SJAC Volunteering
The Parent Committee has proposed that we move from an annual commitment to a monthly commitment for the 2022/23 swim season. The monthly volunteer hours will be between 2.5-5 hours/month, based on your child's swim group and the length of the meet that month. However, we will be asking for additional hours in December for the Gator Classic Swim meet, as this is our biggest fundraising meet of the year!
Why is volunteering a requirement? Each swim meet session requires approximately 60 volunteers for the meet to be sanctioned by USA Swimming, as well as food for the coaches and officials (and volunteers!) who dedicate their entire weekend to running these meets. The volunteer hours are based on families volunteering at the swim meets we host at our facility. If those positions are not filled, or if we do not have enough donations, then it incurs additional expenses on the team, like paying facility managers or lifeguards to come in to help with setup or cleanup, or purchasing food and drinks for concessions/hospitality, etc. In addition to meets, over our 9-month season, we have team bonding events, fundraising events, travel meets, and the end of year banquet that all require volunteers to run. Additional donation opportunities for our meets will also be available to those who are not able to attend meets or have limited availability to volunteer.
Any unfulfilled hours will be charged $20/hour. All money collected from Volunteer Hour charges goes toward covering those out-of-pocket swim meet expenses. The rest will be put toward our new SJAC Scholarship fund (more information on that coming soon!).
What if I am unavailable to volunteer at a meet or my child isn't able to attend a meet? You can always donate gatorade, water or candy even if spots are not available on the signup. Just make sure to email [email protected] and let them know what you donated! You can also volunteer at a team bonding or fundraising event. Contact your Parent Rep to see what events are coming up!
How will I know what to do at each job? Descriptions for each position will be posted online. There will be experienced parents and meet coordinators at each meet that help to show the other volunteers what to do... so even if you don't know, someone will be there to show you!
Do I have to volunteer if my child swims on an SJAC II Team? If your child is competing in a meet, you must volunteer or donate. You will not be required to volunteer if your child does not compete, however, there will be team bonding events for all groups so any help is appreciated and donations are always welcome!
Will my hours roll over to the next month if I go over the required hours for that month? YES... and vice versa! Each month we will add hours to the active accounts and the SJAC II swimmer accounts that compete and those hours will accumulate. So if you can't volunteer 1 month but do 8 hours the next, those hours will count toward your total hours that have accumulated. We want to be fair and work with the swim families, but we need help to run the team and this is the best way to get everyone involved!
Monthly Requirements for 2022/2023 Season
September
- 3 hours for all ages
October
- 11 and ups - 5 hours
- 10 and under - 3 hours
November
- 11 and ups - 5 hours
- 10 and under 3 hours
December
- 9 and ups - 8 hours (for those going to the travel meets, we ask that you help with either setup or cleanup at the Gator Classic and/or donate food or drink to the meet. They will also need donations & volunteers for the travel meets)
- 8 and under - 5 hours
January
- 11 and ups - 4 hours
- 10 and under - 2 hours
February/March
- 11 and up - 5 hours
- 10 and under - 4 hours
Total Hours
- 30 hours (11 & up)
- 23 hours (9/10)
- 20 hours (8 & under)
If you are unable to fulfill your hours, please contact your Parent Reps and/or the SJAC Volunteer Coordinator and they can notify you of additional volunteer opportunities!
Because the SJAC II groups are only required to do hours if they participate in meets, all monthly hour requirements will be added after each meet.
Monitoring / Viewing Your Hours Worked
- You can see exactly how many hours you have worked and how many hours remain at anytime through the SJAC Website.
- Log into your account
- Go to My Account > My Invoice/Payment > Service Hours (4th tab at the top of the page)
- Do NOT go to the 'Event and Jobs' report as that does not include the hours we entered manually for away meets or team events
Volunteering at SJAC Hosted Meets
- Log into your account and select 'Events & Competitions'
- Each meet will have a volunteer "Job Signup" tab which will have all of the available jobs listed.
- The Job sign up for each meet will remain open until 12:00 AM on the last day of the meet.
- When you arrive at the meet, you will check in with the Meet Coordinator who will approve your hours thorugh Team Unify.
- If you are unable to check in with Meet Coordintor or signup ahead of time, you MUST Email [email protected] and confirm that you were at the meet. We cannot track every person down at the end of each month to make sure your hours are accurate. It is YOUR responsibility to make sure your hours are correct.
- Anyone who helps with Meet Setup and Cleanup will get your hours for the month.
Volunteering at Non-SJAC Hosted Meets
- At larger meets we will be required to provide a certain amount of volunteers. A sign up page will be created and e-mailed to those families attending the meet.
- If you sign up for a job and can not work, it is your responsibility to find a replacement. In this case you MUST e-mail the volunteer coordinator at [email protected] to let her know of the switch in order to properly adjust the hours.
- If you work at a meet that does NOT require us to provide help you must E-mail the volunteer coordinator and let her know which meet you worked, which session, and what your role was.
Volunteering at Team Activities
- If you are asked by a coach to help with a team/group activity, please E-mail [email protected] with the volunteer hours you performed.
