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I started doing volleyball this year. Here is how I have approached being a new volleyball official.
1. Go to a LEVEL 1 clinic. Make sure it is level 1. I have read some of how the Chicago area does clinics and am very impressed on how they separate out new/inexperienced officials.
2. Scrimmages/Rec League - If you can get schools to let you come in for scrimmages and you have the time go for it. Also don't be afraid to do rec. leauges just for experience in the stand. Gives you a chance to work on mechanics and things you will be seeing from up there.
3. I will second the working with veteran officials. Find a good mentor and let them help guide you as you get started. Even though I was licensed to do high school last fall I mainly just went to numerous matches and watched an experienced crew. They would arrange for me to sit at the scorers table. This gave me a view of the scorekeeping aspect plus alot of the R2 duties. In general it allowed me to see how a crew worked together and what to expect. It also gave me a new found respect for the speed of the game even at lower level HS varsity matches. One warning on veteran officials, some are better than others.
4. If you don't want to wait for JH next year try to find some lower level Fresh/Soph matches in the fall. Other than that JH is an excellent place to start. I signup for just about any JH match I can get. I worked 4 last week plus a Satuday morning match.
5. Ask your fellow officials to give you advice. Some won't but others can give you great advice. Remember just to accept it as advice and not take it personal.
6. Depending on your volleyball experience what you will probably find most difficult to learn is ball handling and alignment. Ball handling mainly because there is no "one way" to make a call since it is based on judgement and how loose or tight an official is. Alignment because if you don't have alot of volleyball experience it is just a mystery at first. The more matches you do the easier it gets but no amount of reading can prepare you for it.
7. More than any other sport I think volleyball has more what I term "administrative" rules. At first it may seem overwhelming but it isn't nearly as bad as it may seem.
8. This forum and the forum at NFHS.org have great people that can provide advice and answer questions. At first when I would encounter a situation I was not familiar with I was afraid to ask my partner or anyone what I should have done. Now I just ask away.
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