January 2024 - District-13-officers - list2.rodeonetworks.com

Player Agent meeting - Little League
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 31 Jan '24

31 Jan '24

All, We will be having a Player Agent meeting for ALL Player Agents from ALL Leagues in District 13 NEXT WEEK. I'm sending this email to let you all pick which of the two days we will have open to do this - either Tuesday the 6th or Thursday the 8th of Feb. I would like to hold the meeting at 6:30 PM either day. I am planning on holding this via Zoom or Microsoft teams so that all can attend. The presidents of your leagues are welcome to attend. ANY BOARD member is also welcome to attend. The meeting will take approximately 1.5 hours. ALL PLAYER AGENTS ARE REQUIRED TO ATTEND! NO PROXIES ARE ALLOWED. We will be discussing the draft and tryout requirements that are going to be enforced this year, the proper way to draft, and the procedures we will be taking at the District level to ensure all leagues draft properly. The full Agenda is below: 1. Requirement for Draft 2. Who drafts and which divisions require to be drafted 3. Draft options 4. Tryouts 5. Age Restrictions/Out of division players 6. Out of Boundary Players 7. Questions All Little Leagues are required to draft players, but what are the rules? What will we do at the District level in regards to League drafting procedures. IF YOU DO NOT ATTEND THE MEETING, WE WILL NOT BE SIGNING WAIVERS FOR YOUR DISTRICT TEAMS. PLEASE ALL PLAYER AGENTS ATTEND. WE WILL BE CALLING YOU TO CONFIRM YOUR ATTENDANCE. Please email the group by back responding to this email as to which of the two days above work best for you. We will try to accommodate as best we can, but please adjust your schedule so that as a Player Agent for your league, you can be at the meeting. Thanks JP DA WA13

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Update from Weekend Western Region Roundtable #4
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 29 Jan '24

29 Jan '24

Hi All, The next item on the agenda for the Western Region Roundtable is --- Child Abuse. MANDATORY ACTION REQUIRED! Little League is making a big push to help control/monitor/report/detect/stop Child Abuse. We heard some statistics and as you may have guessed, Child abuse is found in every Youth Sports Organization that exists. Little League is working in conjunction with several agencies and organization to develop a plan and practice to eliminate from LL. Why? Well first, it's the right thing to do. In many cases, the only "normal" family abused kids have is their Little League team. the coaches, players, and volunteers are surrogates for a "normal" family. The most startling statistic was the 1 in 4 girls suffer from abuse, and 1 in 6 boys do. Abuse can range from mental, physical, emotional, or sexual abuse. As a board, nearly every state in the union has a requirement to report abuse if it is discovered. Most CPS organizations are specifically set up to immediately take action on reported cases of abuse. So - Little League has NOW MADE IT MANDATORY that ALL volunteers (including the board), team parents, coaches, managers, etc. have an ANNUAL training in detecting and reporting abuse. I have just sent out a statement from Little League about how to get this FREE certification from USA Baseball. There is a certificate issued when the course is completed. The course is approximately 30 minutes long and can be attended at your leisure on-line. ANY Manager and/or coach bringing a team to the All-Star District Tournament must have this certification in their affidavit book. This is in addition to a Diamond Leader training certificate .(the Diamond Leader Training cert can be from as far back as 3 years). Please work with your leagues to ensure that the Child Abuse training is completed, preferably before the season starts. JP DA WA13/Sorta 5

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FW: Important Update for Leagues Utilizing the USA Baseball Abuse Awareness for Adults Training
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 22 Jan '24

22 Jan '24

All, As I found out this past weekend, ALL LEAGUES and ALL VOLUNTEER COACHES, MANAGERS, TEAM PARENTS, CONCESSION WORKERS, AND THE BOARD MUST COMPLETE ANNUAL CHILD ABUSE TRAINING! USA Baseball has a FREE Course and certification --- See below… this needs to be completed EACH year and this year, the training must be in the packet along with your All-Star book… JP DA WA5/13 From: Little League <llinternational(a)littleleague.org> Sent: Monday, January 22, 2024 9:01 AM To: jarel(a)jpiworldwide.com Subject: Important Update for Leagues Utilizing the USA Baseball Abuse Awareness for Adults Training <https://llws2017.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/emails/newbrand/brand-blue-emai…> Dear District and League Official: We hope the start to your 2024 Little League® season is going well!! As part of the continued evolution of the <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e47af5fe443833482e8c56b8ed18d8f9819…> Little League Child Protection Program and our new requirement for all volunteers to complete Abuse Awareness training on an annual basis, we wanted to provide an important update to those leagues that are requiring their volunteers to complete their training through <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e47af5fe4438334811c16bbca754fd077d3…> USA Baseball’s BASE program. After receiving many inquiries from local Little League programs about adding their specific league name to a drop-down menu for easier tracking of their respective volunteers, we have worked with USA Baseball to create the following directions for local Little Leagues to provide to their volunteers. Below you will find instructions to share with coaches and volunteers on how to link their account to their local league and complete the Abuse Awareness for Adults course. For league administrators tracking course progress, they will find all users that link their accounts by using the <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e47af5fe44383348a496fce3c96b110e2c5…> User Directory "Little League-Local League" filter. <https://llws2017.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/emails/newbrand/spacer3.png> Directions for Abuse Awareness for Adults Course Completion--LITTLE LEAGUE: 1. Create an Account or Sign in to <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e47af5fe44383348106b58f959ab2cca928…> USABDevelops.com * Go to <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e47af5fe44383348106b58f959ab2cca928…> USABDevelops.com or download the <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e8afee68dff1691f83d6beb40b43fea9e43…> USA Baseball app in the Apple App Store or <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e8afee68dff1691ff2300c602c004e27379…> Google Play. * Click “Sign in/Register” * Enter all required information * Select your league from the “Little League – Local Leagues” drop-down menu and click “+Join” * If you have an existing account, click your name in the top right corner, select MY ACCOUNT, and then UPDATE MY PROFILE to link your account with your local Little League. 2. Complete Abuse Awareness for Adults course* * Click EDUCATION * Select COURSES * Click “Abuse Awareness for Adults” → “+Enroll” → “Go to Course” * Complete the course *If you have completed the Abuse Awareness for Adults course in the past and need an updated certificate, please select the Restart Course button. * Click your name in the top right corner and select MY ACCOUNT * Select COURSES * Scroll to the Abuse Awareness for Adults course and click RESTART COURSE 3. Download Certificate * Click your name in the top right corner and select MY ACCOUNT * Select COURSES * Scroll to the Abuse Awareness for Adults course and click DOWNLOAD CERTIFICATE Thank you for your support as we work together to provide a safe, welcoming environment for all our participants. Sincerely, Joy Reynolds-McCoy Chief Legal Officer Little League International <https://llws2017.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/emails/newbrand/ll-signature-lo…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e8afee68dff1691fb52957049e0915c1d1e…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e8afee68dff1691fe45bc6593229a3d87d5…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e8afee68dff1691f4afd88a8fddb59d6949…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e8afee68dff1691fdc3e0e215e4244ae59f…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e8afee68dff1691f82964bfcaadaee77c3f…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=e8afee68dff1691fd2736bb2a22d95367ea…> This email was sent by: Little League International 539 US Highway 15 S. Williamsport, PA, 17702, US <http://click.email.littleleague.org/profile_center.aspx?qs=3a57597ca76f4de7…> Update Profile/Unsubscribe | <http://view.email.littleleague.org/ftaf.aspx?qs=94bac333148927c71c336b36f4b…> Forward to a Friend | <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=c1db9ce31a0e89e53dfa6c8f2dbea97c236…> Privacy Policy <https://llws2017.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/emails/newbrand/chalk-line-foot…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/open.aspx?ffcb10-fe8e11727063067476-fe6…>

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Roundtable Discussion - Rule - Central Registration
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 21 Jan '24

21 Jan '24

All, Centralized registration is coming and ALL leagues will be required to use Sports Connect in 2025. My advice. do it now. Why is this? Several features (some of which are in the email about the new "No boundary rules") are coming, but there are new features in Sports Connect to be applied to leagues and players. Why a central registration? For several reasons: 1. To track players better through the "no boundaries" phase of their career with Little League. 2. To offer better support at tournament time with respect to player documentation (affidavits), rosters, and more 3. Consistency in data coming in from League operations 4. Better communications and marketing data 5. More tools for leagues that don't use anything SportsConnect is going through some changes. It's being improved, and more training modules are now available. There are three methos to get FREE training for League volunteers with online webinars, video training, tests, certifications, etc ALL FREE. I have URLs for these training resources, and will publish them in a few days..but with the new training resources SportsConnect will be a better tool than most others.. It has an automatic integration to the data center, and is the most fully featured tool out there for leagues to use. The system will be used as it always has been. no difference at the league level would be noticed. Here are some answers to some of the questions that were asked and answered: Q: Who gets the payments ? A: The league does - as is normal. Payments deposit to your bank account as normal Q: Will Waivers be connected to the players registration record for the whole time of their career with Little League A: Yes, Datacenter information can and will follow the player and be available in SportsConnect, including "red shirt" waivers Q: Do we still set our own fees? A: Yes you set your own fees Q: What about our own forms, questions, volunteer, etc? A: Volunteer forms can now be done in Sports Connect, everything else can be your own and administered through SportsConnect. Q: Can we do "in-person" registrations on paper? A: Yes, but the data will need to be input into SportsConnect after the paper registration is completed. EVERYTHING has to be in SportsConnect before tournament time. This is also one I am happy to see. Some of the features to be utilize will make tournament management easier, league management easier, and improve the quality of the data being developed by the leagues. As I said above, implement SportsConnect NOW and be ready sooner rather later.. Regards JP DA WA5/13

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Little League Roundtable Discussion - Boundaries and Implementation
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 21 Jan '24

21 Jan '24

All, This email is in regards to the Boundary rules and implementation for Little League, what the rule is, and how to implement it… and how to take advantage of it NOW. The rule to be OFFICIALLY implemented in 2025 is this --- “Any player age 4-7 can register in ANY LEAGUE they choose (even across state lines), regardless of boundary. This becomes their official league of record. There is NO boundary enforcement for this age group. Players 8 -16 must follow the boundary rules currently in place and qualify to play in a league either by RESIDENCE or SCHOOL Attendance (same as it is now).” Players may stay in this league they register in (at ages 4-7) for as long as they like and so long as they don’t “break service” they can be qualified to play All-Stars (or the “International TOurament” ) regardless of their residence or school attendance. IF they “break service” and are ages 8 or older they must then register in the league whose boundary they live within or attend school in. So what effect will this have on Registrations, League Growth, and attracting OR LOSING players? First, this rule will make leagues “up their game”. Poorly run leagues will see parents choose to register their younger players in other stronger leagues…. So LEAGUES MUST CONSTANTLY IMPROVE, offer more, and increase divisions to remain relevant to parents. If the league is poorly ran, they will eventually see their new players go elsewhere. Boards will have to be better to keep players. Coaching will need to be better, playing opportunities rich and abundant, league administration transparent and inclusive of all players, and communication to parents top notch. TO this end Little League is offering more training and certification for volunteers including coaching, team parents, league administration, and umpires. The next thing this will do is give parents choices. Especially when you see what the plan is with “Central Registration”… In the future, when someone goes to Little League’s “League Finder” function it is going to give the requester the information on not only the league boundary in which the home address of the interested player is in, but also ALL LEAGUES within 25-50 miles depending on the saturation of leagues in the geographical region and the age of the player. Parents will be given choices. How many leagues can a parent “try” before the player turns 8 years old? As many as they like! So if they register a player at age 4 in one league, they can switch to a different league at age 5, and 6, and 7. So they could be in 4 different leagues before the age of 8. At age 8 they either have to stay in the league they are registered in, OR their residence/school qualified boundary. This makes it interesting… Leagues that FOCUS on T-BALL and/or players under age 8 (t-ball and some coach pitch) will thrive if they have good younger player (t-ball) programs/divisions… which is where league growth comes from! Here is another thing that is possible with this new rule… Say a 4 year old registers in a league where they don’t live… this is OK according to the new rule… THEN what about an older brother or sister? Sibling waivers could be issued to get the older sibling in the same league as the younger sibling, which means players could move into a different league AND qualify for All-Stars… this would allow an older sibling player to “back in to” a different league and still qualify for All-Stars in a league they do not live within the boundary of! Combine that with the feature of the rule in the above paragraph and an older player could actually qualify to play in different All-Star divisions in different leagues for up to 4-5 years, depending on the makeup of the family and the ages of the players. So, this REALLY makes Boards have to get BETTER! IF service is broken or the player is older than 8, then the traditional rule sets in… so this implementation of the rule gives parents options, AND enforces boundaries at the same time… I like this implementation of the rule… it incentivizes leagues to offer more divisions of play, and to focus on the parent/player experience. TO keep your league healthy boards will have to operate to the benefit of EVERY player, or they simply go elsewhere. Officially the rule is in effect in 2025…. But … 😊 This rule enforces quality of operation, gives options, and builds community (but in a different way), and enforces the boundary system where it matters… I’m for this rule and the way it’s implemented. We will have a zoom call to further discuss how this rule can be taken advantage of by leagues… keep an eye out on your email for the invitation to the call. Regards JP

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Update from Western Region Roundtable
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 21 Jan '24

21 Jan '24

All, I will be sending you a series of updates from information I gathered at Western Region this weekend. I am subbing for Brennan and collecting info for him. I wanted to reiterate something that was readily apparent as I sat here with 310 other DAs from the Western Region in that Little League is truly the GOLD standard for youth sports. It's an amazing organization with innovative ideas, great implementation (especially when compared to other large youth sports organizations) an the best goals and objectives of a youth sports organization. It was driven into every part of the sessions that Little League is a youth sports organization that has the sole purpose of teaching positive life lessons to young players using the vehicle of baseball and softball. They also reiterated: 1. Every kid that wants to play, regardless of ability, should get to play 2. Community is everything! 3. Integrity 4. Fun 5. Teamwork Everything else drives this. and truly what makes Little League special and better. Better than anything else out there. I am proud of all of you, and appreciate all of your efforts in building and running your leagues. Over the next few emails I will be sending out details of the various subjects in SEPARATE emails so that they can be distributed by topic and organized better. There was TONS of new information. Here are the basic topics coming in separate emails: 1. Boundary Discussion and new rules - how to implement and administer. 2. Mandatory Tournament Team rosters 3. Mandatory child abuse training, legal aspects. 4. Diamond Leader training 5. State Tournament date adjustments 6. Grants and funding initiatives - money available for leagues 7. Mandatory conversion to Sports Connect 8. Special Age Considerations 9. Umpire resource develop - better recruitment for umpires and ideas 10. New insurance options 11. Mandatory Background Check implementation and rules - JDP I'll send out emails specific to the topics for easier reading and understanding. I also talked with Western Region AGAIN about drafts and requirements for drafts and tryouts. Also met with the DA from Idaho whose District borders the Washington 5 and 13 district. There ARE lots of Intermediate and Juniors teams on the other side of the border along with a growing softball group of teams. so plenty of play options. The Idaho folks are ready to play any division across the border with us and are interested in any of the season tournaments we talked about in our Winter meetings. Thanks for all your work --- we have some good stuff coming! Regards JP DA WA5/13

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LL Western Region Roundtable Update #1
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 19 Jan '24

19 Jan '24

All, I am at the Western Region Roundtable meetings at the moment, getting the latest from Little League International. There are a couple hundred DAs here from across the west region. with MUCH to discuss. First things first though. There is a "non-compliance" list published by LL International about Leagues not performing to standards in various aspects of the League Policies, rules, and guidelines. And surprise, D13 has a league on that list. I will be speaking with that league president via email to correct the issue(s). however, please PLEASE understand that there are Little League requirements based on your charter, and you need to follow those rules and guidelines to maintain charter, which means insurance and affiliation rights/privileges. As the meetings go on, I will post regular updates to this forum, letting you know of the significant developments that WILL be announced during this session. This is a biennial meeting held in the Western Region. The chairman of the Little League International Board is here, as well as all region officials, and the President and CEO of Little League is here to give some insight on the future of Little League and is hosting some sessions. I have already met with the Region officials (Kit, Andrew, and Jake) and some of our fellow Washington State DAs and the Washington State DA Director . it promises to be a fruitful weekend. Meetings are all day today, and tomorrow. I will also send information on some DISCOUNT programs by some of the vendor sponsors, and I am taking pictures of all the QR codes for special deals. and collecting brochures. (Saw some cool new trophy items!!!) Expect 2-4 more updates as the Roundtables progress. We have our State DA meeting on Saturday night where we will look at adjusting the State Tournament cycle.and dates for 2024. so we may be throwing out some of the dates already established last fall, and inserting new ones. Regards JP

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Western Region Meeting - JP going...
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 16 Jan '24

16 Jan '24

All, The semi-annual (Bi-annual?) Western Region roundtable meeting is this weekend in Anaheim California. It is on Friday and Saturday. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss upcoming changes and get feedback from DAs regarding a variety of topics dealing with Little League issues. This is setting up to be a reasonably "fervent" meeting as there are several "hotter" topics being discussed. Little League is paying for the room(s) in California for all DAs in Attendance, but not the travel, or meals other than the stuff provided during the round table. I will be attending this meeting - I will charge back the airfare, rental car and one or two meals not provided by LL to the District. Are there any topics you wish me to bring up to the executive management of Little League? (Since the West region is one of the most. dynamic. in Little League, folks from Williamsport will be there).. I am happy to voice legitimate league impacting things to the executives and for discussion during the open forums on your behalf. Please let me know in the next 24-48 hours as to any concerns you wish me to raise with the appropriate folks. I will give you a full report upon my return. Regards JP DA WA13

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Little LEague - Unclaimed Property
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 16 Jan '24

16 Jan '24

All, Tonya Henry suggested that all DAs should have each of their leagues go to <https://ucp.dor.wa.gov/> WA Unclaimed Property and search for their league name. There appears to be a lot of Washington State Little Leagues that are owed money by the state. I have reports from other leagues in other districts in Washington that are owed money. You might also check just "Little League" in addition to leagues by name. Some have found a couple of those entries with the address of one of the former presidents of a league in a Washington District. JP District 13 DA

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Launching Today: The T-Mobile Little League Call Up Grant
by jarel＠jpiworldwide.com 11 Jan '24

11 Jan '24

All, See below from Grant Funding for families in need… JP From: Little League <llinternational(a)littleleague.org> Sent: Thursday, January 11, 2024 10:31 AM To: jarel(a)jpiworldwide.com Subject: Launching Today: The T-Mobile Little League Call Up Grant <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=0ac6265a3f58869d0c25fcbeedab0719843…> Little League® District and League Volunteers, As we head into the 2024 season, we are excited to share that <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=0ac6265a3f58869dae17e68bb8f3978ef28…> T-Mobile Little League Call Up Grant is back to help cover registration fees for Little League families in need. T-Mobile and Little League share the belief that every child should have the chance to experience Little League, regardless of their financial or personal situation. Many families face financial constraints and economic challenges, which has made it difficult for their children to make their way on to a Little League field. However, Little League firmly believes that payment shouldn't be a prerequisite for participation and that it's important to find a way to allow children to play the game. Visit <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=0ac6265a3f58869d948c9e491bdc3c17ae3…> LittleLeague.org/CallUpGrant to learn more about the program, including how to apply, as well as <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=0ac6265a3f58869dd936e1957910e1104dd…> downloadable resources to help promote this program within your community to encourage new families to join including: letter to the community, social media posts, website graphics, customizable flyers, and an email header. Financially challenged families in communities across the country with proof the child is currently receiving Medicaid benefits, SNAP or WIC may be eligible to receive a <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=0ac6265a3f58869da58098c90747b25f42f…> T-Mobile Little League Call Up Grant, so long as funding is available. Please note, documents will need to include the child's name and eligibility/issued dates (within the last 12 months or have a future expiration date) verifying their low-income status in order to complete the application. Physical cards for Medicaid, SNAP or WIC that do not provide current dates and the child's name will not be accepted. The program offers a simple-to-use online <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=0ac6265a3f58869d9f92ece3d374f74597c…> application to get and keep children on the field. Prior to applying, families should identify their local league by visiting <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc1da1a6ef015c0ce37eaf…> PlayLittleLeague.org, then reach out to their league for more information about registration dates and fees. If families have already paid and registered for the 2024 season, they should work with their league to have their payment reimbursed. Please update contact information on the <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc15c88ce3dcf87a9c11ce…> Little League Data Center for your league's President, Player Agent, and Treasurer. These league officers will be notified via email using the information provided the first time a grant has been awarded for a player in your league and it is important that this is up to date. Similar to 2023, payment will be provided directly to the family in need (to maintain confidentiality) via electronic debit card with restrictions for use only for registration fees. We are extremely grateful to T-Mobile for their incredible support of the Little League program and for sharing this passion for offering every kid the chance to experience Little League. Play Ball, Little League International The T-Mobile Little League Call Up Grant is administered by <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc1ee667692399dc0a61bd…> Every Kid Sports. <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc16ba3abed67bd4a1de64…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc139e545ad51d73752a2d…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc14591133700ef7e0e80f…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc194b158039c3d8cdbd68…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc176b65d96c132e90c046…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=23b4849643996bc161b951ce12f927766b0…> This email was sent by: Little League International 539 US Highway 15 S. Williamsport, PA, 17702, US <http://click.email.littleleague.org/profile_center.aspx?qs=3a57597ca76f4de7…> Update Profile/Unsubscribe | <http://view.email.littleleague.org/ftaf.aspx?qs=2296f0f268cf49454cd6b33fefd…> Forward to a Friend | <http://click.email.littleleague.org/?qs=3dfd7358c8f21793669b7c8bd5632b01d97…> Privacy Policy <https://llws2017.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/emails/newbrand/chalk-line-foot…> <http://click.email.littleleague.org/open.aspx?ffcb10-fe9411727067057873-fe6…>

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