Goals
and Objectives
-
To
raise the level of professionalism of tennis officials throughout
Louisiana.
-
To
expand the number of quality, trained tennis officials in the state.
-
To
increase the level of knowledge of tennis rules and regulations.
-
To
expand the technical proficiency, conduct, appearance and perception of
Louisiana’s tennis officials.
-
To
instill confidence and pride in officials.
-
To
provide the availability of trained tennis officials for all level of
events in the state.
Organization
LTA
Officials Committee
Reviews Mentor Program and makes
recommendations to Mentor Coordinator on an as needed basis.
Mentor
Coordinator
Mentor
Coordinator is selected by the Officials Committee and oversees the Mentor
Program.
District
Representatives
Matches mentors with provisional officials; tracks the progress of the
provisional officials; submits progress report to the Mentor Coordinator on
a quarterly basis.
Mentors
Serves as an advisor/confidant to new provisional officials.
The mentor should contact the provisional upon the pairing, and then
at least monthly thereafter. The
mentor should be available at a mutually agreed upon time to discuss rules,
provide overall support and advise regarding situations that may arise on
court. The goal for the mentor
is to have the provisional experienced enough to recommend for promotion to
sectional umpire at the end of their provisional year.
The mentor reports on the progress of provisional officials to
District Representative on a quarterly.
Selection
Process
Mentor
Coordinator
The Mentor Coordinator is selected by the Officials Committee
and oversees the Mentor Program.
District
Representative
District Representatives are selected
from a pool of applicants who respond to a “Call for Mentors” request.
Mentors
Mentors have a minimum of three years experience as a USTA
Official and are in good standing.
Provisional
Official
Provisional
Officials must pass an umpire certification test and request to participate
(either written or verbal) in the mentor program. Provisional Officials may request to be paired with a
specific mentor, however, the request is not a guarantee the match will
occur.
Provisional
Evaluations
Provisionals
will be evaluated by their mentor or site referee throughout their first
year of work. Evaluations will
cover the following performance areas:
-
Professionalism
of the official
-
On
court techniques
-
Verbage
-
After
match activities
The
following examples are provided to assist in the understanding of the
performance areas important to new officials.
Professionalism
Punctuality
- Showed up at least 1 hour before match
Appearance
- Wear proper attire, be neatly groomed, shirt tales tucked in
Relationship
with Others - Listened, communicated calmly and clearly
Conduct/demeanor
- Was composed, confident, not officious and had good posture
Preparedness
- Have basic accessories, scorecard, and balls
Techniques
Court
preparation -
Take care of net, single sticks, debris, and dangerous surface
Pre-match
with
players - Bring players to net, brief, confident, coin
toss
After match
Clearing
the court
-
Clear the court of debris, balls, etc.
