After having read the OBSERVER’s View, “Athletics: Key component facing shortage” that appeared in the Oct. 16 edition, I’d like to respond and perhaps give some insight as it pertains to officiating high school sports, as I am in the relatively unique position of being both the coach of a varsity sport, as well as a sports official.

I certainly agree that often times officiating is a thankless job. The requirements continue to increase at a rate that far exceeds the compensation. Many of the issues addressed in the previously mentioned article, as well as the article titled “Education: A complex problem finding staff” are true.

Officials need to be fingerprinted, which costs over $100, pay for their uniforms, gear, association dues, and insurance, as well as go to mandatory meetings, all for the potential joy of being berated by coaches, players and parents. The pandemic has just added to all of that with vaccine requirements and mask wearing, not to mention the ever-looming possibility of litigation which seems all too common these days when anyone is even perceived to have been wronged.

New York state should be doing all it can to make it easier to officiate, instead of more difficult. I feel the need to contradict Executive Director DeFilippo here.

From my own experience, officials were forced to pay association dues last year, regardless of whether or not they planned on officiating. Once certain sports were moved to different times of the year, many officials couldn’t work due to prior obligations and were forced to continue paying dues or become inactive. This isn’t making things easier, in my opinion.

On the flip side of the coin, as a parent and coach, nothing is more infuriating than having officials who clearly have no interest in doing the job well. It’s one thing to miss a call occasionally, but we’ve all seen those officials who take no pride in their craft and are only there to collect a check, small as it may be. These folks don’t seem to understand or respect the time, dedication and effort put forth by coaches and athletes, and are a black eye on the profession. The unfortunate truth though is that bad officiating is better than no officiating.

So how do you solve the problem? How do you attract potential officials and get quality people involved? Unless someone has an undying love of the sport, who would want to subject themselves to all the rigors with little reciprocation?

Increasing the rate of compensation is an obvious answer. Just as with anything else, if you want to attract good people, you need to pay them accordingly.

Cutting through all the red tape and bureaucracy would be another positive step. Most importantly we need to educate and advertise, especially with our current high school athletes. People who have played sports, generally know sports, at least to some extent.

Making our youth understand that officiating is a great way to stay involved with sports beyond high school is paramount. The connections, memories and friends that you make through officiating can make it a great experience. And earning a little extra money on the side never hurts.

Jesse Beers is a member and past president of the Southern Tier Wrestling Officials’ Association, a member of the Niagara Frontier Wrestling Officials’ Association and current varsity softball coach at Fredonia High School.