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American Youth Soccer Organization Providing world class youth soccer programs that enrich children's lives.

Middleville AYSO Region 277

Volunteer Information



AYSO is an all-volunteer organization. The coaches who guide teams through practices and during games, the referees who tirelessly officiate games going from one field to the next, the board members who organize the region’s events all the way from planning registrations to setting the schedule and making sure game days run smoothly, are all volunteers. Nobody gets paid one dime to participate in AYSO. Nationwide, more than 220,000 parents, relatives and friends sacrifice their time and effort to make sure that all of the children receive a great AYSO experience.

Because of this volunteer foundation, AYSO ensures that the costs are as low as possible.

AYSO has developed special job-specific training that helps volunteers who may have little to no soccer experience familiarize themselves with the knowledge and skills necessary to become effective coaches and referees, as well as offering unique administrative and management training.

All this ensures that each program abides by AYSO’s Six Philosophies, offers a great AYSO experience and continues to grow and offer AYSO to more children.

It only takes a few hours to become a qualified introductory-level coach or referee. If you are willing to commit to even more time, there are many small but important jobs you can help with. Even a few hours here or there can make a big difference not only to your team but to the entire region.

Next Step

Thank you for volunteering! It is a fun and rewarding experience! There are also some steps to take before that happens.

AYSO Volunteer Application Form in Sports Connect
Any person wishing to volunteer in AYSO must complete an AYSO Volunteer Application Form each year and submit an e-signed copy to the region. Instructions are below.

Complete Background Check with Sterling Volunteers
Every volunteer must complete and pass a criminal background check with Sterling Volunteers. All requested information must be provided by the applicant. Criminal background checks ensure the safety of our children. After you complete your Volunteer Application you will receive an email from Sterling Volunteers with instructions for completing your background check.
AYSO’s Background Check Policy

Complete AYSO's Safe Haven Course
Safe Haven is a training session that focuses on safety and appropriate behavior with children. This course is taken online at AYSOU. Instructions are below.

CDC HEADS UP Concussion Training
All on field volunteers must complete the CDC Concussion Awareness course on AYSOU.

Sudden Cardiac Arrest Online Course
All on field volunteers must complete this course.

SafeSport Training
The 2017 SafeSport Act has expanded Mandated Reporters to include adults authorized to interact with children. Due to this expansion, that includes AYSO and it requires training on child abuse and mandated reporting.

AYSO’s Summary of the Laws of the Game
Found on AYSOU this course is required for all Referee Volunteers. It is highly recommended for all Coach Volunteers.

Referee Volunteers
Each Referee is required to attend a live in person training session with one of our Referee Trainers. Before every season we hold referee training for all of our new referees. Instructions for registering for in person training is below.


Coach Volunteers
All Coaches, including Assistant Coaches, must be age appropriately certified. Refer to the chart below to verify which training courses you need to complete in order to coach in each division. Some coaches may be able to complete this certification online. Other coaches will be required to participate in an in person training. This training camp is held every August. Registration instructions are below.

DivisionRequired CourseFormatPrerequisites
4U PlaygroundPlayground and Schoolyard Soccer Program LeaderOnline Safe Haven, Concussion, SCA, SafeSport
5U SchoolyardPlayground and Schoolyard Soccer Program LeaderOnline Safe Haven, Concussion, SCA, SafeSport
6U6U Coaching TrainingOnline and/or In Person Safe Haven, Concussion, SCA, SafeSport
8U8U Coaching TrainingOnline and/or In Person Safe Haven, Concussion, SCA, SafeSport
10U10U Coaching Training & Field SessionCombined Online & In Person Safe Haven, Concussion, SCA, SafeSport
12U12U Coaching Training Pre Course & Field SessionCombined Online & In Person Safe Haven, Concussion, SCA, , SafeSport, 10U Coach
14UIntermediate Coach Pre-Course & Field SessionCombined Online & In Person Safe Haven, Concussion, SCA, , SafeSport, 12U Coach


How does AYSO protect its volunteers and athletes?

Safe Haven™ is a program designed to address a growing need for child and volunteer protection. There are four elements in the Safe Haven™ intervention cycle: Create Policies, Screen Volunteers, Train Volunteers, and Promote Education and Awareness. These are intended to stop child abuse and its agents before they get into the program.  In AYSO, children play in a friendly and safe environment.

The Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 
This law grants immunity from certain types of prosecution for volunteers who meet its requirements. In order to receive full protection under the law, AYSO volunteers need must: 1. be properly trained and certified; 2. be performing duties as laid out in a position description; 3. act within the scope of AYSO's Policies, Procedures, and Guidelines.

Thank you for volunteering for Middleville AYSO Region 277.  Feel free to contact our Child and Volunteer Protection Advocate with any questions or assistance you may need.


  1. Kids are No. 1.
  2. Fun, not winning is everything.
  3. Fans only cheer, and only coaches coach.
  4. No yelling in anger.
  5. Respect the volunteer referees.
  6. No swearing or abusive behavior.
  7. No alcohol, tobacco or drugs.
  8. No weapons.
  9. Leave no trash behind.
  10. Set a proper example of sportsmanship.

How to register as a new adult volunteer in Sports Connect

.Want these instructions in PDF version? AYSO Volunteer Registration

AYSO VOLUNTEER REGISTRATION PROCESS

Steps to complete Volunteer Registration with a pre-existing account are as follows: 
1.  Log into your AYSO Sports Connect account 
2.  Access the My Account page 
3.  Click on the Volunteer button on the left-hand side of the screen


4.  Click the Find Volunteer Roles button on the upper right-hand side of the screen


If the account holder has registered a player prior to this step, skip to step #5. If not, continue with 4a – 4c.

4a. If the account holder does not have a player registered and the division is currently accepting volunteer registration, the user is presented with an additional position selection screen shown below.


4b. Volunteer opportunities for the current season will appear on the next screen. All available 
options will be available if you toggle the accordion icon.


4c. Once you expand the accordion, you’ll be able to view any available opportunities. You may 
also select division/s you would like to volunteer in. Once done, select View Selected 
Opportunities.


5.  All available Open Positions are listed here. Select the opportunity you’d like to sign up for.


6.  Click on your name under the selected position.


7.  Next, fill out all required detail fields to complete the registration.


8.  When you arrive at the Waivers portion, view/accept all three.


9.  While viewing each waiver, read and scroll down the waiver page. It will ask you to type in your first and last name as an “E-signature.” When ready, hit I Accept.


10. Once all waivers have been e-signed, select the Continue button.


11. Your Volunteer Application is now complete!

Verify Your Compliance

Verify Your Compliance

After you have completed your Volunteer Application it is important for you to verify your compliance with the AYSO background check, safety courses, and training courses.

Background Check (Risk Status)
You may receive an email from Sterling Volunteers to start your background check. If you do, click the link in their email. However, it will prompt you to create a new account. DO NOT CREATE A NEW ACCOUNT IF YOU ALREADY HAVE A STERLING VOLUNTEERS ACCOUNT. Instead, open a new tab and visit: https://app.sterlingvolunteers.com/en to log in and continue your background check.

If you need to start your background check because you missed the first email, or your background check has expired visit your Volunteer (My Roles & Certificates) page, check the box next to Risk Status, then click Renew & Update. The Background Check Screening Form will be displayed, no you cannot make any changes here, click Submit. You should then be sent an email from Sterling Volunteers.

AYSO Safety & Training Courses
To verify that you are up to date with your courses visit your My Account page then click Volunteer Opportunities. You will be presented with your My Roles & Certificates page. Under your role a module with your compliance status.





Need to get compliant?
You must be compliant with all five items before the season starts.
If you have misplaced your welcome email from Sterling Volunteers click the check box next to Risk Status, then click the Renew & Update button to be sent a new link.
The Concussion Awareness, Sudden Cardiac Arrest, and AYSOs Safe Haven courses are all on www.aysou.org. There are instructions below for accessing those courses.
Your Coaching License must be at or above the level of coach you are volunteering for. The license for Playground, Schoolyard, 6U, and 8U can all be obtained online via www.aysou.org. The license for 10U and above has online and in person courses. Contact [email protected] for more information.

AYSOU Training with EtrainU

AYSOU Training

Your etrainu account will be your personal training record management system and hold everything you need. This includes your training courses, training records, certificates  and more. All courses that you complete using your etrainu account will stay safely are accessible 24/7.

Logging On
1.  Login to www.middlevilleayso.org.
2.  Click on the volunteer menu option on the left-hand side and then select the “AYSOU” Button.

Enrolling into Training
1.  Click on the “Training Library” menu bar option, available on the left-hand side of the screen.
2.  You will then be directed to the Course Categories page, where you can select the course category where the desired training course is assigned. Click “View Courses” to view the suite of courses within that specific category.
3.  Locate the course you wish to allocate and click “Enroll”.
4.  Once processed, the course will be allocated to your account and you will be taken directly to that course. You can click “Start” to commence the course. The course can be accessed any time by clicking on “My Training”.

Access and Complete your Training
To access any training which you have enrolled into, or has been assigned to you, click on the “My Training” menu bar option located on the left-hand side of the screen.

Access and Complete Your In Person Assessments
It is  important to note that not all courses have In-Person assessments. If your course has In-Person assessments, you will notice this is broken into stages then slides. 

EtrainU Guide & Videos

EtrainU has a full pdf user guide. This guide will walk you through enrolling in courses, finding your certificates, and more.

 EtrainU User Guide

Video: My Training Page
Video: Skills Passport
Video: Enroll into an Online Course
Guide: Find and Enroll in a Face to Face Event
Video: Register for a Face to Face Course

SafeSport

The 2017 SafeSport Act has expanded Mandated Reporters to include adults authorized to interact with children. Due to this expansion, that includes AYSO and it requires training on child abuse and mandated reporting.

Effective, January 1, 2022, U.S. Soccer will no longer allow equivalent training* and has mandated SafeSport training.

What does this mean for AYSO?
AYSO will comply with the federal SafeSport training requirement and we will integrate with the U.S. Soccer Education and Learning Center as well as their Player Health and Safety Courses.

The training is the full course in the first year, which is 90 minutes, and repeated every three years, followed by annual updates in the in-between years, which are 30 minutes.

How will it work?
 You will be able to access the SafeSport training by following these instructions:

Login to your Sports Connect account where you registered as a volunteer.
Click on the volunteer tab on the left-hand side of the screen
Click on SafeSport box
Click on Renew and Update
A screen will pop up where you will click on the “click HERE” link or copy and paste the URL into your browser to begin training
Note: Youth Volunteers (anyone under the age of 18 in Michigan) are not required to take this training.



The default integration uses the U.S. Center for Safesport, as seen above. Once you take the course, the USSF results will update the AYSO Association Platform and be sent to Safesport for their records.

National Partners

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Contact Us

Middleville AYSO Region 277

P.O. Box 426 
Middleville, Michigan 49333

Email Us: [email protected]
Phone : 269-804-3629
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