Moderator Certification
To become a test-certified moderator, take the moderator certification test and send answers to Linda Greene. Two tries per year are permitted. More information on Moderator Certification can be found below.
Moderator certification cards can be filled out by coaches or by other certified moderators. In addition to printing out those linked cards and mailing them in, evaluations can be submitted online.
The following moderators are certified:
| Name | Location(s) | Test-Certified? | Performance Certified? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adkins, David | Springfield | ✓ | |
| Aiken, Carolyn | ✓ | ||
| Baricevic, Sister John | Belleville | ✓ | ✓ |
| Boeke, Matthew | Winnebago | ✓ | ✓ |
| Brown, John | Rockford | ✓ | |
| Donohue, Dan | Arlington Heights | ✓ | ✓ |
| Drummond-Cherniwchan, Lori | Rockford | ✓ | |
| Dyer, Kay | Quincy | ✓ | |
| Dzuricsko, Greg | Lisle | ✓ | |
| Egan, Tom | Park Ridge | ✓ | ✓ |
| Fay, Kati | Urbana | ✓ | ✓ |
| Fay, Les | Winnebago | ✓ | ✓ |
| Featherstone, Jim | Jerseyville | ✓ | |
| Fenton, James | Carlinville | ✓ | |
| Gauthier, Greg | Wheaton | ✓ | |
| Greene, Linda J | Rockford | ✓ | ✓ |
| Greenthal, Jonah | Chicago | ✓ | ✓ |
| Grierson, Rob | Evanston | ✓ | ✓ |
| Groesch, Cathy | Springfield | ✓ | ✓ |
| Hinton, Michael | Deerfield | ✓ | |
| Hollinsaid, Nathan | Streator | ✓ | |
| Houlding, Brent Jonathan | Indiana | ✓ | ✓ |
| Huckelberry, Phil | Chicago | ✓ | |
| Johnson, Thomas | Clinton | ✓ | |
| Kidd, Phyllis | Wheaton | ✓ | |
| Kociubinski, Natalie | Chicago | ✓ | ✓ |
| Laird, Mathew | Chicago | ✓ | ✓ |
| Laudermith, Michael | Bensenville | ✓ | ✓ |
| Matchen, Nick | Winnetka | ✓ | |
| Melzer, Roelof | O'Fallon | ✓ | |
| Messner, Mark | Champaign | ✓ | |
| Mullins, Marshall | Edwardsville | ✓ | |
| Nagib, Ali | Chicago | ✓ | |
| O’Laughlin, Neva | Arlington Heights | ✓ | |
| Peterson, Greg | Park Ridge | ✓ | |
| Phillips, Krista | Peotone | ✓ | |
| Price, Jeff | Barrington | ✓ | ✓ |
| Reinstein, David | Winnetka | ✓ | ✓ |
| Robinson, Barron | Springfield | ✓ | ✓ |
| Robinson, Donna | Springfield | ✓ | |
| Say, Jim | Sterling | ✓ | ✓ |
| Sorice, Michael | Champaign/Chicago | ✓ | ✓ |
| Stankevitz, James | Wheaton | ✓ | ✓ |
| Stewart, Jackie | Quincy | ✓ | |
| Stroup, Martin | Chicago | ✓ | |
| Van Howe, Karen | Rockford | ✓ | ✓ |
| Zimmer, Doug | Wheaton | ✓ |
There are two types of Moderator Certification, Test Certification and Performance Certification. To become Test Certified, a candidate must pass a written multiple-choice test. The test can be downloaded and answers can be mailed using the links at the top of this page. It is an open book test, and a score of 45 out of 50 is necessary to pass. Candidates are allowed two tries per year.
Moderators can also become Performance Certified. In order to become performance-certified, moderators must be rated by coaches of the teams for whom they read. Please keep reading to understand how the process works.
Each moderator is given a packet of 25 rating cards. Each card lists five qualities important to performance as a good moderator, with a rating scale of 1 to 3, and space for comments. The highest rating a moderator can receive is 15 points. The card must be signed and dated by the coach who is rating the moderator.
Moderators are to give the cards to coaches for whose teams they moderate matches, preferably before the match begins. The moderators should write their name in the space for the moderator’s name, and may want to put a stamp on the front of the post card, or ask the coach to turn the card in to the tournament manager before leaving for the day. The coaches are not to give the cards directly to the moderators after filling them out. The coaches are to mail the cards to the address on the front of the card (Linda Greene at Auburn H.S.) or turn the cards in to the tournament host before leaving. The tournament host is to give the cards to Ms. Greene if she is at the event, or mail them to her.
Upon receiving the cards, Ms. Greene tallies the points. A card with a total of 12 or more points counts toward certification. Ten cards from ten different coaches, each with a score of 12+ points, qualifies the moderator for performance certification. None of those coaches may be affiliated with the moderator’s school. Generally, a moderator must read the entire round in order to be rated, but in the case of an event at which coaches share reading duties (each reading half a round), that can count. Although the focus of the moderator certification test is the IHSA rules, many moderators in Illinois now read at events using different rules (such as NAQT or ACF), or a modified version of IHSA, NAQT, or ACF rules. Rating cards may be completed at any of these tournaments.
After receiving the cards, Ms. Greene will share the ratings and any written comments with the moderators, usually via e-mail, without revealing the names of the coaches who rated them.
Moderators may become certified quickly (after reading at just one or two tournaments) if the coaches all turn in the cards, and they (moderators) read for enough different teams. If a moderator reads for the same team for several rounds in a day, only one card from that team’s coach counts. Because not all coaches return the cards, moderators need to distribute more than ten cards in order to get that many completed. More cards can be obtained from Ms. Greene if 25 have been distributed, and the number needed for certification has not been returned.
***The IHSSBCA thanks all participants in the moderator certification process, which is designed to help improve the quality of officiating at Illinois events, and to encourage coaches to brush up on the rules.