By Rick Schara 

West Central Initiative

Schools and colleges in west central Minnesota provide a multitude of learning opportunities. One of those is the “last classroom of the day”–organized sports.

Researchers note that both playing and watching sports competitions provide opportunities for social interaction and help forge a sense of belonging, which, in turn, can mitigate loneliness and boost levels of well-being.

“When students are on teams, it helps them to have a sense of belonging and pride in the school,” says Pelican Rapids Activities Director Derrick Nelson. “The more you can get all the students involved, the more they will feel accepted in your school.”

Soccer is a very popular sport in Pelican Rapids. 

“Pelican Rapids was combined with Hillcrest for many years before we could start our own team,” Nelson said. “This has been a very positive move for our community.”

Nelson says the Pelican Rapids soccer team uses three to four different languages on the field at different times.

Indeed, many of our regional sporting events–especially soccer–are enjoyed across cultures.

Unfortunately, sports in high schools and beyond face a growing threat–finding officials.

Nelson says finding officials has become more challenging every year. Scheduling officials is a big part of his job. 

“For example,” he said. “One football game last year was switched to Thursday night (instead of Friday) because there weren’t enough available officials,” he said. 

Is help on the way?

Meet Concordia College graduate Kay Pederson. She was a Lake Park three-sport athlete whose passion for sports blossomed into officiating as often as she wanted while working toward her finance and management majors.

“Sports have always been a huge part of my life, especially basketball,” she said. “My passion for the sport came from my dad, who was a player, coach and official.”

That connection helped the officiating world welcome one more recruit. When she was in high school, Pederson helped officiate some youth games, often with her father.

“At one of those tournaments, one of the officials I worked with gave my phone number to someone who scheduled games in the Fargo-Moorhead area. He said it would be a great job for me if I decided to go to college in that area.”

Note to area athletes: officiating could be a good part-time job during college! Pederson refereed games throughout college and honed her skills at a summer officiating camp.

Ok, who knew there was such a thing?

She sharpened her officiating chops, moving up from junior high to high school to college games. Her first college officiating game was at Minnesota State Community and Technical College in Fergus Falls. Today, Pederson works full time and when time allows, you can still find her officiating sports.

Pederson is almost always the youngest official on the court. 

“I do hear quite often from coaches, fans, and fellow officials that ‘it’s great to see new young officials’ or to ‘stick with it,’” she said. “The association I’m part of has been so great, and I know they appreciate me stepping up. I’m the only female in my association, so sometimes it can be a little intimidating knowing that I’m the only female AND the youngest one.”

While that makes Pederson feel she sometimes needs to prove herself on the court, she admits it’s nice to hear someone tell her she did a great job.

Unfortunately, hearing just the opposite from spectators isn’t helping the official shortage situation. Minnesota State High School League media specialist John Millea writes, “The way officials are treated by fans is certainly one reason why some step away; abuse of officials on youth and sub-varsity levels drives away young people who are interested in the vocation but quit because of how they are treated by parents and coaches.”

Pederson can relate. “Fans and parents can be disrespectful, but I’ve learned that this experience has only been beneficial for me,” she said. “You have to realize that sometimes emotions are heightened, especially during a close game, and just to learn how to tune it out.”

Activities Director Nelson said if anyone is interested in officiating, they should contact their local school. “We’re always in need of officials,” he said. “Officiating is a great way to stay part of the game after your playing days are over.”

And it’s a great way to keep building community through sports.