GREEN BAY — If you’ve ever been to a high school state tournament in Wisconsin, you’ve probably seen or heard an announcer over the loudspeaker or seen an announcement calling for referees.
There are severe staffing shortages across the state and there is a dire need for people to step up to call balls and strikes.
“I’ve heard this before without referees – it’s like a pick-up game,” said WIAA assistant director Kate Peterson Abiad.
“If it weren’t for us referees, there would be no high school sports,” said local referee and vice president of the Fox Cities Officials Association Jim Jones Jr.
Referees who stay on the team love doing this.
“Being around the kids because you remember the times you played sports and the relationships you had with the officials,” said Jamie Thern, a local judge and president of the Fox Cities Officials Association). “You are actually doing community service even though you are being paid.”
How urgent is the need for judges:
“We see referee shortage issues in virtually every sport,” Peterson Abiad said.
“We’re probably just hiding it,” Thern said. “Many officials are 60, 70 years old and are retiring because they take care of their grandchildren. I am 50 years old and one of the younger judges.”
The lack of referees forces many of them to watch more than one match a day.
“We don’t have JV officials or freshmen, so they ask us to stay after our game and play another game because otherwise the kids on the other teams won’t be able to play,” Then said.
“They were being asked to do more,” Peterson Abiad said. “I think it will cause you to leave earlier or get more injured because you can only sustain it for a short time.”
Why is there a shortage? Most of them result from the behavior of parents and/or fans…
“The National Association of Sports Officials conducted a comprehensive survey of thousands of officials across the country and they say the most important issue is adult behavior,” Peterson Abiad said.
They deal with parents or fans this way:
“I called the travel agent and I’m pretty sure it was this kid’s dad. “He came right up to me on the court, dropping ‘F’ bombs,” Jones Jr. said. “I laughed at this guy when they (school) showed him out the door. You just embarrassed your school. You embarrassed your child.
According to the Fox Cities Officials Association, that’s because parents are investing more money into youth sports than ever before.
“The situation is getting out of control,” Thern said. “There’s a lot of specialized training going on these days, and parents expect more from their kids because of the money they’re putting into it, and they want their kids to get that magical scholarship that only some kids get.”
They say this is not only because of the money invested by parents, but also because of a lack of understanding.
“You’re trying to choose between 10 kids who are bigger, faster and stronger than us,” Jones Jr. said. “We are doing everything we can. Many of them simply don’t understand the rules. Pretty good.
And because of this, fewer and fewer people want to become officials.
“It’s hard, both of my children tried to be judges and both of them left because of their parents’ behavior,” Thern said.
Officials want coaches and parents to know they need to try to see things from their perspective
“We take time from our daily lives, from working with our families, and sometimes we take time off from work to play certain games, so sometimes we have to remind ourselves, our parents and our coaches why we are here,” Thern said.
The Fox Cities Officials Association said they spent countless hours recruiting up-to-date officials, which worked, but as they said before, they are just hiding it.
“We need more female referees in softball and girls basketball, as well as more younger people who are in high school or college, and even mothers and fathers whose children are already out of high school and want to officiate.” – Then said.
The WIAA is working with schools to try to get the next generation of officials and students licensing through athletic directors.
“There are over 1,300 high school students registered this year. We hope this will spark an interest in refereeing at a younger age. something they will stick with,” Peterson Abiad said.
