How much is tuition and where do I send my check?
Why is the evaluation/tryout fee so high?
How many games and practices are there a week?
If my skater was with Baystate last year do I have to get new shirts?
Can I use someone's old shirts instead of buying new?
What is the expectation for fundraising activities?
My player has been placed on the Two team, is there a chance he will up?
Where can I find forms for shirt orders, registration code of conduct, etc?
Where can I find USA Hockey's rulebook?
Do I have to re-register with USA Hockey every year?
What is a financial waiver?


Tuition
     The 2010-2011 tuition for Baystate-Griffin skaters has been set at $1225. This is a $25 increase (or 2.5%) from last year.
     Tuition is due in full by September 1st so please start making payments according to the schedule. Please send checks (payable to Baystate Youth Hockey) to Baystate-Griffin Youth Hockey, PO Box 235, Auburn MA 01501.

    June 1st $325
    July 1st $325
    August 1st $325

    Skaters not paid in full will not be allowed on the ice after September 8th until accounts are up to date or a payment plan has been agreed to. In the past the board has been over tolerant about late payments and this year we were still chasing money in April. This creates a lot of extra work for the people who volunteer their time to the organization and is not fair to them or the rest of the organization’s members. So, let’s get on the schedule and get this issue behind us.
    At the same time, the board recognizes the current economic conditions are less than optimal so we have a couple of options for families needing payment plans or payment options. We are willing to work with you so if you need more information on those options please contact our Treasurer Sharon Wolf. She can be reached at sharonwolf@charter.net or (860) 974-2393.

Why is the tryout fee so high?
"Why are the tryout fees so high? The ice only costs so much, right? Why $250?"

Yes, the ice we use for tryouts is the same we use for practice and the cost is the same.

So why is the evaluation fee seemingly so high?

Over the last ten years or it has become a common practice for some parents to taking their skater to three or four tryouts at different organization and pay a $50 tryout fee. When the teams are announced at these various organizations these parents take their skater to the team or organization where their player is placed on the "best team". What their definition of "best team" is - will vary. They almost never notify the 2 or 3 organizations they are not going back to and they just eat the loss of $150.

If Baystate-Griffin is one of those organizations who is not notified we go through the process of picking teams and setting tuition for everybody based on the number of kids we think we have. Then in the fall when this skater and nine others like him do not show up to play - our budget number are off by that number of kids multiplied by 1200 and our teams are out of balance. As you can see even a small amount of these situations can create a big problem.

To combat this over the last five years or so most if not all of the local youth organizations have looked to get more of a commitment from the skaters showing up for tryouts through the use of a higher evaluation fee. It has been an overwhelming success. If your skater comes back to Baystate-Griffin in the fall, 100% of your evaluation is applied to the tuition for the year. There is absolutely no downside to you.

Additionally, if you look at the timing of tryout fee - it is only 6 months away from when your total tuition is due in any case. If you are in for $1,200 on September 1st, the $250 in March/April is really just a good starting off point.

In a nutshell, that is why the tryout fee is what it is.

Just for comparison I have included the evaluation fees of other local organizations for their spring 2010 evaluations.

Lakers = $250
Midstate = $275-300
Demons = $300
Shrewsbury = $300
Baystate = $250

Games and Practices Per Week
     What you should expect to see is roughly 2 practices a week along with 1 to 2 games a week for a full season team. Baystate-Griffin is assigned blocks of ice time from the rink administrator (FMC) for practice ice. We do not have our assignments from FMC yet, but last years blocks were:

Monday 5:30 pm, 6:30 pm, 7:30 pm and 8:30 pm
Tuesday 7:00 pm
Wednesday 7:30 pm and 8:30 pm
Saturday 10:00 am, 11:00 am, 9:00 pm and 10:00 pm
Sunday 8:30 am 9:30 am, 10:30 am and 11:30 am.
     Obviously, we try not to give the younger skaters the later ice times. We also try our best to keep the schedules as consistent as possible but that depends heavily on game times.
     For examples of schedules, you can look at the schedule page of our website to see what last year’s schedules looked like. You can find the schedules here.

A Heads Up About The Westboro League
     Westboro almost never closes due to snow. A team not fielding at least 6 players will forfeit the game and the league is assessed a fine of $250. So, we should always plan on being at games regardless of the weather.
     In the end, it is your call on how safe it is to travel. There are times when it may be snowing heavily in Woodstock and raining in Westboro – just something else to consider. Please do your best to let your coach know when you will not be able to make a game, even if it is last minute.

Fundraising
     We always run very lean to keep your costs down. We are planning on fundraising the same way we did last year – mainly with events like the Comedy Night, The Golf Tournament, The Moms Hockey game and Team Pictures.
     You will notice there are no plans for a raffle ticket fundraiser again this year. We have listened to our parents and by far their biggest complaint about fundraising is having to sell raffle tickets. In lieu of selling tickets we expect participation in these other events.
     You do not have to help organize (it would be fantastic if you could) but you are strongly encouraged to attend. You will be happy you did. We always have a good time at these events and it is refreshing to have the opportunity socialize with fellow parents outside of the rink.
     The culture at Baystate-Griffin is unparalleled – family like – take advantage and have fun.

Roster Movement
     When there are enough players for two teams at any age group we leave room on the one team so we can pull players up in the fall. Once we get back on the ice in late August and early September the coach of each One team will evaluate players on each Two team and will offer invitations to some skaters to move up to the One team. Our rosters should be set by mid September.

USA Hockey Registration
     You do have to register with USA Hockey every year. USA Hockey uses this money to insure your skater so it must be renewed every year.
Obtaining a financial waiver is standard operating procedure and is not a bad thing – it is just a procedure we have to go through to make sure you are cleared to leave Midstate. You guys have paid in full with Baystate-Griffin and we are very happy to have you.

Financial Waiver
    Whenever any player moves from one organization to another they must prove that they do not owe any money to the old organization. There was a time when people could sign up for Organization A and not pay all of their money for the year and then the following year move to Organization B. Leaving Organization A high and dry. To prevent this, Mass Hockey instituted this process that mandates that we contact the old organization to obtain a “financial waiver” from the old organization stating that the player's accounts are in good standing.