Clinic questions
 

We're talking about having a clinic and I thought I would get some input from the board here. For the first effort on our part the thought is to make it short and sweet. Maybe just 3-4 hours long.

I have just a couple of questions for those who have run one or attended any of these types of clinics.

What should you absolutely avoid in doing?

What should you absolutely include?

The length of the clinic needs to take into consideration the travel time of the attendees. Nobody will want to travel 1 1/2 to go to a 3 hour clinic, for example, so if it's a metro area, the shorter session might work but if you're drawing from a region, you may have to make it long enough to be worth the drive.

Keep the housekeeping chores - the into's, thank you's, etc. very, very short.

Several smaller breakout sessions work much better than one longer general session.

Offer them something they don't normally get in the local association meetings - maybe a session on how to properly stretch before a game from a trainer or tax tips for officials from a tax pro, etc. in a addition to the normal sessions on the kicking game, etc.

Talks by the local guy who made it to the NFL can be good or bad. If the guy can give some advise on how to manage your officiating career or things that your audience can apply, they can be very useful. If he can't relate his talk to the level of the audience and it's experience and needs, then the talk session can become a waste of time.

Finally, it's always nice if you can give them a small gift - a tee shirt or whistle, etc.

Here are some ideas.
1. Breakout sessions by position are a must. It is nice if the leaders of the breakout sessions have notes on their main topics for the participants to take home and time for a roundtable discussion.
2. A good coaches panel of 4-5 coaches can be very interesting. Each coach answers a few preset questions and then open it up for questioning.
3. If you have some good video to watch, they can be very beneficial. You need to have a good projection machine in order to see well. A DVD player where you can easily go slow motion backwards and forwards, along with a laser pointer can really add to the video session. (Contact me if you are interested in a good NFL DVD on many topics, which also has voice over from the supervisors.)
4. I don’t know where you live, but if you still have nice weather, some “on the field mechanics” by a good crew can be nice. It is really nice if you have one of them on a field mic to explain things.
5. If you cannot afford to get a t-shirt or collared shirt for everyone you could probably get some things donated for door prizes.

Once you set your agenda of topics, do the following:

Get the housekeeping stuff out of the way early - locations of restrooms, logistics, etc.

Stick strictly to your timetable - Don't let sessions run over, or speakers hog the microphone - Have someone be the gatekeeper to ensure agenda is followed and times adhered to

Test your techonology in advance - make sure mics, computers, projectors, slides and films all work, and people know how to use them

Before attendees leave, hand them a survey sheet to provide feedback so you can improve the next clinic.