Program Guidelines

Program Guidelines

MYL Member Program Guidelines and Compliance

 
In order to encourage good member program behavior and to protect those towns that have followed MYL’s mission and spirit of the league, MYL board is proposing operational and organizational guidelines with categories of member program status to ensure that all teams support and nurture our league’s efforts.
 

Program Organizational Guidelines

  • Programs should be incorporated in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
    • A document titled “Articles of Organization” should be field with the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Among other details, this document should provide the program’s officers: President, Treasurer, Clerk, and a list of directors. The purpose of the organization should be “To Organize, manage, and support a youth athletic program for the sport of lacrosse." Programs could also be part of a larger multi-sport organization. There should be no paid positions.
  • The President, Treasurer, and Clerk of a program should be at least 3 unrelated persons. See the Massachusetts Attorney General's 16 page: Guide for Board Members of Charitable Organizations

 

Program Operational Guidelines

1. Programs should file annual reports with the Secretary of the Commonwealth.
 
2. The program should have meetings of interested parties within their program boundries at least six times per year to plan and execute the spring lacrosse program. One coach from each level of play should be a party to these gatherings.
 
3. Programs should work with municipal, school, and private parties to secure playing fields for practices and games.
 
4. Programs should manage registrations of participants to match the available playing fields and be able to register teams with MYL regional organizations as requested. 
 
5. Programs should create and maintain a website to communicate organization, news, registrations, and related activities. MYL uses League Athletics as the host provider for the MYL web site and it’s recommended that new programs and those that do not yet have a web presence adopt League Athletics as their web site host.
 
6. Programs should send representatives to the regional MYL meetings and participate in the organization and execution of the spring season at the regional level. Programs need to be represented for at least 75% of the regional meetings annually.
 
7. Programs must secure adequate staffing levels for each planned team and require that at least one coach from each team be a certified coach. It’s desirable to have all adults certified. At a minimum, all adult volunteers must complete MYL compliance and should watch the MYL Intro to Coaching Video. Programs should train all of their coaches and players to follow the MYL rules of play. 
 
8. Programs must screen all volunteers and do MA criminal background checks (CORI ), have a methodology for analyzing those results as they pertain to the viability of volunteers to your program. These background checks may be done by 3rd parties for a fee, or free to programs that have state certified CORI volunteers. It is a Massachusetts State law that all volunteers have an annual CORI check.
 
9. Program treasurers are responsible for creating budgets, final approval of expenditures, paying obligations, making sure the program remains a “not-for-profit.” Program finances should be reviewed by the other officers and directors on a regular basis (at each meeting of the program’s officers). Financial summaries should be made available to anyone in the program and to the MYL regional or state boards as requested. All programs need to file form PC with Massachusetts along wit the Federal form 990. Programs that exceed gross receipts of $50,000 need to file Form 990 with the IRS. All programs should strive to be a not-for-profit under the federal IRS 501(c) 3 code, and then apply for a state exemption for paying taxes (ST-2).
 
10. Programs should implement specific responsibilities for coaches, players, and parents and annually reinforce that adults must always be positive role models for the players.
 

Game Day Operational Guidelines

 1. Programs have to respect the published schedule and make honoring the schedule a priority over all other lacrosse interests.
 
2. Programs should confirm scheduled games each week with the opposing teams. Initiate game confirmation at least 4 days before the scheduled game. Home teams need to confirm that certified lacrosse officials will referee all games. If there’s no official listed for a game, it’s the home team’s responsibility to secure officials through the regional official’s coordinator or through their own contacts.
 
3. All programs that field Level 7/8 or Level 1/2 games must provide Associate Officials to serve as the second official at 7/8 games and as the only official at 1/2 games. Programs are expected to have as many Associate Officials as the number of 7/8 or 1/2 teams, whichever is greater.
 
4. Home teams are expected to pay all official fees for games hosted. Home teams are expected to provide a safe field for play per MYL dimensions with the specified field lines and goals. Home teams are responsible for parking and spectator control. Home team coaches should welcome visiting coaches and teams to their facility and initiate the pre-game checklist before each game. Home teams should provide game timers and keep the game and penalty times. Home teams should have cones at the field corners, midfield, and the substitution box on the team sideline

 
Member Program Status:
 
Good Standing - No organizational or operational issues.
 
Good Standing with organizational  deficiencies - this status is most applicable for new programs as it is difficult to start a program and have the depth of help required to execute on all the organizational guidelines. There should be a plan with how and when a program can get 100% compliance.
 
1st Warning - MYL has issued a town a warning regarding its financial standing, behavior, or other issue.
 
Probation - MYL has issued a 2nd warning either regarding the 1st warning that was not fixed or for a separate issue.  Town must meet with MYL regional competition committee before permitted to re-enroll the next year.
 
Expulsion - MYL is expelling all of the town’s teams from the league for one year.
 
 
Examples of Inappropriate Behavior

  • Unsportsmanlike conduct not in keeping with MYL’s mission or spirit of the game.
  • Repeated unsportsmanlike conduct from the town’s board, coaches, players, and/or parents.
  • Failure to have transparent operation within your program.
  • Conduct that’s detrimental to the growth of lacrosse in a program.

 
Examples of Operational Deficiencies

  • Fielding teams where all players are not registered MYL members.
  • Failure to have all coaches be registered MYL members.
  • Failure to do required CORI checks of all volunteers in program.
  • Failure to attend required meetings.
  • Failure to comply with coaching requirements.
  • Not honoring the game schedule: Failure to play a game because of a lack of desire to drive the distance.
  • Not honoring the game schedule: Canceling or postponing a game less than 1 week before the scheduled event (unless due to weather or field closure).
  • Failure to adhere to the home team’s responsibilities (confirming games and officials, safe fields with firm footing within bounds, lined fields, functional goals, cones at corners, game and penalty timer).
  • Failure to create evenly balanced teams if more than one team at same level in a league.
  • Withdrawing a team after the game schedule is released.