[Mike Simonds]

Here in Hawaii, we take the Part II NFHS football exam at the beginning of the season. For officials with 10 or more seasons of experience they have to score at least an 80. Officials with less than 10 years have to score 90 or higher. Then the state will send evaluators out to look at the officials. They use a rating system (I'm not sure about the exact criteria but I believe its a combination of mechanics, rules knowledge and application, appearance, communication, etc.) that comes out with a score between 0 (totally unacceptable) and 5 (excellent) (at increments of .25).

What I really enjoyed was the fact that this is the first time in 10 years that I was evaluated with a set of formal criteria; a "bench-mark" upon which further improvement can be gauged. And the evaluators give the good along with the bad, so its not all negative. Plus, their criteria is based on measurable things, so we are not left in the dark regarding how to improve, etc.

Hawaii is forming a state-wide official's association and their goal is to help every official improve their test score and field-evaluation rating. I was one of two officials who got selected from our association to do a game in Aloha Stadium on the new field turf there.

I began to realize that getting a play-off game would be nice, but its not my ultimate goal now (they told me this year I qualified and may be getting a call by next week; the tournament starts November 21 because we have warm weather over here).

My main goal is to take each season, one game at a time, keep learning and improving in all areas, and give the players, coaches, fans and my fellow officials the best game I have with a smile on my face. And its great for morale to spread the wealth: i.e., give each official an opportunity to experience a game in the big stadium, to help each other improve, and elevate our crews to a higher standard of excellence.

A play-off and/or championship assignment is simply a validation that each selected official has made a commitment to excellence to everyone associated with our great sport.

So don't get too wrapped-up in these play-off selections; remember to enjoy each game as a precious and unique experience. Over time, if the proper system is in place, and we keep our priorities in order, I'm sure every official will have an opportunity to get one of these assignments.