Hello Coaches and Assistant Coaches,
THANK YOU for volunteering your time and energy this season. I know how big a commitment
this is and I appreciate it, as does the entire board of AYSO Region 232. Everything we do as a
region is to enrich kids' lives by providing a quality youth soccer program, promoting a fun,
family environment, based on AYSO's six philosophies. Everyone from me, to the Regional
Commissioner, to the Team Parent dishing out orange slices is a volunteer. If you want to help
more, just ask how!
A quick introduction: My name is Andy Gill and I am the Coach Administrator for the region,
responsible for most things coaching-related including training, clinics, support, and resources.
My son began playing at 10U, I began coaching his team at 12U, and coached him through his
16U-19U seasons. I am also the Head Coach at Verde Valley School in the VOC, where I have
lived, coached, and taught science for the last 20 years. I am involved with AYSO because the
philosophy of the organization and the roll-up-your-sleeves nature speaks to me strongly, as I
hope they will/do to you.
Here are the steps for all AYSO Head Coaches and Assistant Coaches:
Step 1 -- Volunteer
Become an AYSO Volunteer by going to www.ayso232.org, the same place you registered your
child. Login to your sportsconnect portal and under My Account, Select VOLUNTEER on the
Left, then Find Volunteer Roles on the Top Right. Choose Head Coach or Assistant Coach in
your child’s division. While you’re at it, consider volunteering to become a referee! (Please be
patient with the syestem, and check your email inbox for verification links periodically. I think it
also works better on a computer rather than a phone.) Information from AYSO for all volunteers
can be found here: https://ayso.org/get-involved/volunteer/
Step 2 -- Background Check
Once you register to volunteer you’ll receive an email from AYSO asking you to submit to a
background check through Sterling Volunteers. Follow the link and instructions to submit this
check. This is paid for by AYSO (unless you volunteer to pay for the cost, which helps out the
regional accounts, which means more money goes to equipment).
In the volunteer menu in AYSO232 look for "Risk Status", check the box, and then click
"Renew and Update in the bottom right corner". After you complete that step, you are not
done. You will receive an email. It will probably go to your spam box. Open it and complete
the required steps. Issues occasionally arise with background checks, so I encourage you to
complete it right away so if any issues do arise, they can be resolved before practice starts!
Step 3 -- Required Certifications and Classes
Every AYSO Volunteer - from Head Coach to Team Parent to Referee - needs three
super-important certifications, all online through the AYSO Learning Library (AYSOU):
● AYSO's Safe Haven
● CDC Concussion Awareness
● SafeSport Act Mandatory Training
To access the courses, go to AYSOU by clicking the ‘AYSOU’ button on the volunteer portal
(directly below the ‘Find Volunteer Roles’ button you previously clicked on). Then click on the
Training Library tab on the left, then Safe Haven and ‘View Courses’. Find and complete your
courses. Once completed, the certificates should show up in your account with a verified status
and a compliant checkmark in a circle.
These three courses are directly for the safety of the children you’ll be working with and are
mandatory). Need any help with background checks or these required courses? Contact our
CVPA (Child and Volunteer Protection Advocate), Rachel Harris, at
[email protected].
Step 4 -- Age Appropriate Coach Training and Certification
If you are going to be a 6U or 8U Head Coach or Assistant Coach, then you’ll need to take an
age appropriate class online. If you are going to be a 10U, 12U or 14U Head Coach or
Assistant Coach you’ll need to take the online course followed by the age appropriate
in-person field session.
These courses, including the field sessions, are mandatory for all Head
Coaches and highly recommended for all Assistant Coaches.
● 6U and 8U coaches need only the online courses
● 10U coaches need the online course followed by a field session that lasts about 90
minutes
● 12U coaches need the online course followed by a combined classroom and field
session that lasts about three hours
● 14U coaches need the intermediate coach online session followed by a field session that
runs over two days (a weekend).
● 16-19U coaches need to have a couple of years of coaching after their intermediate
coach training, then the advanced coach course, which has online and in-person
components (a full day)
Once you have completed the age appropriate online courses you can sign up for the field
session which are listed on the training calendar in early August each year.
Step 5 -- Attend the Annual Coach Meeting
At this meeting we’ll review some important information you’ll need to be successful, you’ll
meet your town commissioner, and you’ll also receive your roster and uniform box so you can
contact your team families and get the season started!
● Meeting DATES TBA , Cottonwood Kid’s Park, 350 S 12th St, Cottonwood, AZ
86326
● Meeting for 6U and 8U coaches - DATE TBA
● Meeting for 10U, 12U and 14U coaches - DATE TBA
● If you coach multiple age-group teams then please attend the later meeting
● 10U and 12U field sessions follow this meeting!
Timeline? Please try to get all online required courses and the online portions of the coach
certification completed before the coaches meeting on August 5th.
Questions? No problem, just let us know what you need.
Thanks for all you do for the kids,
Andy Gill
Regional Coach Administrator
[email protected]www.ayso232.or