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AI “Employees” For Volleyball Clubs: How Agentic AI And Custom GPTs Save Directors Hours Every Week
Most directors are constantly juggling tasks that pull them in ten directions at once—parent communication, scheduling, registrations, coach coordination, [...]
Blog Categories
An Official’s Impact: Changing the Narrative By Teaching the Next Generation
When Daniel was 10 years old a friend from school invited him to play volleyball because his team needed one more player. Although he'd never played before, his friend assured him it was easy, [...]
JVA Grant Supports FaR Out’s Inclusive Volleyball Vision with Special Olympics
Two years ago, FaR Out Volleyball Club partnered with Special Olympics Michigan to create a volleyball program to build lifelong relationships and teach lessons that extend far beyond the court. Through support from the [...]
Business Solutions: Navigating Tryout Stress and Related Lawsuits
No matter how long you’ve been in the game, tryouts evoke a range of emotions — excitement about building this season’s team, apprehension about which athletes will show up for tryouts, anticipation for helping [...]
News
Nike Named the Official Uniform Provider of the Junior Volleyball Association
Milwaukee, WI - January 4, 2023 — Nike Volleyball, the leading manufacturer of authentic athletic apparel, and the Junior Volleyball Association (JVA), the premier national organization for the promotion and growth of youth and junior [...]
JVA Welcomes Three Members to the JVA Board of Directors
(Milwaukee, WI) The JVA is pleased to announce the addition of John Brannon, Max Miller, and Will Robbins to the JVA Board of Directors. The three JVA Club Directors will begin their three year term [...]
JVA Announces Partnership with 3Step Sports to Enhance JVA Hosted Girls’ Volleyball Events
The JVA mission is to promote the growth of youth and junior volleyball through program and resource development, education, and events. #BeJVAUnited The JVA is pleased to announce a partnership with 3Step Sports to enhance [...]
Club Directors
Champion Volleyball Club Grows Community Outreach Program with Aces for Down Syndrome
In 2007, Doug Balser started Champion Volleyball Club with just one team, and over the past 17 years the club has flourished into 38 teams across 3 locations, welcoming over 380 dedicated indoor club [...]
Beach Solutions: A Guide to Attainable Financial Targets and Benchmarks
Whether you're looking to establish a new beach club or optimize an existing one, it's important to spend time creating a budget and forecasting your revenue and expenses. These insights offer valuable comparisons and [...]
Technology Solutions: 10 Steps to Minimize Ransomware Attacks
More than 14 publicly claimed ransomware attacks occur each day, many of which target small businesses or organizations that don’t think they’re in danger. But this doesn’t mean you have to wait like a [...]
Coaches
Create an Exploratorium Not a Dungeon: Reasons Why Physical Punishment is Not the Answer
It amazes me that this far into the 21st century, coaches still believe that doing physical punishment is a valuable use of their limited training time. I addressed this over a decade ago in [...]
Recruiting Solutions: April Qualifiers Bring May Maintenance
May is a great month to assess and maintain the recruiting process. Many clubs have limited weekends of play in May and will train more in the gym to prepare for June championships. It [...]
Coaching Mental Performance: Self-Care for Coaches and Athletes
Whereas the curriculum was the meat and potatoes of my education at Adler University, the broth was this concept of “self-care”; for without it all of my hard work, knowledge, and intention would leave my [...]
Boys
JVA Releases the 2019 JVA Boys Watch List
The 2019 JVA Boys Watch List features 190 boys indoor junior volleyball players from JVA member clubs across the country. The players nominated to the inaugural watch list are among the best in the nation in their age division this season.
JVA Partners with the NVA to Bring Professional Men’s Volleyball to 3 JVA Events
The JVA is pleased to announce a partnership with the National Volleyball Association to bring live professional men's volleyball to three JVA hosted events this season. Participants will have the opportunity to witness high level competition during the JVA event, and the NVA athletes will be available for autographs, photo opportunities, and to answer any questions for aspiring youth. Read more about this exciting opportunity.
2019 JVA Boys Watch List
The JVA is pleased to announce the annual JVA Boys Watch List to recognize the top JVA boys athletes for outstanding achievement on the volleyball court. Boys high school volleyball is growing at a 21% rate over the last five years...
Girls
3 Types of Yoga to Help Volleyball Athletes Prep for Nationals
It’s the post season and your team has made it to the height of competition. Everything your athletes have worked for all season is finally here. It’s an exciting time but it can also [...]
JVA Announces the 2022 JVA Athleaders powered by Fivestar
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN (May 16, 2022)– The JVA is pleased to announce the 2022 JVA Athleaders powered by Fivestar to celebrate the success of an impressive group of male and female indoor and beach junior [...]
Overcoming Performance Anxiety
Performance anxiety. Most feel it, no one talks about it. It’s that feeling you get down deep in your gut the night before a game or on your way to a tough practice. It [...]
Beach
Training Proper Vertical Setting in Beach Volleyball
Many high school players are side setters, which may work indoors, but it can be problematic on the beach. Side setting is when you are more parallel along the net and vision is also more [...]
JVA Presents the Club Management Education Track at the 2020 AVCA Convention
The JVA is pleased to present the Club Management Education Track at the 2020 AVCA Convention. In addition to an outstanding line-up of virtual classroom sessions for Club Directors, the JVA is also sponsoring two [...]
5 Keys to Forearm Passing in Beach Volleyball
Teaching the keys to good consistent passing can help young athletes become stronger partners. Here are 5 passing keys to apply on and off the court to help beach athletes improve their game from the [...]
Culture
5 Keys to a Positive Relationship Between Your Parents, Players and Coaches
Now more than ever, parents are very involved (some would say "over-involved") with their sons and daughters club careers that you must be ready for just about anything. But in order to maintain a positive club culture a positive relationship...
Parent Council: To Be or Not To Be
By Sharon L. Galonski, Club Director, Next Level Volleyball Club At a pre-season regional meeting two years ago, a presentation was given on the implementation of a parent council by one of the Mid-Atlantic volleyball clubs. My initial reaction was...
Events
From the JVA Office: The Benefits of Grass Volleyball Programming and Considerations for Junior Clubs
Many assume that grass volleyball tournaments are for adults who are past their prime, or those who missed the opportunity to play at a young age so they give grass volleyball a try. However, grass [...]
The East Coast is Calling as JVA Announces the JVA Charm City Challenge
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN (June 7, 2021) The JVA is pleased to announce that it is headed east to host the JVA Charm City Challenge presented by Nike February 5-6, 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland. The event will [...]
Recruiting Solutions: Historically Black Colleges and Opportunities for Athletes of Color
The social and economic barriers to high-level volleyball training and exposure to recruiting opportunities are clear. The high costs of club dues, travel, and time commitments often exclude low-income athletes from high-level training and the [...]
Awards
An Athleader’s Journey: A Desire to Serve Others and Make a Positive Impact
As the tallest in her class all through grade school, Kaitlyn's parents knew that introducing her to a sport that would utilize her height would be valuable to her sports journey. Since the first grade, [...]
2022 JVA Best in Beach powered by Fivestar
(July 7, 2022. Milwaukee, Wisconsin) The JVA is pleased to announce the 2022 JVA Best in Beach powered by Fivestar that recognizes the nation’s top female JVA beach athletes for outstanding achievement during the [...]
2022 JVA Beach Watch List presented by Fivestar
(June 29, 2022. Milwaukee, Wisconsin) The JVA is pleased to announce the 2022 JVA Beach Watch List presented by Fivestar that recognizes the top female beach athletes from JVA member clubs this season. Over 150 [...]
Training
2 Ways for Volleyball Athletes to Prevent and Relieve Lower Back Pain
It is common for volleyball athletes to suffer from chronic back injuries, herniated discs, and overuse injuries. Strengthening the lower back and the core are two keys to preventing and relieving lower back pain. Let's [...]
4 Tips for Volleyball Athletes to Improve Posture
A powerful swing and serve directly relates to posture. Having poor posture can seriously limit the capability of your thoracic spine. I don’t know about you but the word “posture” makes me cringe. As a [...]
Healthy Meal Tips for Volleyball Athletes
We’ve all heard the metaphor “you are what you eat,” but how does that relate to volleyball players? As an athlete, what you eat impacts your performance, your energy, and your overall mood. Daily [...]
Parents
Recruiting Club Level vs. High School
Current polls tell us that over 85% of college coaches recruit at the club level versus high school. There are legitimate reasons for the majority of collegiate recruiting in the sport of volleyball to be tied to club volleyball. Of course...
JVA Announces Continued Partnership with PaidUp
The Junior Volleyball Association (JVA) and PaidUp have partnered to provide a thoughtful and successfully proven approach to managing club dues exclusively for JVA member clubs.
Beyond Athletic Abilities
There are volumes of information on the How To’s for everything…especially in the recruiting realm for collegiate sports. I have even written some over the past few years with the goal of aiding athletes and parents on the...
Recruiting
Beach Volleyball Recruiting Guidelines
Beach Volleyball is the NCAA's fastest-growing sport, starting with 15 Division I programs in 2012 and exceeding 100 collegiate programs in 2019, which means a huge influx of opportunities and scholarships for female student-athletes. Below is a brief explanation of and game plan to begin the recruiting process for girls interested in playing beach volleyball at the collegiate level. This is by no means comprehensive but should give you a good start to the process as well as some valuable information to guide your journey.
How New NCAA Division 1 Rules Affect Your Volleyball Recruiting
The NCAA’s new Division I recruiting rules are officially in effect. After moving up the start date for DI campus visits last year, the NCAA has adopted additional rules to curb the growth of early recruiting and normalize the...
6 Facts About Junior College Volleyball and Why It Might Be a Smart Move
While many student-athletes focus on playing for a big-time Division 1 sports program, there are actually many reasons why junior college might make sense instead. With more than 300 junior college women’s volleyball programs in the US, research shows that many...
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