Squad Manager Fee

[physicspackage]

Attached at the bottom of some of International Calendars is a new Squad Manager fee. From the USFA web site:

"This fee will fund a Squad Manager to these designated events. This will allow the USFA to have a point of contact with parents, athletes and personal coaches. The Squad Manager will be responsible for coordinating logistical details i.e.; transportation and hotel, and traveling with the team to the competition. The Squad Manager will be bound by the USFA non-athlete code of conduct and be required to submit a written report to the USFA Manager of High Performance and the National Coach of that weapon."

By looking at all of the International Calendars I've determined the following:

Men's Epee - No Squad Manager fee

Men's Foil - No Squad Manager fee

Men's Sabre - $60 Squad Manager fee

Women's Epee - $100 Squad Manager fee

Women's Foil - No Squad Manager fee

Women's Sabre - $60 Squad Manager fee


Why do some squads have the fee and some don't? Why is Women's Epee the most expensive?

[teacup]

For the events that I have experienced, there have been great discrepancies between assigned coaches and so far none with a team manager. I think it would be good if guidelines and responsibilities of the team/squad manager and assigned coaches is included in the athletes handbook as there are athlete guidelines.

Also I wonder can anyone request to be a team/squad manager for an event? Will there be a team manager/assigned coach system similar to how refs can request international assignments?

And I agree, why is women's epee more than any other squad?

Does this mean that there won't be assigned coaches, just squad managers?

[DJ Apostrophe]

Originally Posted by physicspackage

Attached at the bottom of some of International Calendars is a new Squad Manager fee. From the USFA web site:

"This fee will fund a Squad Manager to these designated events. This will allow the USFA to have a point of contact with parents, athletes and personal coaches. The Squad Manager will be responsible for coordinating logistical details i.e.; transportation and hotel, and traveling with the team to the competition. The Squad Manager will be bound by the USFA non-athlete code of conduct and be required to submit a written report to the USFA Manager of High Performance and the National Coach of that weapon."

By looking at all of the International Calendars I've determined the following:

Men's Epee - No Squad Manager fee

Men's Foil - No Squad Manager fee

Men's Sabre - $60 Squad Manager fee

Women's Epee - $100 Squad Manager fee

Women's Foil - No Squad Manager fee

Women's Sabre - $60 Squad Manager fee


Why do some squads have the fee and some don't? Why is Women's Epee the most expensive?

My guess is that each weapon was given a budget, and this is how some programs are increasing the revenue beyond what the USFA has alloted to them for the upcoming season.

Now, there isn't currently a WE national coach, so I'm not sure who made that decision.

-w

[teacup]

Originally Posted by DJ Apostrophe

My guess is that each weapon was given a budget, and this is how some programs are increasing the revenue beyond what the USFA has alloted to them for the upcoming season.

Now, there isn't currently a WE national coach, so I'm not sure who made that decision.

-w

Is the money to increase the budget or for someone to be responsible for organizing travel and chaperoning team members?

(The note on the website states the latter.)

[DJ Apostrophe]

They aren't mutually exclusive.

It's ultimately to provide the latter service, but if they didn't have room in the budget to fund it, this is how they could fund it.

Maybe the squads that aren't charging the fee have structured thier budget differently.

-w

[teacup]

My point is that there hasn't always been anyone in charge of organizing travel arrangements and chaperoning the teams in the past, so if a squad fee is to be charged it should mean that someone is going to be responsible for these duties.

Whatever the duties of the squad manager are should be included in the athletes handbook so people know what to expect.

If there are no written guidelines there could be great variations between what are considered the duties and responsibilities of a squad manager. The extremes are someone who arranges air, hotels, meals and travels with ALL of the fencers vs someone who shows up at the venue the morning of the event to check that everyone is okay.

[DJ Apostrophe]

Originally Posted by teacup

My point is that there hasn't always been anyone in charge of organizing travel arrangements and chaperoning the teams in the past, so if a squad fee is to be charged it should mean that someone is going to be responsible for these duties.

Agreed.
Assuming this is a new fee (which everything I've read implies to me) why would you expect this not to happen?

That's the stated purpose of the fee, and I'm willing to believe that is what is going to be done with it.

The fact that some squads don't have a fee could mean that A: that particular weapon decided they didn't need a squad manager or B: they're funding the squad manager position out of their existing budget.

Also whatever the duties of the squad manager are should be included in the athletes handbook so people know what to expect.

Agreed. It should be documented somewhere.

Do we know who decided to have these 'squad managers'? Was it an HPC decision? National Coach decision? Board?

-w

[teacup]

Originally Posted by DJ Apostrophe

Assuming this is a new fee (which everything I've read implies to me) why would you expect this not to happen?
-w

My apologies, you are correct. I should not make this assumption.

Are the duties and responsibilities of the sabre squad manager's in the athletes handbook?

[DJ Apostrophe]

Originally Posted by teacup

My apologies, you are correct. I should not make this assumption.

Are the duties and responsibilities of the sabre squad manager's in the athletes handbook?

That I do not know... Has the new AH been released yet? When does that usually come out?

-w

[teacup]

Originally Posted by DJ Apostrophe

That I do not know... Has the new AH been released yet? When does that usually come out?

-w

The sabre program has had a squad manager for a couple of years, so the responsibilities and guidelines should be in last season's handbook.

Last season's handbook wasn't uploaded until Oct. 1, 2007 which is after some international request for entry deadlines.

There have been assigned coaches for awhile but to the best of my knowledge, there aren't any guidelines for them in the handbook as to their duties and responsibilities.

Unless this information is written somewhere else.

[KD5MDK]

Do we know who decided to have these 'squad managers'? Was it an HPC decision? National Coach decision? Board?

I can't see how it was a Board decision, since it didn't come up in the last two Board meetings, which I attended, or the previous one, for which we have minutes. I would guess HPC decision, but given how little they reveal it's hard to tell.

[happy]

Originally Posted by DJ Apostrophe

Do we know who decided to have these 'squad managers'? Was it an HPC decision? National Coach decision? Board?

-w

From the 'request for entry form:

"At the request of the US National Coaches for Men’s Sabre, Women’s Sabre, and Women’s Epee, there will be a Squad Manager fee assessed to every Junior and Cadet individual entry..."

So this answers the question for MS and WS, but is a curious statement in the case of Women's Epee where there isn't a national coach.

Regardless, it's $100 wasted as far as I'm concerned, because I am not going to trust my children or their travel arrangements to somebody who I don't know, don't know how they were selected, don't know their competence level with international travel, and with very vague standards of accountability. If it's a different person for each event, that's another flag.

I appreciate the idea of having somebody who is coordinating travel, but it's a pretty bad idea to force people to pay for a service they don't want and won't use.

[Inquartata]

Originally Posted by physicspackage

Why is Women's Epee the most expensive?

I would say that it's compensation for having to put up with epeeists, but that doesn't explain the lack of a fee for the men...