Sports

Sports RSOs (registered student organizations) are those that:

• Are registered student organizations (RSOs) approved by the Associated Student Government (ASG).
• Are advised by the Center for Student Involvement.
• Cannot engage in any competition against non-SCU entities and can only have practices and pick-up games amongst members of the Santa Clara community.

Club Sports are student teams that:

• Are not registered student organizations (RSOs).
• Are advised by Campus Recreation.
• Engage in advanced, structured intercollegiate competition.

Sports RSOs can only be called clubs and may not be referred to as teams. On the other hand, Club Sports teams may be called clubs or teams.

General guidelines to consider when playing sports:

• Wear proper clothing and footwear.
• Drink lots of water, allow for water breaks when necessary.
• Practice doing a proper warm up and cool down.
• If anyone is feeling any type of pain, do not let them push through the pain. This can cause the injury to worsen instead of heal. The best remedy is to rest unless a certified physician or trainer instructs differently.
• One RSO officer should be designated, trained, and available to assist any members who do have an injury. That officer should know who to call, what to ask, and which proper procedures to use when addressing the injury.

All members participating in a Sports RSO must sign a Participant Agreement Form before the first practice or pick-up game. This form covers members for practices and pick-up games during the entire academic year.

RSO officers are advised to have a first aid kit on hand and/or know where the closest first aid kit is at the facility. Suggested contents consist of band aids, Neosporin, prewrap, athletic tape, latex gloves, gauze, ACE bandages, instant cold compresses, air cast, Ibuprofen or Acetaminophen, and alcohol wipes (Carlon, 2011).

In case of an emergency, call 911 or Campus Safety (408-554-4444 or 4444 if using a campus phone). Do not move the injured person if they cannot move until EMTs arrive. Moving someone could cause more pain and/or injury. If someone has a limb injury and can still move, then allow them to move to a place where they can rest. However, if someone has a neck injury or a dislocation, do not try to fix or move them. Keep them alert and calm until the EMTs arrive.

Reservation of the Malley Fitness and Recreation Center as well as other recreational facilities by student organizations must comply with a variety of regulations and procedures.

Malley Reservation Regulations & Procedures

Student organizations are limited to a certain number of Malley reservation hours. Each student organization may reserve the following Malley facilities for a maximum number of hours per week:

• Multipurpose room = maximum of 6 hours per week
• Pool = maximum of 8 hours per week

All student organizations are each limited to 10 hours per week of room reservations for practices and/or pick-up games.

Selecting a volunteer instructor:

• Have one of the RSO officers perform extensive research on the instructor.
• Ask for a resume, contact previous employers to ask about the instructor, and search for videos or something online from the instructor. Make sure that they are who they say they are, and will treat your group appropriately. This means treating you and your group with respect. The instructor is expected to honor that you are a group of students and understand that they are a volunteer, not your coach or supervisor.

Confirming a volunteer instructor:

• Sports RSOs may have up to 2 instructors who serve on a volunteer basis. Volunteer instructors are not coaches and cannot be paid. Each volunteer instructor must complete a Volunteer Instructor Agreement Form each quarter.
• To request a volunteer instructor as well as an access pass to enter campus recreational facilities, contact Tedd Vanadilok.

Working with a volunteer instructor:

• Be sure to meet with the volunteer instructor prior to attending practice. This will help you understand them better and give you time to clarify how you expect practice to be run.
• The students in your RSO should make all decisions on how to structure practices and meetings.
• The volunteer instructor, however, also needs to be given the opportunity to lead in ways that teach proper technique, keep students safe, and avoids injuries and accidents.
• Students are expected to be challenged in healthy, productive ways by the volunteer instructor to help them grow and improve.
• If students feel that the volunteer instructor is interacting with them in inappropriate ways, consult with Tedd Vanadilok for assistance to address the situation.

Although a Sports RSO cannot engage in competition as an entire organization against non-SCU entities and cannot join leagues, a few members may participate in activities such as tournaments, exhibitions, and pick-up games off campus. League play is not permitted and activities may not take place on weekdays when classes are in session.

Also, the students playing in a competition cannot enter as Santa Clara University, Broncos, or any other similar names of our school. Likewise, apparel (i.e. uniforms) cannot depict Santa Clara University, Broncos, or any other similar names and cannot use school colors. More specifically, students must comply with the policy for non-affiliate clubs:

"Only officially recognized Santa Clara University club sports teams and Registered Student Organizations may use the Santa Clara University name, likeness and reserve space on campus. All other groups, including those groups comprised of Santa Clara University students, are not permitted to act as representatives of Santa Clara University and are not permitted to reserve space on campus or use Santa Clara University’s name, logo or trademarks."

If a few of your members are interested, complete the Request to Compete Form and submit for approval.

Request to Compete Form (online form)