Bill Kauffman
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Jan. 12, 2012) – The Puget Sound Region, one of 40 Regional Volleyball Associations within USA Volleyball, has been awarded the second of two $11,000 USAV Boys’ Development Subsidy Grants for the 2011 calendar year that just ended.

“USA Volleyball is very pleased to be able to help Puget Sound in the development of boys’ teams and programs in that area of the country,” USA Volleyball Manager of Region Services Programs Donise King said. “Puget Sound has worked very hard in getting this new program off the ground with the hiring of an experienced USA Volleyball ex-commissioner in Allan Chinn. With Allan at the helm of this new project, he has shown his dedication to making this exciting and successful for the Puget Sound members.”

The Puget Sound Region will focus on establishing a sustainable base to grow the sport of boys’ volleyball from the age of 10 all the way through the high school age groups. The year 2012 will commence a five-year plan to grow boys’ volleyball with the end goal of establishing varsity sports in high schools and eventually into colleges in the Pacific Northwest.

Chinn was recently selected as the Puget Sound Region’s boys’ development program director. He previously served as commissioner for the region and held a spot on USA Volleyball’s executive board. Chinn has served as a club director and coach for junior players while playing the sport for over four decades. He has serves as an official at USA Volleyball national events, NCAA tournaments and Pac 12 volleyball for 35 years. Chinn has also worked as a USA Volleyball event arbitrator for 14 years.

“I am dedicated to the sport and want to see boys’ volleyball in the Pacific Northwest expand into another sport boys can play all the way into college,” Chinn said. “I want to create a boys’ advisory group to make this happen. I want people who have an equal passion for the sport, time to devote in making boys’ volleyball a viable and lifelong sport in the Northwest. I want to make a team of dedicated players, coaches and administrators to help make this happen and happen now. This is not my program, it is your program. I am just a conduit and catalyst.”

To help accomplish this goal, the Puget Sound Region will establish a database and social network access involving both Facebook and Twitter to solely promote boys’ volleyball in the region. These tools will help distribute information, clinic schedules, tournaments, training videos, etc. Further, the Puget Sound Region will hold three in-person informational meetings to interested administrators, coaches and club directors in establishing boys’ programs.

As part of the grant, the Puget Sound Region will reimburse costs associated with IMPACT (Increased Mastery and Professional Application of Coaching Theory) courses for first-time boys’ coaches on a new team. Further, girls’ clubs can apply for one of six stipends of $500 to be used towards adding or maintaining a boys’ 14-and-under team within the club structure. To attract boys’ coaches, the grant will offer a 50 percent subsidy of registration fees and background checks to new boys’ coaches.

The Puget Sound Region will also hold two sister-brother clinics, where the 14-or-under ‘brother’ – related or not – will have his costs subsidized. In addition, there have been three tournaments and a regional championship already scheduled for boys’ teams this year. The region envisions using local collegiate men’s players as coaches, who would also serve as role models for the collegiate men’s game as well much respected collegiate coaches.

The grant’s marketing campaign will include a coaching tools kit for new boys’ coaches, including clip boards, pumps, whistles, rule books, back pack, etc. is a guide line on how the Puget Sound Region will use the USA Volleyball Boys Development subsidy. Additionally, the Puget Sound Region will budget additional funds for team development training, program director stipend, coaches’ hands-on clinics with local college coaches, etc.

USA Volleyball continues to support initiatives for the development of boys’ volleyball programming, in particular, youth programming for boys’ 14 years old or younger. The USAV Boys’ Development Subsidy Grant must be used to create or enhance programs for boys 14 years old or younger. Applicants must show that the grant will support multiple teams or league programming to be eligible.

According to the grant program guidelines, recipients must use the USAV grant as a catalyst for programming development. Recipients are expected to provide additional financial support to not only initiate the proposed programs, but also maintain programming into the future.

COBRA SPORTS