INFORMATION & FORMS

 “Refund Policy- Oakland Sports are divided into Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer sports.  Those that sign-up for an Oakland Recreation sport/activity, but decide against participation, are entitled to a refund as long as they request it in writing by the dates posted below.  A written request for a refund may be in mail, email or hand delivered form.  One letter is to be sent to the Commissioner of the sport and a copy sent to the Recreation Chairman.  Because of the self-funding nature of Oakland Travel Tryout Sports there will be no refunds offered for those sports.

Refunds for Fall Sports- request must be delivered to Commissioner by August 1^st.

Refunds for Winter Sports- request must be delivered to Commissioner by December 1^st.

Refunds for Spring Sports- request must be delivered to Commissioner by April 1^st.

Refunds for Summer Sports-request must be delivered to Commissioner by June 1^st.

            Any request made after the dates posted above will be denied for refunds.”

In order to coach in any Oakland Recreation program, you must be 'Rutgers' certified.  Please visit the "Coach Certification" page in the menu bar to the left for more information.

For Oakland Recreation's revised Bylaws... click on the handout below.

Oakland Recreation

ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY 

WHEREAS, it is extremely important that recreational activities within the Borough of Oakland be free of inappropriate behavior by adults and children participating in, attending, or watching, these activities; and

WHEREAS, the State of New Jersey has authorized municipalities to adopt a “Code of Conduct” applicable to recreation activities; and

WHEREAS, by this Policy, it is the intention of the Oakland Recreation Commission to establish a Zero Tolerance Policy, and to delegate to the Oakland Recreation Commission, the power, authority, and obligation to enforce said Policy, including adopting procedures to review alleged violations, and impose appropriate penalties. The Recreation Commission is hereby directed to review all behavior at events at which teams or individuals participate under the auspices of the Oakland Recreation, including events outside Oakland and to make every effort to insure that all behavior at said events complies with the Zero Tolerance Policy. The Recreation Commission is further authorized to take all steps necessary to enforce said Code, and to impose appropriate penalties, as described herein. 

A. Code of Conduct – Every participant, parent, guest, spectator, coach, orofficial attending or participating in any manner, in any recreational activity, conducted under the auspices of the Oakland Recreation, shall comply with the Zero Tolerance Policy as described herein. The Zero Tolerance Policy will be applicable whether or not the event occurs within the Borough of Oakland, provided it is conducted under the auspices of the Oakland Recreation which includes travel teams.  Adult teams and other groups or teams using our fields shall also comply and be subject to our Zero Tolerance Policy. 

1. Fights, scuffles, etc. – Any participant, parent, guest, spectator, coach,or official at any youth sports event who is found by the Recreation Commission to have initiated and/or participated in a fight, scuffle, or any type of physical altercation or abuse, or threats of abuse, towards any participant, parent, guest, spectator, coach, or official, shall be banned from attendance at all Recreation activities, including youth sports events within the Borough of Oakland for a period to be determined by the Recreation Commission, which period shall not exceed 12 months from the date of the incident for a first offense. 

2. Entering field of play – Any parent, guest, coach, or official at anyyouth sporting event who is found by the Recreation Commission to have entered the field of play, court, or rink, during any youth sporting event for the purpose of physically, or verbally abusing, or confronting coaches, players, or officials, or otherwise interfering with the youth sporting event, shall be banned from attendance at all Recreation Activities, including youth sports events within the Borough of Oakland for a period to be determined by the RecreationCommission, which period shall not exceed 12 months from the date of the incident for a first offense. 

3. Obscene or profane language, etc. – Any participant, parent, guest,spectator, coach, or official at any recreation activity who is found by the Recreation Commission to have verbally abused an official, player, or spectator, which abuse shall be deemed to include the use of obscene or profane language, or gestures, or racial, ethnic or sexual slurs, may be banned from all recreation activities for a period to be determined by the Recreation Commission, which period shall not exceed 12 months from the date of the incident. 

4. Throwing objects onto the field of play - Any parent, guest,spectator, or official at any recreation activity who is found by the Recreation Committee to have thrown, or caused to be deposited, any object onto the field of play, court, or rink, may be banned from attendance at all recreation activities for a period to be determined by the Recreation Commission, which period shall not exceed 12 months from the date of the incident. 

5. Detrimental behavior Other behavior which may be determined by the Recreation Commission to be inappropriate and detrimental to the youthful participants shall include, but not be limited to, encouraging youthful participants to engage in prohibited activity, or inappropriate activity. Any participant, parent, guest, spectator, coach, or official found by the Recreation Commission to be engaging in such other inappropriate behavior as determined solely in the discretion of the Oakland Recreation Commission may be banned from all recreation activities for a period to be determined by the Recreation Commission, which period shall not exceed 12 months from the date of the incident for the first offense. 

6. Refusing to follow the order of officials – Parents, coaches, spectators, and all other parties at any recreation event, must comply with the requests and demands of all field officials, including appointed league officials. Such authority shall include the authorization to direct any person or persons to immediately remove themselves from the premises and a failure to follow said direction shall constitute a violation of the Zero Tolerance Policy and shall subject the violator to discipline, including a prohibition from attending all recreation events for a period not exceeding 12 months 

B. Violations of Zero Tolerance Policy – Any and all allegations, claims, or charges, regarding violations of the Zero Tolerance Policy shall be presented to the Recreation Commission. The Recreation Commission is authorized to establish appropriate procedures through its By-laws for the investigation, enforcement, and imposition of any appropriate penalties. The Recreation Commission may appoint a sub-committee to address, consider, and decide, all matters relating to alleged violations of the Zero Tolerance Policy.  Individual sports and/or leagues may have additional penalties and/or rules.

C. Anger - Any person banned or suspended from recreation activities for a repeat violation of the Zero Tolerance Policy or for a period of 12 months or more, shall be required to complete anger management therapy, or equivalent counseling, prior to being allowed to resume attendance at a recreation activity. The counseling program must be with a practitioner or facility acceptable to the Recreation Commission, consist of no less than 12 hours of instructions, and shall include proof of satisfactory completion to the Recreation Commission.  

D. Appeals from decisions related to the Code of Conduct 

1. In the event that the Recreation Commission, or its designated subcommittee, has imposed a penalty which includes a suspension and ban from attendance at recreation activities for more than three months, the individual(s) who has been suspended may appeal this decision to the Recreation Commission. Any individual suspended for more than 3 months, desiring to appeal the suspension to the Code of Conduct Committee, must file a written notice of appeal with the Recreation Commission, within ten (10) days after receipt of written notice of the suspension.

Issues with a coach, here are the steps to rectify. 

First:  meet one on one with the coach.  You should allow for a 24 hour cool off period before discussing anything. 

Second:  still  unhappy, meet with the sports director

Third:  meet with the commissioner of the sport

Fourth:  bring your issue to the full recreation commission

No matter how emotional or upsetting the issue may be.  Please always discuss in a calm manner.  If you work your way up the chain of command, realize these people do not know the issue as you and/or the coach may know it.  You will need to give full background as to the issue.

If you have an issue with a referee or umpire:

No discussion the referee/umpire is the boss.  You should never raise your voice or voice displeasure from the stands or bench about an umpire/referee.  If there is an issue the head coach or manager may ask for time-out and rationally discusses the issue.  ONLY the head coach or manager has the right to question any referee or umpire issue, in a calm manner.  The is a ZERO-tolerance recreation policy towards coach, parent and player behavior with a referee/umpire.  Any violation is a first time recreation offense.

Lightning is the second leading cause of storm deaths in the U.S., killing more people than tornadoes or hurricanes.

1.-Plan Ahead: Prior to the individual practice/game, the outdoor weather should be noted. If a thunderstorm is imminent the practice/game should be suspended/postponed.

Dark clouds, winds picking up in intensity, sounds of thunder, and lightning in the distance are enough clues that the weather is not conducive to good playing and spectating conditions. If the practice/game has begun, these signals should alert the coaches to suspend or postpone the event.

2 – Lightning: Once lightning has been seen or thunder is heard you must leave the field, you may not return to the field until 20 minutes has passed without lightning or thunder.

3 - Avoid Dangerous Locations: DO NOT go under trees to keep dry in a thunderstorm! Avoid: elevated places, open areas, tall isolated objects, water activities, dugouts, open areas such as fields, open vehicles, unprotected open buildings, and large structures such as fences or bleachers.

 4. Safe Locations from Lighting:  Any fully enclosed, substantial building; ideally with plumbing, electrical wiring and telephone service which aid in grounding the building. If a substantial building is not available, a fully enclosed vehicle with a metal roof and the windows completely enclosed is a reasonable alternative. Cellular or cordless telephones should be used for summoning help during a thunderstorm. They are a reasonably safer alternative to land-line telephones.

5 - Lightning Crouch (desperate last resort): If the lightning is about to strike near you, it will sometimes give a warning of a few seconds or less. Sometimes your hair will stand upright, your skin will tingle, light metal objects will vibrate, or you will hear a crackling static-like sound. If this happens and you’re in a group, spread out so there are several body lengths between each person. If one person is struck, the others may not be. Once you’ve spread out, use the lightning crouch: put your feet together, squat down, tuck your head and cover your ears. When the immediate threat of lightning has passed, continue heading to the safest spot possible. Remember this is a last resort; you are much safer having followed the previous steps and not gotten into this high-risk situation.

The umpire, coach, coordinator or adult in charge is responsible to ensure that their group follows the Lightning Safety Policy. Disregarding the policy subjects the umpire, coach, coordinator or adult in charge to disciplinary actions brought forth by the recreation commission.