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Minneapolis Youth Lacrosse

Board Agenda
June 13, 2019 @ 7:00 p.m. SportsEngine

Members present: Staven Bruce, Rob Bedeaux, John Neal, Eric Elgin, Melanie Faulhaber, Ashlee Miller, Karen Bruce 

Secretary: Notes from the May meeting were reviewed.  Neal moved to approve.  Bedeaux seconded.  A vote was taken and the motion passed. 

Boys Program: Neal stated that attendance at the 14U level has been an issue and there were multiple games scheduled against the same team, but the at the spring field season and the coach pairings went well.  There were concerns about team management on the 14UB team, which was addressed by Elgin. At the 12U level, S. Bruce would like coaches to do a weekly email to show what the kids are working on.  Elgin will be meeting with YLM about feedback on how the A/B teams are working and how leagues should be accountable.  The 10U teams are going well.  Elgin reported that the 8U team played six games/scrimmages. The 5:30 practice times were difficult for families.  Four or five 8U players will participate in the summer program.

Girls Program: K. Bruce reported that turnout for the 14U team was low for games.  The tournament went well and the summer season is off to a good start, the coaching staff has worked well.  Uniforms have come in at the last minute, so it will be important to order them earlier in the future.  Miller and K. Bruce noted that the spring season went well for the girls.  The 10U Girls games will start on Monday.

Team Commitment:  A discussion was held concerning game and practice attendance expectations for players.  There are times that the numbers are low because kids are choosing other sports, there are weather concerns, or they don’t show up because others aren’t attending.

Training: A suggestion was made to give the kids drills they can be working on during the offseason.  Adding videos of kids doing skills to social media could be an option.Additional goalie development should be implemented, perhaps with clinics or direct coaching.  Storm hockey has a coach that attends practices on a rotating basis to help goalies. A goaltending camp might be available this summer for boys and girls. A suggestion was made that a high school goalie could come to practices to help train goalies.

Fields/Scheduling:Fields had to be closed at Bassett due to flooding this spring.  A reminder should go in to the team manager handbook about how practices and games are rescheduled due to weather.  A policy should also be published so that parents do not expect refunds for weather cancellations.  Elgin will look into getting tents for teams for the summer and weekend tournaments.  Duane Sizemore and Elgin are looking into fields for next season, such as utilizing South High School.  Neal will look into options at McRae Park. Elgin is also looking to create a process for procuring field space.  A discussion was held around how to structure the boys’ seasons.  Could spring and summer field be combined to one season, start a bit later to accommodate box?  Registration, fields, and numbers of boys that will play a long season will all need to be considered.  If three seasons continue, a tournament should be excluded and breaks should be included to eliminate overlap of seasons.   Feedback from parents indicates that kids want to play in the summer, but with other sports and obligations, it’s hard to commit to a full schedule.   Elgin will check with St. Louis Park and Hopkins to see if they are interested in joining Minneapolis for a Fall league.  Boys and girls at 14U should practice more per week (3 – 4 times) to get ready for high school play.  Registration fees will be adjusted to accommodate the extra field and coaching time.

Marketing: Bedeaux will order 50 yard signs. People can request them for a donation and extras can be brought to the picnic for distribution.  Parents can deliver yard signs for Dibs credit. Bedeaux found helmet stickers that can be given for scoring goals, etc.  Coaches will be able to distribute them.  We will also look into getting large “M” stickers for the helmets for next season.    The group discussed a name or design competition for kids to create a team name/mascot.

Treasurer: Angela Slaughter relayed that a time study should be completed for the summer boys and girls coaches, similar to what was done for spring.  The budget is good at this time, and some money should be returned to us for field cancellations.

Volunteering: A video will be sent this summer to parents that show directions on how to do Dibs.  A reminder will be sent to families to complete their Dibs, as well as a request for a new Volunteer Coordinator and picnic help.  All summer games are uploaded, with the exception of 10U Girls. Miller will provide those details to Faulhaber. 

Uniforms:  The group discussed the  possibility for re-using uniforms year over year.  There would be a need for parent volunteers to oversee the project.

Recruiting:Elgin will be working with Molly Meyers to get a survey out for parent feedback concerning the spring season.

Meeting adjourned at 8:30 pm.

Next meeting: Thursday, July 11, 2019 at 7:00 at SportsEngine