At a tournament a short time ago a club representative asked me if we had made any more changes to the Division Coordinator’s “Secret Book.”  I knew exactly what he was talking about.  He was referring to a document called the “Division Coordinator’s Handbook” that was once used in the adult program.  This Coordinator’s Handbook no longer exists, but what was it, and why was it needed?  Well, here’s another short history lesson about the Region….

When the Tournament Committee and the Division Coordinator Program was initiated in the 1984-85 adult season, your Region Handbook was not the excellent document it is today.  That Handbook had enough loop-holes in it to make a lawyer jump for joy!  It was an ambiguous document, many rules were far from clear, and, most importantly for the Tournament Scheduling Process, the Division Coordinator’s tasks were pretty loosely defined.  We needed something to standardize the program and guide the Division Coordinators as they went about completing their mission.  Thus was born the “Division Coordinator’s Handbook.”

The Coordinator’s Handbook was a “How To” book which provided guidance to the Coordinators so they could manage their part of the total program given the rules in the existing Region Handbook.  It was never meant to replace and/or supplement the Region Handbook or to be used as a source for settling a complaint.  For example, the Coordinator’s Handbook provided guidance on matters such as how the Coordinator should interact with other members of the Region’s staff and Board, the importance of getting information to the tournament host and teams in a timely fashion, and how to handle a complaint from a team representative.  It was not a policy document!

To keep this “How To” Coordinator’s Handbook from being used as a policy document, we limited its distribution to the Region Commissioner, the Tournament Chair, and each Division Coordinator.  That distribution system remained in effect until the Handbook’s demise three seasons ago.  If an individual with a real “need-to-know” desired a copy, one was provided.  Oddly (and strangely funny as well), only a handful of Region members ever asked for a copy.  I guess it was more fun talking about it and wondering what was in a “Secret Handbook” rather than actually asking for one!  However, it must have been a good document as the majority of its guidance is now contained in the current Region Handbook.  By the way, I still have historical copies of the last “Secret” Division Coordinator Handbook, dated October 1, 2000, and I will gladly provide you a copy upon request.

As I mentioned earlier, your current Chesapeake Region Handbook is an outstanding document that covers the Tournament Program very well.  But you and I both know that no document can take into account every possible situation that may arise.  Over the past two seasons, I have had to make interpretations of those rules that were not clearly defined in the Region Handbook.  We have compiled these interpretations into a document titled “DIVISION COORDINATOR REGION HANDBOOK INTERPRETATIONS.”