EFC Family Conference

Eastside FC’s Annual Family Gathering

Sunday, June 5, from 4:00p - 7:00p. Mercer Island Community Center. The address is 8236 SE 24th St, Mercer Island, WA 98040

This year’s event is formatted a little differently than in years past. We’re using the model of a industry conference wherein there are different topic seminars....

As always, we’ll celebrate this year’s championships and introduce new coaches.

Here’s an overview of the seminars we’ll be offering. Please see the attached schedule.

A Mastery Approach to Parenting in Sports. Dr. Frank Smoll, the leading researcher in empirical studies focused on the most effective communication strategies for coaches and parents of competitive young athletes. Learn how you as a parent can foster successful athletes and “get on the same page” with your coach to the benefit of the athlete. The primary focus is on providing a mastery motivational climate that emphasizes a definition of success as self-improvement, maximum effort, and enjoying the intrinsic process of achieving sports mastery. A major theme is emphasized: What young athletes learn in sports carries over into their everyday lives. The program also discusses the most successful parent behavior as it relates to the young athlete as well as relations with coaches.

Best Practices for Team Managers. Renee Prendergast, an experienced and successful team manager at Eastside FC. Are you a team manager? Want to be effective? Enjoy the experience? Work well with your coach and the team? This track is for you. Renee Prendergast leads a discussion of best practices, pitfalls to avoid, and overall how to be the most effective team manager possible. Renee and other managers and staff in the club have compiled a team manager’s manual that serves as a roadmap for successful team managers.

Best Practices for Team Treasurers. Jeff Sullivan, Treasurer of Eastside FC. Jeff leads this track focused on effective management of team budgets and checking accounts. He’ll cover coaching expense reimbursement policy, collections,

Team Fundraising. Eastside FC Girls 93 Red Team. The parents and players from the G93R team have been phenomenally successful at raising funds for team travel. Learn about the mechanisms they used to become the most effective fundraising team in the club.

Navigating the Youth Soccer Landscape. Mike Racine, Executive Director of Eastside FC. Have you ever wondered how the world of soccer and particularly how youth soccer fits together? Want to know the difference between US Youth Soccer and US Club Soccer? Ever heard of CONCACAF? FIFA? USYS? UEFA? La Liga? CONMEBOL? USSF? AYSO? English Premier League? There are more acronyms in soccer than the US military. Come and get a landscape overview of the world of soccer starting with FIFA, the world sanctioning body. In particular, we’ll drive down into the world of youth soccer in the US and Washington state.

Effective Team Communications Using Korrio. Korrio Staff. This topic will introduce Korrio as a communication/notification/team support platform. Learn the key things you should do as a coach, team manager, parent, or player to stay in the loop with regard to the team schedule, any urgent notifications and late-breaking schedule changes.

Preparing for the College Scholarship Process – A Panel Discussion. Led by Coach Frank Gallo with a supporting cast of Coach Dan Strom and G93R team parents & players who successfully secured college soccer scholarships. Every year, Eastside FC graduates a significant number of players who go on to collegiate soccer careers on scholarship.  Get an overview of the process involved in reaching out to colleges for scholarship support and the keys to success.

Referee in Pool Program. Ken Robertson, Commissioner of the East King County Referee Association and EFC’s referee coordinator. Ken describes the club’s referee-in-pool program and how you can become a referee. Focused on ages 13 thru adult, this track focuses on how the program works and how to become a referee. You can learn how to earn $XXX dollars for your team by serving as a ref-in-pool. If you’re a parent or athlete aged 13 or over, learn how to get started as a referee and earn money officiatingat games – it’s a great summer job and there’s a shortage of qualified referees. This is a great opportunity to earn $$, learn the Laws of the Game, and support the soccer community in a critically important role.

Sounders FC Academy Program Overview. Head Coach Dick McCormick of the Sounders FC Academy. Coach McCormick provides an overview of the Sounders FC Academy. This year, Eastside FC advanced 5 young men into this program that serves as an entry point to the national teams and professional ranks. Learn what the program is all about and what Sounders FC Academy is looking for.

Wall Workout Demonstrations. Coach Tom Bialek. If there is one thing a soccer athlete should do to develop a fine first touch, it’s practice against a wall. Coach Tom Bialek will demonstrate a series of wall workouts to improve your touch on the ball. Do these workouts consistently and you WILL improve your first touch - significantly.
Eurosport/adidas & Team Tables. Our uniform fulfilment vendor Eurosport and our uniform manufacturer adidas will have a table. There are a limited number of tables available for teams to sell fundraising items. Contact Rich Nardi, rich@nardi.net if interested.

Save the date!!