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Dear GABL Coaches, Parents and Participants:

After our 2008-09 season was completed, we sent a survey to all head coaches in grades 2 through high school. There was a very high response rate, and some tremendous feedback, which I want to briefly share with all of you.

Posted with this letter are the raw results of the survey. While the “overall” ratings were extremely positive (93 percent approval rating), our Board of Directors and management team will focus on and work towards solutions and improvement on specific areas that still need attention.

As commissioner of GABL, I would like to share this information with you in the following fashion:

• What we learned from the survey responses.

• How we will use this information to improve our programs and services.

There were some specific categories in which ratings and written responses stood out, so allow me to touch upon them.  

Practice Time

• We learned from the survey that there are areas of scheduling, planning and communication that are of concern to many.
• We will review the overall program, looking for ways to improve the options that are available, and address the interaction and communication that we have with coaches.

Officials

• We learned from the survey that there was a common thread that consistency and knowledge of the special rules in 2^nd-4^th grade need improvement.
• This information will be shared with our officials coordinator, and we will collectively look for methods to improve this area.

• Preseason meetings with officials, additional training on rules and regulations, and in-season review of officials are some of the items that will be discussed.

Special Rules for 2nd-4th Grade

• Since it appears that the understanding and consistency of how these rules are called during a game need improvement, the continued application of special rules for the upcoming season will be reviewed and discussed by the Boys and Girls Competition Committees.

• Based on their recommendations, any rules to be used during the upcoming season will be covered thoroughly with the officials coordinator and all applicable coaches PRIOR to the start of the 2009-10 season.

Divisional Seeding (Regular Season, Postseason and Special Tournaments)

• We learned that this is a process that may need to be reviewed and refined in terms of team placement for competitive purposes.
• This information will become a major point of emphasis for both the Boys and Girls Competition Committees to review in order to improve the current process. One of their tasks will be to address how we might adjust a situation(s) during the regular season to accommodate an imbalance of competition for a team.

The entire survey and comments we received will be reviewed by the Board of Directors, competition committee members and others within the organization to continue to find ways to improve GABL.

One final note, as a result of this survey, we will be creating a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section on our website. This will allow current and future participants in the league to find answers to questions that occur prior to or during a season about GABL and our many programs and services.

Thank you for taking a moment to read these comments, and please keep us informed of your thoughts and comments about GABL.

Sincerely,

Derek Majors
GABL Commissioner

RAW RESULTS OF SURVEY