Youth Sports Organization Board Positions

Running a league or club is extremely rewarding, but also requires a lot of work. Having committed volunteers to serve on the board of directors and share in the responsibilities can make a big difference in creating a positive, equitable, and accessible youth sports organization that benefits all athletes who participate. 

Below, you’ll find potential board positions and a detailed description of the responsibilities of each role. Each position could be filled by one person, or two people who work well together – i.e. serving as Co-Presidents, Co-Registrars, etc.

Common Board Positions

The following positions are the most commonly found on a board of directors. 

President: The president provides direction for the league, serves as the representative of the league to the community and national governing body, and is ultimately responsible for the operations of the league. The president presides over the meetings, assumes responsibility for communication with the league participants, the media, and community members and ensures that the league is complying with all league policies. 

Vice President: The first responsibility of the Vice President is to serve in the presidential role if the president is absent. The vice president is also responsible for assisting other members of the board of directors and carrying out duties that are assigned by the president. 

Secretary: The secretary maintains a list of board member information, records the minutes of the board meetings, distributes notices of meetings and other league information to the board members, and maintains league records. 

Treasurer: The treasurer is responsible for all tasks related to league finances, including preparing the league budget, keeping league financial records, reporting on the status of funds, and distributing funds as approved by the other board members. 

Additional Board Positions That Can Help Build A Positive, Equitable, and Accessible Program

Depending on the number of members of your board of directors, the following board positions may or may not be filled. These positions may be combined or adapted to fit the needs of your league or included in the organization’s staff roles.

Community Equity and Accessibility Manager: The Community Equity and Accessibility Manager coordinates forums to listen to community voices to tailor the program to meet their needs, identifies barriers that may be keeping athletes from participating and leads strategy sessions to address them, uses data to identify and address sports equity gaps, and provides board members, staff, and coaches with resources and training in cultural proficiency to create more welcoming environments. 

Manager of Coach Development: The purpose of this position is to ensure that the young athletes in the organization receive the best coaching possible by ensuring that coaches are trained and committed to building life skills while developing competitors. This position is responsible for planning and coordinating coach recruitment, coaches training and oversees the coach evaluation and feedback process. 

Officials Manager: The officials manager is responsible for all registration, training, evaluation, discipline, and promotion of all officials within the league. 

Registrar: The league registrar is responsible for maintaining the data base accurately listing all athletes and their families and planning and executing the league registration activities. The registrar handles the publicity for registration, organizes a group to help in registration activities, and distributes all registration and league forms. 

Equipment Manager: The equipment manager oversees the inventory of the league equipment, the equipment distribution to the teams, the collection of equipment following the season, the compliance with all equipment safety standards, and the purchase of new equipment.

Facility Manager: The facility manager is responsible for submitting facility permits, designating facility use to teams for practices and games, ensuring the preparation of the facility for practices and games, and inspecting the safety level of the facility. 

Fundraising Manager: The manager of fundraising works with the league treasurer to create a plan to meet the financial needs of the league. The Fundraising Manager plans and executes fundraisers, recruits parents and other volunteers to assist in the process, and publicizes all fundraisers to the league and community. 

Information Officer: The information officer is responsible for distributing all league information to the participants and community. If the league has a website, the Information Officer is responsible for maintaining the website and any other media outlets of the league. The Information Officer manages the league rosters, schedule, scores, and news and ensures that this information is being provided to league participants. 

Positive Coaching Alliance Coordinator: The PCA Coordinator guides the process of shaping and reinforcing an organizational culture that strives to provide coaches, parents/caregivers, and athletes with positive sports experiences. They coordinate with PCA staff to receive support in culture shaping (i.e. online resources, workshops for staff, parents/caregivers, coaches, and/or athletes). This role also may convene a formal board sub-committee to gather input on and accelerate the implementation of the culture building process to maximize the positive impact. The subcommittee may include: The Community Equity and Accessibility Manager, Manager of Coach Development, Officials Manager, President, Registrar, officials, parent/caregiver representatives, athlete representative, and Information Officer.