Parent Involvement - KW Swim Team

The KW Swim Team is a non-profit, year-round swim club. We are parent-operated by volunteers and parent-funded.

• KW is part of two larger communities: Allegheny Mountain Swimming (AMS) and USA Swimming.
• Home swim meets are a large source of revenue that help sustain our operations. Revenue is needed to pay our excellent coaching staff, rent the pool facilities we use, pay for equipment, and more. The revenue we earn from hosting home meets also helps keep registration fees for our swimmers as low as possible.
• We need about 150 volunteers to run each home swim meet and to serve on other KW committees to ensure that our meets and organization operate smoothly and strongly.
• Your willingness to volunteer is critical and sends a message of support, responsibility, and pride to your children.

About the Volunteer Incentive Fee (VIF)

• Read details about the Volunteer Incentive Fee.

How to Earn Back Your Volunteer Incentive Fee (VIF) - Three ways:

1. You can earn back your VIF by serving at KW Home Meets.
2. You can earn back your full VIF by becoming a Stroke & Turn Official.
3. You can earn back your full VIF by serving in a Lead Volunteer role.

1. You can earn back your VIF by serving at KW Home Meets.

Before each home meet, the Volunteer Coordinator(s) will send an email asking families to sign up for home meet volunteer roles. We fill roles on a first-come, first-serve basis. To receive one credit ($100), you must work the entire session (which is around half a day) to get full credit. You must appear on time and remain until dismissed in order to receive your credit. Here is a list of many of the volunteer roles available. As needs arise, additional volunteer positions may become available.

Timer
Use a stopwatch to time and record swimmers in one lane during their races. You will receive instruction for everything you need to know about timing and recording prior to the session. No prior experience required.

Head Timer
Prior experience as a Timer is required. Monitors timers for proper procedure. Serves as a back-up to Timers by starting two stopwatches for each race.

Place Judge
Record the order of finish for each race (as a backup for the automatic timing system).

Meet Marshal
Positioned on the pool deck and in hallways. Ensures safe warm-ups and monitors access to the pool. We need as many as eight marshals per meet session! No prior experience necessary.

Concession Sales
Work at the concession stand selling food and drinks. No prior experience necessary.

Concession Donations
Purchase and donate items (food and drinks) for sale at the concession stand. Families are limited to only a certain amount of Concession Donations to count toward the required VIF each season. If you donate concession item(s), you must donate the exact item and quantity that is requested to receive your VIF.

Clean Up / Take Down
Help clean up and take down the meet as needed and patrol the meet area for trash and lost and found items. Provide deck relief or volunteer assistance. No prior experience necessary.

First Aid & Safety Person
Roaming volunteer to help with any safety and first aid issues and otherwise provide medical assistance. Must have experience in the medical field.

Hospitality & Check-In
Handle check-in of coaches and officials and assist with meals, snacks, and beverages for the coaches, officials, and volunteers. No prior experience necessary.

DAK Operator
Must be trained to run the DAK (computer timing system) or willing to be trained prior to the meet.

Heat Sheet and Other Sales
Sell heat sheets and manage sales for advertising (family and friends can pay to have congrats messages put on the scoreboard). No prior experience required.

Runner
Collect timer sheets, post-meet results, help as needed. No prior experience required.

Awards Table
Responsible for making ribbons and other awards. No prior experience required.

Note: During the season, additional volunteer roles (other than helping at home meets) to earn sessions/credits may open. For example, sometimes we need volunteers to help run and organize the Halloween Relays party, etc.

Review the jobs you’ve signed up for. (You must be signed into the website.)

2. You can earn back your full VIF by becoming a Stroke & Turn Official.

Have you ever noticed adults dressed in blue and white on the pool deck during meets? These people are Allegheny Mountain Swimming (AMS) Officials. Swim meets simply could not happen without certified officials on deck to ensure that swimmers are following the proper stroke and turn rules for each event. Each swim club in Allegheny Mountain Swimming (AMS) is required to maintain a minimum number of officials. Without enough officials on deck, meets cannot happen. Officials are not paid professionals, they are parents from each club who are taking on one of the most important volunteer positions at meets.

We are always looking for people interested in starting out as an official. No prior experience is necessary!

If you are interested in learning more, please contact Kyle Rusche (KW's officials contact) at [email protected].

Benefits

• Your full Volunteer Incentive Fee is waived.
• You receive a 20% registration fee discount after you complete Official Requirements.
• You have a pool-side view of the meet instead of fighting for a crowded, hot seat in the stands.
• You get to represent KW and help to ensure the team maintains its requisite number of registered officials.
• You are directly involved in the sport your child(ren) love(s).
• Free food! Officials get to eat for free while they are working!

What does it take to become a USA Swimming Stroke and Turn Official?

• Before stepping on deck, you must complete two steps:
  • Register with AMS as an Apprentice Official. It’s free and lasts for 60 days. At the end of the 60 days, an Apprentice Official must register as a non-athlete member of USA Swimming. (KW covers the annual registration fee.)
  • Complete the online Athlete Protection Training found on the USA Swimming Web site.
• Complete the USA Swimming Level 2 Background Check (for coaches and officials). There is a cost for this, which will be paid for by the team.
• Complete and pass with a score of 85 percent the USA Swimming online Stroke and Turn Officials’ test. The test is open book and can be completed any time during the training, but you must pass the test before you are certified.
• An apprentice official must shadow a USA Swimming official for six sessions. An apprentice can only satisfy one session per day and two of the required training sessions total at any one meet. Many officials say that this is the most important part of training because it’s “on the job” training. You are actually watching swimmers at a variety of ages and skill levels.
• Attend an AMS Intro to Officiating clinic.

What are the requirements after becoming a USA Swimming Stroke and Turn Official?

• Attend at least one clinic in every 18 months
• Work twelve (12) sessions at AMS sanctioned meets (a minimum of five sessions at KW home meets in order to be eligible for the team’s official's discount) during the period September 1 through August 31. These can be either at either short-course or long-course pools.
• Periodically retake the required exam(s).

Application to be an Apprentice Official

1. A form must be submitted to Laura Hartman (AMS Registrar) and Kathy McFaden (Officials Chair) by the Tuesday before the first meet you plan to shadow. 
2. You must know the initial training session date/meet/location and include that information when submitting the form
3. E-mail the completed form to [email protected] and copy [email protected].
4. You will be notified once your application is processed. At that time, you must complete the Athlete Protection Training Course.
5. Within 60 days of your initial training date, you must complete the USA Swimming Background Check and become a fully registered non-athlete member of USA Swimming. You can still continue your training if it is not yet completed, but after 60 days, you will not be permitted on deck without being registered.

Important Links

• AMS Officials Page
• USA Swimming Officials Page
• USA Swimming Background Check
• USA Swimming Athlete Protection Training

Please direct questions to Kyle Rusche (KW's officials contact) at [email protected].

3. You can earn back your full VIF by serving in a Lead Volunteer role.