Officials certification process
The high quality of track and field, cross country, and road events in the New England association at all levels - youth, scholastic, collegiate, open - can be attributed to the officials who work the many meets to ensure fair and safe competition. One becomes a certified official through their home association (New England for MA, NH, RI, VT). USATF certification runs for an Olympiad - starting January 1 after a Summer Olympic Games through December 31 of the year of the next Summer Games The current 4 year certification period began January 1, 2025 and runs through December 31, 2028, but officials may join at any time. ** Officials completing the certification process after January 1, 2028 will be valid throgh 2032 ** The minimum age for officials is 18 years old. Certification process - The step by step procedure is found in our Officials help document.
Review this before starting the process, All certified officials are required to be USATF "3 step compliant" - Hold a current USATF membership (officials may purchase a discounted 4 year membership). - Complete a USATF background screening (good for 2 years, $22) - Complete the appropriate SafeSport course online. The core course (90 minutes, no fee) is required once every 4 years, followed by an annual refresher (20-30 min) each of the next 3 years. Only one SafeSport certification is required for all Olympic Sports. Officials who may have completed the SafeSport core course for another purpose or sport and is current with their core/refreshers can submit their certificate to National to validate their USATF Profile. Notes: - Background Screening and SafeSport are required for all US Olympic Sport officials as well as coaches, administrators, and event directors - Individuals require only one USATF screening for the organization and one current SafeSport course through any sport. A screening or SafeSport completed to fulfill USATF coach or club administrator requirements is valid for officials as well. SafeSport taken for other sports IS valid for officials (but background screenings are sport specific). One must be a current USATF member and have started the other two pieces before begining the officials certification application / rules review process. At time of completing the application - new or renewal - a National Officials certification fee is collected covering the 4 year Olympiad ($20 National paid with registration form) The New England officials fee is $10 paid separately through the NE Chair).
Rules Reviews
The application and rule reviews for 2025-2028 are available and are posted on the National Officials Committee website.
Following the application, all officials complete an open-book rules review (written or online) each Olympiad. It takes about 90 minutes. Alternately, an individual may attend an in-person or Zoom rules review session.. After the general review, officials at the National or Master level may complete a second tier review and speciatly reviews if interested. The objective with the open book review is to ensure officials are familiar wtih the rule book as a whole. USATF-NE offers several new officials review sessions each new certification period - watch your member email, the website, and Facebook for notices. There are also several specialty clinics planned for 2026-27 in pole vault, race walking, Electronic Distance Measurement, and cross country.
"Apprentice" or "Association" are the first levels of certification, depending on prior officiating experience. Those having worked with a local officials group and with adequate basic experience may begin at the "Association" level. After being certified for a full Olympiad and having practical experience at different types of meets, an official may apply to move up to "National" level ranking, and, ultimately, "Master" level (after a minimum of 1 additional full Olympiad at the National level). New England Association Officials Certification Chair
Bob Gidari (NH Track & Field Officails Association) is the current USATF-New England certification chair. He can be contacted at bgidari@usatfne.org Other officials associations in the USATF-NE states There are regional officials associations around the association which do most assigning for high school and college meets in their area and hold annual clinics. USATF certification is not required to belong to these groups, though most certified officials do belong to one of the groups. All have a testing / rules review process to join. Mass. Track & Field Officials Association (Eastern MA) mtfoa.com Contact Jeff Blonder, blonder@consultant.com Central Mass. T&F Officials Association Contact Chris Woods, fhsrr@verizon.net Western Mass. T&F Officials Association Contact Rick Lajoie, rickblajoie@yahoo.com Rhode Island T&F Officials Guild Contact Keith Lawton lawton1524@cox.net New Hampshire T&F Officials Association Contact Bob Gidari, bgidari@usatfne.org