Upward 2015 Season Frequently Asked Questions

Transcription

1 Upward 2015 Season Frequently Asked Questions Q What grades and leagues does the program include this year? A - This year the basketball and cheerleading program includes grades K-4 th. The basketball leagues will be as follows: Kindergarten (co-ed) 1 st -2 nd grade boys 1 st -2 nd grade girls 3 rd -4 th boys 3 rd -4 th girls. Q How many teams will there be? A There will be 48 teams total (10 players to each team), which is our maximum capacity. In order to accommodate that many teams, we will have 12 hours of games each Saturday game day. The first games will start at 8 am and the last games will start at 7 pm. Q What are the practice days and times? A Practices are one hour per week and are at the following times: Mondays: 5:30 pm, 6:30 pm and 7:30 pm Tuesdays: 5:00 pm, 6:00 pm and 7:00 pm Wednesdays: 5:30 pm, 6:30 pm and 7:30 pm Fridays: 4:00 pm, 5:00 pm and 6:00 pm (youngest teams will be assigned the earliest times) Q What time are the games on Saturdays for each league? A Kindergarten games are at: 8am, 9am, 10am, and 11am. 1 st -2 nd Boys games are at: 8am, 9am, 10am, 11am, Noon, 1pm, 2pm, 3pm and 4pm 1 st -2 nd Girls games are at: Noon, 1pm and 2pm 3 rd -4 th Boys games are at: 3pm, 4pm 5pm, 6pm and 7pm 3 rd -4 th Girls games are at: 3pm, 4pm, 5pm,, 6pm and 7pm Q When does registration actually start on Monday, October 13th? A Registration starts Monday, October 13 th, 2014 at 8:00 am. All registration will be done on-line. To register, go to and click on Click Here to Register. Last year we were more than half full after the first day of registration and this year we are expecting an even faster response, so please register as early as possible. Q What is the cut-off birthdate for your Kindergarten League? A If your child turns 5 years old before 12/1/14, he or she is eligible for our Kindergarten League. Sorry, we no longer make exceptions, because we have made them in past seasons and moved the cut-off back just as far as we feel is appropriate.

2 Q What is the purpose of the Basketball Evaluations? A To have each player fitted for their uniform and to have their height measured, to attend a 10-minute orientation if the family is new to Upward, and to participate in a fun set of 3 skill drills (including shooting, dribbling and defensive slide). Player s combined scores together with their height is recorded into our Upward League Manager computer program so that when teams are drafted, the teams are as fair and balanced as possible. Attendance at an Evaluation is mandatory! Q How will we know which Evaluation to come to, the 1 st or the 2 nd? A The first 280 players registered will be invited to the 1st Evaluation and the remaining registered players plus any players who could not make the 1st Evaluation, will be invited to come to the second Evaluation. A mass will be sent out to all registered player s families with a list of the first 280 players registered prior to the first Evaluation. Q Can my daughter register for both basketball and cheer? A Yes, if your daughter is interested in participating in both activities you can register her for both. Cheer coaches will need to make accommodation in their cheer schedules so that they don t conflict with basketball game schedules for any girls participating in both. Q Is there a practice night exclusion offered? A Yes, in the registration process, we allow you to name a night that you prefer NOT to have a practice because it is in conflict with Church, an educational activity or another sport. Q I am registering more than one child for Upward and they will not be playing in the same league. Can their practices be on the same night? A Please accept the fact that, more than likely, they will not be assigned practice on the same night or at the same time. Q Can my child be placed on a team with other kids from his school? A We don t form teams based on where players attend school, in fact we don t even ask for that information when you register. We also are not able to honor special requests for team placement. However, we do offer a carpool link, where your child can be paired with a friend who you would like to carpool with, provided the link is reciprocal. Q How does the carpool link work? A You can pair your son or daughter up with a friend by using the carpool link during the registration process. If they are successfully linked, they will be drafted to the same team. If you choose to utilize the carpool link, enter only one friend s name on the carpool link line (first and last name spelled correctly) for the son or daughter you are registering. That friend must be the same grade and gender. In order for the carpool

3 link to be activated, the friend you name must also have your son or daughter named on their carpool link. That makes the link reciprocal so that it will activate. This will require coordinating with the other family before completing your registration. If multiple names are listed, the link will not activate. If you register and then later want to change carpool link information, it will need to be changed for you administratively. to request a change. Q Are there scholarships offered and if so, how do I register and request one? A Yes, we offer partial scholarships in the amount of $60 for financial hardship. Since registration can fill up very fast, we have had to change our procedure to protect players that need scholarships. The new process is as follow: First, you go online and register and pay the full registration fee using a credit card like everyone else. This insures your son or daughter is registered and in the system and not on a "pending registration" list waiting for scholarship approval and to send a check in for partial payment, as in past years. Second, after you have registered, your request for a partial scholarship, explaining the nature of your financial hardship, to davidcookupward@gmail.com. Our Board will then review your request and make a determination to approve or not and send an to notify you as soon as possible. If approved, we will process a partial refund to your credit card in the amount of the partial scholarship. If not approved, your choice will be to continue on having paid the full registration amount or request to drop out and receive a full refund. Scholarship funds are limited, so we may not be able to grant every request. Q Since Upward is sponsored by Mountain Park Church, is there a faith component? A Yes, Upward incorporates the learning of virtues each season based on scripture verses (a group activity) that takes place during a brief 8-10 minute devotion shared by the coach at the half time of each weekly practice. Upward provides cards to the players with the information to be learned. Upward also has its referees lead the teams in a prayer before each game. During the games, half time speakers share 3-4 minute personal testimonies or experiences in the gym while the teams are in their team rooms. Upward has a recognition program following each game in the team room called Star Awards. Players are awarded a colored star by their coaches representing a particular achievement for that game. The Blue Star is for effort, the Gold star is for sportsmanship, the Gray star is for offense, the red star is for defense and the White Star is for Christlikeness (for example: an act of kindness to another player). A green star is also given for the practice devotion participation each week at practice. These stars are designed to be ironed on the sleeves of the practice t-shirts. At the end of the season there will be 10 green stars and 8 colored stars total, so a suggestion is to iron green stars on one sleeve and the colored stars on the other. Following the last game day on a Monday night, we bring in a big stage and 1000 chairs to our gym and hold our season-ending Celebration Night for our players, cheerleaders and their families. Featured is a Christian entertainer who entertains and delivers a gospel message at the end of the performance.

4 Q Can you tell me more about parent volunteers becoming an Upward Coach? A We encourage parents to volunteer to coach their son or daughter s team. When registering, there is a volunteer section to indicate that a parent is willing to volunteer to coach. Upward strives to have one coach (head coach) and at least one assistant coach for every basketball team. With 10 players on each team, that means that 20% or more of all families need to provide a coach volunteer. Upward has lots of resource material to help make coaching not only enjoyable, but also rewarding. These resources include a great Coaches website with practice plans and videos, a Coaches Handbook, a Coaches training session and an Upward Basketball Coach App that can be downloaded from i-tunes for just $1.00. It keeps track of your line-ups, substitutions, star awards and makes it all so easy to do. For Cheerleading, the same holds true we strive to have one coach and one assistant coach for each cheer team and typically the cheer teams are 8 members, so that means 25% of all cheer families need to provide a coach volunteer. Parents who are volunteering to coach can request to coach with up to 2 other coach volunteers. 3 coaches per team is the limit. Q If I want to coach, how do I apply? A All coach volunteers are required to fill out a Coach Application and a Background Check form online by going to for those forms (either MS Word or PDF). The Word document can be filled out online, saved and ed as an attachment to davidcookupward@gmail.com The PDF file can be scanned and ed or printed out and mailed to: Upward Basketball, Mountain Park Church, 40 McNary Parkway, Lake Oswego, OR is preferred. Forms are due no later than October 29 th please. This only takes 10 minutes or less! Q Do you need volunteers to work the Concession Area? A Yes, indeed we do! When registering, there is a section to indicate if you are willing to work one or more 2 hour shifts in the Concession Area. There are lots of shifts to man and 8 game days, so we greatly appreciate your willingness to volunteer. You will be working each shift with at least one or two other volunteers. Teenage siblings are welcome to come with you to work too. No prior experience needed. Q Is there a Wait List and how does it work? A Yes, when leagues fill up we will run wait lists for those leagues, based on chronological order of registration. If you happen to register a child for a league that is full, you will be charged the registration fee when you register and your confirmation will show at the bottom in red letters that your child is on a Wait List. If space opens, up through the first week of practices in January, you will be notified that your son or daughter is cleared to fill that spot. Any child who does not make it onto a team, their registration fee will be fully refunded. Families who have players on the Wait List can look into other leagues for their players to play in, and can drop out and be refunded at any time before an opening becomes available for their player. Sorry, players on the Wait List are not invited to Evaluations. If they do make a team, we will

5 be in touch by to get uniform sizing information. To check status of Wait List position, you can to: