At the 2022 USA Volleyball Hall of Fame ceremony at the Dorothy C. Boyce Banquet on May 25 in Orlando, Fla, John Hughes was awarded the Dr. Neville A. “Doc” Booth Commissioner’s Award and inducted into the USA Volleyball Hall of Fame.

Named in honor of Dr. Neville A. “Doc” Booth, the first USA Volleyball commissioner of regions and former commissioner of Region 1, now known as the New England Regional Volleyball Association. This award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to volleyball and USA Volleyball through the office of regional commissioner and/or as vice president of the Regional Operations Division and/or chair of the Regional Volleyball Association Assembly.

Congratulations to John for the award and everything he has contributed to WEVA!

This does not affect the WEVA membership cost. This is specifically for the AVCA membership.

At the recent AVCA Board of Directors meeting, held May 17-18 in Lexington, the Board had a robust discussion about navigating through the pandemic and advancing to the current level of recovery as a professional membership association.

Engaging our community of coaches to “make volleyball matter” lies in our ability to continue to maintain and develop events and experiences, coaching education content, industry resources, partnerships, and recognition opportunities—all designed to help you grow as a coach, mentor, and leader.

With 40 years behind us, the AVCA enters our fifth decade of existence with a laser focus on advocacy and the mission to advance the sport of volleyball at all levels across all disciplines.

To fund the Association’s vision for our community, the Board of Directors unanimously approved a dues increase of $10 for college coaches and $5 for high school/interscholastic coaches, club coaches, support, and student membership categories starting on July 1, 2022. Institutional and organizational membership categories will increase, as well (see table). The last dues adjustment took effect July 1, 2018.

The new dues increase will help the AVCA continue to provide timely and relevant services and programming to advance you as a volleyball coach and leader. We hope you will find that value proposition worth your investment. Thank you for being a part of our community or considering it.

AVCA membership is always in season! Your season is NOW

Improving your volleyball skills takes time, focus and commitment on and off the court. It also takes the dedication and knowledge of skilled coaches and mentors to help you see and realize your true potential. With the right tools and support, you can accelerate your development, improve your skills and pursue your volleyball path – whether that’s making the best team in town, earning a college scholarship or standing atop the Olympic or Paralympic podium.

We are proud to announce that as of today, Friday, May 27, USA Volleyball members now have access to direct instruction from U.S. National Team coaches, athletes and support staff through the National Team Development Program (NTDP) Academy.

The NTDP Academy is an innovative online learning experience based on the USA Volleyball Development Model and developed to give you the tools to reach your potential in volleyball.

Here is what’s included in your NTDP Academy access:

• More than 38 courses and 204 modules
• Skills, techniques and strategy from U.S. National Team coaches including Karch Kiraly and John Speraw
• Advice and motivation from the experiences of National Team members including Erik Shoji, April Ross and Jordan Larson
• Expertise in nutrition, strength training & conditioning in addition to topics such as mindset, mental health and how to be a great teammate

At USA Volleyball, we’re committed to putting the safety, development and well-being of athletes like you first and we’re excited to offer you unlimited access to the NTDP Academy at no additional cost ($150 value).

Learn more about the NTDP Academy and see the lineup of instructors and topics.

Start learning now by accessing NTDP Academy courses in the USA Volleyball Academy through your SportsEngine account. If you need help, follow these steps.

Access is valid for full members for the duration of each USA Volleyball membership season (Sept. 1-Aug. 31).

USA Volleyball is pleased to announce that Minneapolis will host the 2025 Boys Junior National Championship on July 3-10 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

As was previously announced, the 2023 BJNC will be June 29-July 6 in Salt Lake City and the 2024 BJNC will go to Dallas on June 26-July 3.

The BJNC is the United States’ premier junior boys club tournament for athletes ages 12-18 and attracts the most elite athletes and college scouts from across the country. It is an opportunity for athletes to reconnect with friends and make new ones who share their love of the sport.

“Minneapolis has long been one of our most popular event destinations,” said USA Volleyball President and CEO Jamie Davis. “I know our athletes and their families and fans will enjoy their time in this great Midwestern city.”

The 46th edition of the BJNC is expected to bring thousands of athletes, coaches and supporters to Minneapolis resulting in an economic boost.

“Sports Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Convention Center have a rich tradition of hosting national volleyball tournaments and we are excited to add to that legacy by hosting the 2025 USA Volleyball Boys Junior Nationals,” said Matt Meunier, director of Sports Minneapolis. “We look forward to welcoming thousands of boys’ volleyball players, coaches and fans to our city and showcasing everything that Minneapolis has to offer during our spectacular summer season.”

Among the current Men’s National Team players who have competed at the Boys Junior Nationals are Olympians Matt Anderson, Micah Christenson, T.J. DeFalco, Kyle Ensing, Max Holt and Erik Shoji.

Upcoming National Championship Events:
2022 Open National Championship: May 27-June 1 in Orlando, Fla.
2022 Girls Junior National Championship: June 23-July 4 in Indianapolis, ind.
2022 Boys Junior National Championship: June 30-July 7 in Las Vegas, Nev.
2022 Beach National Championship: July 26-28 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
2022 Beach Club Championship: July 29-31 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
2023 Girls 18s National Championship: April 28-30 in Columbus, Ohio
2023 Open National Championship: May 26-31 in Dallas, Texas
2023 Boys Junior National Championship: June 29-July 6 in Salt Lake City, Utah
2024 Boys Junior National Championship: June 26-July 3 in Dallas, Texas
2025 Boys Junior National Championship: July 3-10 in Minneapolis

USA Volleyball will host its 2022 Beach National Championship on July 26-28 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The USA Volleyball Beach National Championship is an annual event for female and male players in the age categories 12-and-under, 14U, 16U and 18U. In 2021, more than 400 beach teams competed at the championship in Fort Lauderdale.

Registration for the Beach National Championship is now open until July 22 for three divisions of competition: the Open Division, the American Division, and the Patriot Division.

The Open and American Divisions require teams to have earned a bid for that division. The Patriot Division does not require a bid.

Teams that currently do not have a bid are welcome to register in the Patriot Division to secure a spot in the tournament and begin arranging their travel plans. Should a team earn a bid at a Regional or National Qualifier, it can send an email to BeachEvents@usav.org with the bid invitation code and it will be moved into the appropriate division.

For more information, please select HERE

To all WEVA members: at least 18 years old as of March 1, 2022

WEVA will be seeking nominations starting March 1, 2022 for candidates interested in the following WEVA Board of Directors positions:

• Junior Coordinator
• Growth and Development Coordinator
• Beach Representative

To run for election to three (3) year terms starting in 2022.

Please send all replies to Michael Trznadel.

As we move forward in 2022 and beyond, it is critical that WEVA’s Board play a vital role in the growth and development of our Region. If you or someone you know possesses the background and skills to join the leadership of this 501c (3) membership organization, please respond back to me by April 2, 2022. Once the Governance Committee has verified the willingness and good standing of the submitted candidates, a general election will be held of the WEVA membership of eligible voters later in the month of April, 2022.

As stated in the WEVA By-Laws:

Article III. BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 3.01 Function / Number: The Board shall manage WEVA affairs.
01b) All members of the Board must remain in good standing throughout their terms of office with WEVA.
Section 3.02 Nominations: Individuals who choose to run for a Board position shall submit their name to the Vice President for the Governance committee. The Governance committee will ensure conformance by petitioners with the qualifications, per Sections 3.01b and 3.01c. The Governance committee will make every effort to ensure that there are no less than two (2) candidates nominated for each board position that is open to election. An appeal of an adverse decision by the Governance committee may be made to the total Board of Directors whose decision shall be final. A member may run for only one position on the Board per election.
02a) Current Members of WEVA, at least 18 years of age at the time of the election, in good standing are eligible to elect Members of the Board of Directors.
02b) Elections shall be conducted by the Board and shall be by a plurality of the votes cast. Board members shall hold office for a term of 3 years until the Annual Meeting of Members and the election of their respective successors. Ballots may be cast in person, by mail, by e-mail, or by website.

Officer Positions and Descriptions:

Junior Coordinator:
Coordinate Junior matters within the Board of Directors. Lead the Junior Committee which contains the Boys Rep and Girls Rep.

Growth and Development Coordinator:
The nominee must be actively involved with USA Volleyball within the region. They will represent WEVA members at-large at all Regional meetings (and national meetings as necessary). Position will focus on program development including both youth and adult volleyball and USA High Performance.

Beach Representative:
Actively involved with USA Volleyball Beach programs and represents the beach players of the WEVA at Regional and National Meetings.

Michael Trznadel
WEVA Board Vice President
716-861-5290

WEVA Club Coaches,

Over the past two seasons, our region has lost a number of officials due to the pandemic, age or just life circumstances. There will be times at upcoming regional tournaments when work teams will require one of our coaches (or even qualified players) to get up on the ladder and officiate a match. In order to maintain a standard of professionalism, the tournament directors would like to share the best mini course on officiating we have found and how to access it through your Sports Engine membership account.

PLEASE take 17 minutes to go through the correct procedures on officiating a match. It is our recommendation that you NOT "Pre-Quiz" out of the module and that you actually listen to each section. To be honest... It will certainly help keep things running smooth at events and might even keep parents and/or other coaches "off your back" if we can maintain some consistency when switching between work teams and certified officials.

The process for finding and taking on-line education classes which will help to understand each of the work team duties is below. This is the same process your players can use to take modules on official score keeping, second official and libero tracking. This is best done on a laptop or desktop computer.

1. Log into your Sports Engine account
2. In the left side Menu list under your name click "Household" (then you should see all people associated with your account if you are a player or parent)
3. Click on the box of the person's name who will be taking the on-line classes. (This person/coach should already be registered with WEVA and USA Volleyball)
4. You should now be viewing your Profile Information. On the right side of the page click "View Details" at the bottom of either the "Western Empire Volleyball" box or the "USA Volleyball" box.
5. You should now be able to view a list of either "Memberships" or "Credentials"
6. Select "Credentials" - then click either the blue "USAV Academy" button at the top right OR "Launch" the USAV Academy.
7. This will now open another web tab/page showing a new dashboard. Read the pop up and continue to your dashboard... it should Welcome you by name at the top.
8. In the left side menu column, click "Content Library"
9. Scroll down and click on the Course "WE22_101 Junior Athlete Officiating Training"
10. From here you will see a list of training materials and courses geared for junior players.
11. Scroll down and click on "104q_Junior First Referee w/Quiz"
12. Remember that we recommend taking the full course and NOT taking the Pre-Quiz. Click on the buttons to answer questions or "PREV" or "NEXT" until the course is complete. If you do not have time to finish the course you can "x Exit" and log back in at another time to complete it.

One item that is different from the training module will be the warm times after a team's first match. The pre-match warm up time changes from 2-4-4 to 1-3-3 which is 1 minute of shared court time (during your captains meeting) followed by 3 minutes on the court for each team.

These modules are a great way to learn parts of the game that new players or coaches may not be familiar with so thank you for your attention and time on this.

Frank Cwiklinski and the collective group of WEVA Region tournament directors

Dear USAV Club Directors,

First and foremost, thank you for being part of USA Volleyball. We are proud to say that every member of USAV, from clubs to regions to the national teams, contributes to make volleyball the fastest growing sport in America.

We recognize the significance of your membership, the importance of your club in delivering quality programming to players and families, and the comfort of knowing your players are participating in a safe environment.

This letter is an invitation to you as a USAV club director to participate in a Junior Club Forum slated for early February. The forums are scheduled as follows:
- USAV Boys Club Director Forum: Feb. 7, 2022, 4-5:30 p.m. CST
- USAV Girls Club Director Forum: Feb. 8, 2022, 4-5:30 p.m. CST
We would like to cover topics of importance and/or concerns to you as club directors as well as engage in the forum. We have set up an email (listed below) for topics or questions to be submitted for inclusion in the forum. RSVP to forum HERE.

As of today, we plan to cover several topics but are not limited to these examples:
- USAV’s Member Management System
- Key topics impacting girls qualifiers, boys bid tournaments and junior nationals
- Coaching education programming
- Future forum and Junior Assembly* structure recommendations

We hope you will be able to attend. We want to ensure quality access to a live session so please RSVP by Feb. 2.

Submit questions or concerns for the agenda to ClubDirectorForum@usav.org. Please submit questions by Jan. 24.

Thank you in advance for your participation in this USAV Junior Forum.

Dave Gentile
Chair, USAV Junior Assembly

*The USAV Junior Assembly is the organization’s oversight group representing Junior Clubs from across the country. The membership is made up of 2 representatives from each USAV Region

USA Volleyball has selected Salt Lake City to host the 2023 Boys Junior National Championship (BJNC) on June 29-July 6 at the Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center.

The BJNC is the United States’ premier junior boys club tournament for athletes ages 12-18 and attracts the most elite athletes and college scouts from across the country.

The 44th edition of the BJNC is expected to bring thousands of athletes, coaches and supporters to Salt Lake City resulting in an economic boost.

USA Volleyball has selected Las Vegas to host the 2022 Boys Junior National Championship (BJNC) on June 30-July 7 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.

The BJNC is the United States’ premier junior boys club tournament and attracts the most elite athletes and college scouts from across the country.

The 43rd annual BJNC will bring thousands of athletes, coaches, officials, staff and spectators to Las Vegas. A total of 17 championships will be decided in age groups from 12-and-under to 18-and-under.

It is the second time that Las Vegas will host a major USA Volleyball event. It hosted the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship in 2021.

“We are excited to bring USA’s most prestigious boys volleyball championship to Las Vegas in 2022” said Jamie Davis President and CEO of USA Volleyball. “The teams competing will be the best in the country and I am sure that they will enjoy the energy and excitement of playing in one of the world’s top destination cities.”

“We’re thrilled to welcome the USA Volleyball Boys Junior National Championship to Las Vegas, and we’re confident the players, families, coaches and staff will have an unforgettable, only-in-Vegas experience,” said Lisa Motley, senior director of sports marketing & special events at the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. “Last year, we successfully hosted our first event for USA Volleyball, and we’re proud that an organization of this caliber has chosen to return to Las Vegas with another event. We look forward to continuing to grow our relationship with USA Volleyball, and we can’t wait to welcome them back to the Sports and Entertainment Capital of the World.”

Among the current Men’s National Team players who have competed at the Boys Junior Nationals are Olympians Micah Christenson, T.J. DeFalco, Taylor Sander, Erik Shoji and Kawika Shoji.

USA Volleyball will live stream all courts from the BJNC as part of its partnership with BallerTV, so family and friends who cannot attend the event in person can watch on their favorite device.

The 2021 USA All-Star Championships was produced by the regions of USA Volleyball and hosted by the Florida Region of USA Volleyball at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL. The inaugural event featured all-star teams from ten of the forty Regions of USA Volleyball and two teams from the Federation of Puerto Rico. The teams competed in six divisions for girls and three divisions for boys. Delegations included Arizona, Badger, Florida, Gulf Coast, Iowa, North Country, Oklahoma, Old Dominion, Puerto Rico, Southern, and Western Empire. Nine out of the eleven delegations were awarded medals.

Total Medal Count:
Florida – 2 Gold, 3 Silver, 1 Bronze (6)
Southern – 1 Gold, 1 Silver, 2 Bronze (4)
Iowa – 2 Gold, 1 Silver (3)
Arizona – 1 Gold, 1 Silver (2)
Western Empire – 1 Gold, 1 Silver (2)
Puerto Rico – 1 Gold, 1 Bronze (2)
Oklahoma – 2 Bronze (2)
Badger – 2 Bronze (2)
Gulf Coast – 1 Silver (1)

Boys National Youth Division (Born in 2003 or 2004):
1st Place – WEVA Youth – Blue (Western Empire Region)
2nd Place – WEVA Youth – Red (Western Empire Region)
3rd Place – San Juan VC 18U (San Juan Volleyball Club)
All-Tournament Team: Kyle Zelasko (Western Empire), Carter Dittman (Western Empire), Casey Jackson (Western Empire), Billy Wieberg (Western Empire), Dylan McFadden (Western Empire), Antonio Feliciano (San Juan)
MVP: Cole Ignaszak (Western Empire)

USA Volleyball has launched the NTDP Academy for athletes, coaches and parents as part of the National Team Development Program (NTDP).

NTDP Academy is a subscription-based curriculum offering access to courses featuring video-based presentations and exclusive content from a lineup of expert instructors, including U.S. National Team athletes and coaches as well as sports performance, medicine, and psychology professionals.

The program will feature Olympic and Paralympic athletes and medalists, including U.S Women’s National Team athletes and Tokyo 2020 gold medalists Haleigh Washington and Kelsey Robinson as well as U.S. Women’s Beach National Team member and three-time medalist April Ross. Danielle Scott (five-time Olympian, two-time silver medalist) and Tayyiba Haneef-Park (three-time Olympian, two-time silver medalist) are also included in the star-studded lineup with U.S. Men’s National Team athletes Erik Shoji and David Smith, and Paralympic gold medalists Katie Holloway, Nicky Nieves and Sydney Satchell.

The program is centered on the core developmental philosophy of the NTDP across five pillars: Craft, Body, Mind, Heart and Team. Within each of these pillars, young athletes will have the opportunity to receive high-level instruction on volleyball skills and systems while also benefiting from additional content to improve mental toughness, emotional well-being, strength and conditioning, nutrition and more.

Technical topics and expertise in areas such as mindset and learning are presented by U.S. National Team coaches including Karch Kiraly, Erin Virtue, Tama Miyashiro, Mike Wall, Matt Fuerbringer, Nate Ngo, Tyler Hildebrand, Patty Dodd and Jordan Cheng.

“We are thrilled to roll out the National Team Development Program Academy. This is such an incredible opportunity for athletes and coaches to supplement their learning by hearing from our National Team athletes and staff”, said U.S. Women’s National Team Assistant Coach Erin Virtue. “Our teaching philosophy within NTDP is to educate the complete athlete; within the academy, athletes will be able to choose their own adventure and work on their mind, body, heart, craft and team. A huge thanks for all who have contributed to this academy – including recent gold medalists from our U.S. Women’s Beach and Indoor National Teams.”

The NTDP Academy will be accessible through the USAV Academy learning management system. Subscriptions are available for $135 for USA Volleyball members and $150 for non-members, valid for one full membership year. Throughout the year, subscribers will get access to new content and can access coursework at their own pace.

For more information, please select HERE.

USA Volleyball has selected Phoenix and the Phoenix Convention Center to host the 2022 USAV Girls 18s National Championship on April 22-24.

The Girls 18s event is in its sixth year as a stand-alone national championship. The 2022 edition will include two new qualifying divisions that will increase the team count to more than 350 teams.

“We look forward to bringing the USAV Girls 18s National Championship to Phoenix for the first time,” said USAV Events Director Kristy Cox. “Phoenix has been a great partner for us on past events and we know our athletes and their families will enjoy the city.”

The Phoenix Convention Center has previously hosted the USAV Boys Junior National Championship and the USAV Open National Championship.

“Phoenix is excited to again welcome USA Volleyball and their incredible athletes, coaches, staff and supporters to the Valley of the Sun in 2022 as the host city for the Girls 18s Junior National Championship,” said Chris Robertson, Director of National Accounts for Visit Phoenix. “We have enjoyed a long and successful partnership with USA Volleyball over the years. Having the opportunity to host another important tournament here in downtown Phoenix strengthens that partnership even further.”

Qualifying events for the Girls 18s National Championship are expected to begin in January and run through March.

In 2021, 266 teams with approximately 3,300 athletes competed at Girls 18s in Columbus, Ohio.

USA Volleyball has selected Orlando, Florida to host the 2022 USA Volleyball Open National Championship, May 27-June 1, 2022. The event was last held in Orlando in 2016 with a record number of 578 teams in attendance. USA Volleyball also operates the Sunshine Classic Girls Junior National Qualifier annually in Orlando in early spring.

“USA Volleyball is thrilled to be bringing the USA Volleyball Open National Championship back to Orlando in 2022,” said Jamie Davis, USA Volleyball president and CEO. “Visit Orlando, the Greater Orlando Sports Commission, and the Orange County Convention Center always prove to be wonderful hosts for our athletes, officials, coaches and fans. I am sure that in addition to experiencing the best volleyball has to offer in the United States that our group will thoroughly enjoy their stay in the destination.”

USA Volleyball will hold its annual meetings in Orlando ahead of the event and celebrate annual inductees and award honorees at the USA Volleyball Hall of Fame presented at the Dorothy C. Boyce Banquet on May 25.

“We look forward to welcoming the 2022 USA Volleyball Open National Championship and corporate annual meetings to Orlando in May of next year,” said Casandra Matej, president and CEO of Visit Orlando. “Orlando has been successfully and safely hosting in-person group events since reopening over a year ago. From professional sports to youth tournaments, sports tourism has been an important force in our destination's recovery, and we are thrilled that USA Volleyball has selected Orlando for their event next year.” 

“We are so pleased to welcome our good friends at USA Volleyball back to Orlando for the 2022 Open National Championship, banquet and corporate meetings in May of 2022.  Our community has a long history of hosting premier volleyball events, and we know that our guests and their families will have a tremendous experience while visiting us in Central Florida,” said Jason Siegel, president and CEO of the Greater Orlando Sports Commission.

About USA Volleyball
Founded in 1928, USA Volleyball is a nonprofit organization recognized by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) and World ParaVolley as the National Governing Body for the sport of volleyball including the disciplines of beach, indoor, sitting, snow and beach Paravolley in the United States. With more than 425,000 registered members, USA Volleyball conducts national championship events, coaching and officials certification programs, and grassroots development across all disciplines in a lifetime sport in which all can participate. USA Volleyball’s teams have won an Olympic medal in every Olympic Games since 1984, four Paralympic medals since 2004 and numerous World Cup, World Championship and Continental Championship titles. For more information on USA Volleyball, visit www.usavolleyball.org. #PathtothePodium

About the Orange County Convention Center
The Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) has hosted more than 100 face-to-face events since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic – July 2020. Through the Center’s Recovery and Resiliency Guidelines, GBAC STAR accreditation, pioneering collaboration with Orlando Health, and detailed planning efforts with each client and event, the center has proven that events can be held safely in this new era of health and safety protocols. Most recently, sporting events have dominated the center’s spring and summer calendar, welcoming various youth volleyball, basketball and wrestling tournaments to the region with athletes, coaches and spectators from around the world gathering safely at the venue.

About Visit Orlando
Visit Orlando is the official tourism association for the most visited destination in the United States and, together with its member organizations, represents the area's leading industry. Visit Orlando is responsible for branding, selling and marketing the Orlando destination worldwide, and serves as the official visitor information source.

About Greater Orlando Sports Commission
GO Sports is a private, nonprofit organization established to attract and manage sports-related events, conferences and activities that drive positive economic development in the City of Orlando, Lake County, Orange County, Osceola County, and Seminole County. Founded in 1993, the organization has hosted or co-hosted more than 1,450 events in the Greater Orlando area with a total economic impact exceeding $1.9 billion in spending within the community. For more information, please visit GreaterOrlandoSports.com.

USA Volleyball announced today that the 2022 Girls Junior National Championships will be held in Indianapolis, Indiana on June 23 - July 4 for ages 11-17. #GJNC

USA Volleyball has selected Las Vegas to host the 2021 Girls Junior National Championship (GJNC) on June 26-July 5 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. It is the first time that USAV will host a major junior event in Las Vegas.

Based upon feedback from the Regions, USAV has decided to keep its original dates for the 2021 USAV Girls 18s Junior National Championships. They will take place on April 23-25, 2021 in Columbus, OH.

WEVA has moved away from Webpoint and switched to a membership management system (MMS) administered by SportsEngine (SE). There is information on the Registration page and a link to start the membership registration process. There is also a link to the old Webpoint system for individuals and team administrators to download their Webpoint information.

Registration for the WEVA 2020-2021 season will start on September 5, 2020. WEVA will be transitioning from WebPoint to SportsEngine Member Management System (MMS) this season. More information is forthcoming.

With the support of the WEVA Commissioner and Board of Directors, USA Volleyball:

It is with a heavy heart that USA Volleyball must announce the cancellation of the remaining USA Volleyball Indoor National Championships for the 2020 season. This includes the Girls 18s Junior National Championship, Girls Junior National Championship, Boys Junior National Championship and High Performance Championship. With safety as our top priority and upon further evaluation of the current and projected status of the COVID-19 virus in each of our respective cities, we cannot be assured of each venues’ ability to host safe and restriction-free environments for our events in June and July. We want to thank Dallas, Reno and Pittsburgh for their partnership and wonderful support as we navigated through this difficult decision. Most importantly, we want to thank our athletes, coaches, club directors and officials for their passion and patience throughout. We miss you already.

USAV will be issuing refunds immediately to all teams that have submitted a payment for each event, but please understand that these could take a few weeks to process. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to events@usav.org. All hotel cancellations will be handled by Team Travel Source. Please do not reach out to the hotels directly to cancel as this will cause more confusion and might cause you to have to pay a cancellation fee. Team Travel Source will make sure that there are no cancellation fees for our participants as long as the communication is through them. Please reach out to Team Travel Source if you have any questions about your hotel reservations at usav@teamtravelsource.com.

Although the Championship events will no longer be taking place this year, USAV will continue to provide wonderful online resources for our members and clubs through digital media channels. Please utilize our family and club resources page and follow us on social media for exclusive tips, drills, conditioning and other content created for you by the National Team athletes, coaches and training staff. New content is being produced and uploaded on a regular basis and is available free of charge.

Thank you again to all our members for your patience in this unprecedented time. We hope everyone stays safe and we can get back into the gym soon. We cannot wait to see you all again in the 2021 season.

USA Volleyball has selected Columbus, Ohio, and Kansas City, Missouri, to host 2021 Junior National Championships.

Columbus will host the 2021 USA Volleyball Girls 18s Junior National Championship (GJNC18) from April 23-25 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. Kansas City will host the 2021 USA Volleyball Boys Junior National Championship (BJNC) from June 30 to July 7 at the Kansas City Convention Center.

USA Volleyball is proud to announce that Louisville, Kentucky, will host the 2021 USA Volleyball Open National Championship.

The 2021 USA Volleyball Open National Championship will be held May 28 to June 2 at the Kentucky Exposition Center. Louisville last hosted the USA Volleyball Open National Championship in 2013.

With the support of the WEVA Commissioner and Board of Directors, USA Volleyball

As referenced in our communication on April 24th, a “return to play” task force has established by USA Volleyball to create a comprehensive roadmap to safely restart USAV’s sanctioning of activities when it is appropriate. The task force has been meeting diligently and gathering information from United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), medical experts, government entities, volleyball clubs and other national governing bodies to help pave our course of action. At this point, the group believes that it is premature to safely commence play and thus USA Volleyball is extending the elimination of sanctions for all USA Volleyball activities (including but not limited to events, practices, team activities, individual training sessions or anything covered by USA Volleyball insurance) through May 22, 2020.

Virtual training/coaching/instruction/meetings are permitted during this period of sanction suspension. Any virtual training/coaching/instruction/meetings involving minors are subject to requirements of MAAPP, specifically the regulations on electronic communications and one-on-one interactions. These requirements include the following:

1. All virtual trainings/coaching/meetings must be “observable and interruptible,” able to be ended at any time, and have at least two applicable adults on each session, i.e., coach and assistant, coach and club director, etc.
2. All parents/guardians must be provided the code or link to join the virtual session.
3. All parents/guardians must sign a waiver in advance as these sessions could be viewed as individual training. A record of which clubs/coaches have been approved to conduct these sessions should be kept. USAV has created a standardized waiver form if you care to use it.
4. If a minor athlete ends up emailing a video to a coach for feedback or additional coaching, the coach needs to copy the parent/guardian and/or other applicable adult on all correspondences.

To be clear, virtual training/coaching/instruction/meetings will only be considered sanctioned so long as the above requirements are followed.

USA Volleyball has been asked by local clubs whether such ban applies to club activities covered under the club’s own (non-USA Volleyball) insurance. In these situations, USA Volleyball strongly encourages all member clubs and coaches to adhere to USA Volleyball’s policies. However, should a club decide to voluntarily disregard those policies and assume all risks associated therewith, we recommend that the club adhere to CDC; local, state and federal guidelines and recommendations when deciding whether or not to host practices or individual training sessions. If a club does host practice or individual training sessions, those activities would be considered a non-sanctioned activity by USA Volleyball and thus NOT covered by USA Volleyball insurance.

The health and welfare of our membership, volleyball families and fellow citizens is our primary concern in all decisions we are making during these uncharted times.

USA Volleyball is monitoring the situation daily and will continue to provide updates on a regular basis.

USAV has recently changed requirements for Safesport compliance. The new standards state that ANY person affiliated with a club and 18 or older MUST complete Safesport. The rationale is that any person 18 and older is legally required to REPORT transgressions and as a result, should be trained to know the process.

This means that any of your players who turn 18 during the season will be dropped from team roster on the day they turn 18 unless they have completed Safesport program.

To avoid problems we encourage you to request any players who will become 18 during the season to complete the Safesport training prior to their birthday. Note that any player who is younger than 18, needs to have their parent’s complete this consent form before taking Safesport: https://fs28.formsite.com/USAVolleyball/MAAPPconsentform/index.html.

REQUIREMENTS:
IMPACT
- required to coach
- has no expiration date

Safesport
- required for any member 18 y.o. or older who is affiliated with WEVA/USAV (players, coaches, adults)
- now expires every year on October 31st
- new adults take Safesport Core Training
- current players/adults take Safesport Refresher Training re-certify

TRAINING:
1) Via the WEVA website, LOG IN to USAV/Webpoint (Registration as a current member link)
2) Once logged in, click or cut-n-paste this link:
https://webpoint.usavolleyball.org/wp15/Events2/Events.wp?evt_CategoryID=16&RF=CH&evt_ChapterID=25984
3) Select course of interest:
- Safesport Core Training
- Safesport Refresher Training
- IMPACT On-Demand (list in September 2019 section)
Note: if “hotlink” didn’t display course, go to #4
4) Navigate to Course Manually
- click (lower left on screen) USA Volleyball Events - > USAV Coaching Clinics

There is also direct Safesport links (upper left on screen)