Ohio Valley Region: Advancing Volleyball in Ohio, western Pennsylvania, and West Virginia

Policies for Recruiting Juniors

Compliance is Mandatory

It is imperative that OVR policies for recruiting juniors be followed with no exceptions. Those policies are based on the rules of OHSAA and other state athletic associations, put into place to protect athletes' scholastic eligiblity, and also on necessary measures of respect between clubs to best serve all athletes of the OVR.

Reporting Violations

Every violation of OVR recruiting policies must be reported to Bob Price, Commissioner (price@ovr.org, 614-882-2468). The OVR Incident Report should be used to report the violation. If you are unsure of whether the conditions of a contact constitute a violation, contact Bob for guidance.

Reports must be first-hand, coming from the athlete and/or a parent/guardian representing that athlete. Club directors and coaches impacted by illegal recruiting practices should encourage the individuals being recruited and their parents/guardians to file an Incident Report immediately.

What Constitutes a Violation?

The following letter was sent from Bill Zehler, OVR Juniors' Program Director, to all juniors' club directors on Tuesday, October 1, 2002:

Club directors,

It is getting close to time for tryouts. The rumors are starting to surface about individuals trying to attract members of other clubs to their programs. I am reminding you that we have guidelines in place regarding recruitment of athletes that spent the previous season with another program.

It is the responsibility of each club to act responsibly when trying to attract athletes to their tryouts. Clubs may advertise through the media (newspapers, web pages, etc.) and distribute information regarding their tryouts to the coaches of the schools in their area. It will be considered inappropriate for any member of a club (director, coach, parent of an athlete, or athlete) to try to recruit a member of another club. Clubs may respond to anyone interested in information about their program. Failure to comply with these regulations will result in sanction by the region.

Please adhere to these simple guidelines! Every complaint we receive with written documentation will be investigated! This information will also be posted on the OVR web pages for everyone to see. Recruiting is the ugliest part of Junior volleyball in any region. Please allow the athletes and their families make their own decision on where they wish to play.

Bill Zehler

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