Line Judge Qualifications - 2012

Line Judge qualifications are now a part of the official rule books (AwanaGames and Sparks-a-Rama) - if there is a discrepancy between this page and the rule book, the rule book wins.

Sparks-a-Rama & AwanaGames are major events in our region, highlighting Christian sportsmanship and clearly presenting the Gospel to all who attend. Critical to the success of each of these events are the volunteers provided by each church to assist with score keeping, score keeping and line judging. A Line Judge (age 18 or older) makes sure that each game runs smoothly and fairly, requiring a clear understanding of each game and their related rules. To make sure that each line judge is as prepared as possible, the Capital Region has instituted a Line Judge Certification process which includes Line Judge Training sessions across the region and an online Certification Test.

To be considered a Certified Line Judge, both of the conditions must be met:

Line Judge test is completed and passed before the established deadline (one week before event).
Line Judge is at their assigned circle, in proper official's shirt, at least 30 minutes prior to their event starting.

A separate $20 check must be included along with your AwanaGames or Sparks-a-Rama registration fee for each team registered.

Line Judges who meet all of the above qualifications will receive their $20 check back at the event and will earn two game points for their team. These points will be posted prior to the start of the event, and are in addition to two sportsmanship points earned later.

Line Judges that do not meet the above conditions may still act as their church's Line Judge as long as they've passed the Line Judge test at least one week before their event.

Due to the intense, competitive nature of Trek and Journey AwanaGames, Line Judges for these two competitions will be pre-selected by the Event Specialist. This means that there will not be a line judge training session for Trek and there will not be a Line Judge test for Trek.

Line Judge - Registering

A line judge name must be submitted on the registration for each TEAM (name listed for both Sparks-a-Rama and AwanaGames registering for). If two AwanaGames/Sparks-a-Rama teams are being registered, two SEPARATE line judge names must be listed since both teams will be running at the same team.
In-person line judge and coach training may be offered at the regional Awana Ministry Conferences and at special Coaches & Judges meetings within the region.
The submitted Line Judge(s) names will be checked against the current list of Certified Line Judges. All line judges who do not have a current certification will need to pass the online certification test at least one week prior to the event. It is the church's responsibility to make sure they have at least one qualified or certified line judge for each team.
A separate $20 check must be included along with your registration fee for each team registered.
Every attempt must be made to obtain a line judge per team from your church. Churches cannot simply 'buy' a line judge using the $20 fee - your team registration will be in a tentative status until you have a qualified or certified line judge.
Teams who do not have a line judge or who fail to pass the test by the deadline will forfeit the $20.00 line judge deposit, will lose 5 sportsmanship points for their team, and risk the team not being able to play.

Line Judge - Preparing

Every attempt should be made by line judges to study (or re-study) the line judge information (including rule books) prior to taking the test to ensure that all of the major rules are fresh in memory.
We plan to hold a physical Coaches & Judges meeting each year, watch the Web site for details. All line judges are encouraged to study the latest editions of the T&T AwanaGames Rule Book or Sparks-a-Rama Rule Book to prepare for the event. Please direct any questions about specific events to the event specialist listed at the bottom of the registration form.
Additional study materials for line judges and coaches are available online through the AwanaGames resources page and the Sparks-a-Rama resources page. Both of these pages include lines to the online Coach & Line judge training slides (in PDF and PPT format).

Line Judge - Testing

All Line Judges must pass the appropriate line judge certification test (Sparks-a-Rama or AwanaGames) in order to be a line judge for their team - if line judging in both events, both tests need to be passed.
Tests need to be completed one week prior to the event. Late tests may result in being dis-allowed from judging.
The test is administered online and is a CLOSED BOOK test since rule books will not be allowed on the game circle.
A test score of at least 70 % earns a "Qualified" status, which means that they are able to judge for their team in the season the test was passed.
A score of 90% or higher earns a "Certified" status, which means that they not only can judge for their team in that event season but do not need to take the test for two additional seasons - see the current list of Certified Line Judges in the region.
Starting after the 2011 season, all certified line judges will get two additional years rather than three. All existing certified line judges will be grandfathered under their existing terms until it is time to retake their test.
If a person DOES NOT pass the test (at least a 70%), they may retake the test. Those that pass the test CANNOT retake the test in an attempt to earn the Certified status.

Line Judge - Day of Event

Line Judges must report to the appropriate circle 30 minutes prior to the scheduled start, in uniform and ready to begin.