested parties may register for these courses at this link: www.refcentre.com/Alberta.
Alberta Soccer is also very pleased to continue the Create Your Advantage program that it piloted in 2018 under the Alberta Women in Sport Leadership Impact Program.
Returning female officials are encouraged to ‘Save The Date’ for the Create Your Advantage program coming to Edmonton (April 4th) and Calgary (April 18th). An invitation with all the details will be sent to all female officials soon, once registration opens for Create Your Advantage.
“Our goal for the Create Your Advantage program is to develop stronger officials, increase retention, and to be the genesis of a supportive network of officials – creating opportunities for mentorship and inspiring female officials to set and reach personal goals for growth and success,” David O’Neill, ASA Referee Development Officer.
This summer an all-female Regional Upgrade course will also be offered – a first for Alberta and possibly in Canada! This is a truly exciting opportunity for females interested in advancing their referee certification and all eligible officials were sent an invitation to register last month.
All courses, led by females, create an empowering developmental environment for participants.
What past participants had to say about their experiences in All Female courses:
“This the most through refresher I have attended… The confidence that one gained from the afternoon and the networking was fantastic. Real game situations at the stations were a great idea.”
“It was an amazing experience and the leaders were very helpful!”
“I enjoyed the program as it gave us a freedom of speech zone without judgement…we [were] able to empower women referees no matter [their] age or skill. I would attend the event again!”
“It was a welcoming experience being with all females.”
If you have any questions about any of these program, please contact:
Carmen Charron, ccharron@albertasoccer.com