Philosophy and Code of Conduct 

CARD Youth Sports Philosophy: Every participant, player, parent, coach, official, and staff are considered to be part of the CARD Youth Sports team. The golden rule of the Youth Sports team is to remember that we are here for the kids (they are kids first and players second!). We want to make every child in our program not only a better athlete, but more importantly, a better person through the life skills the youth sports can provide. We strive to achieve the below goals with every single child in our Youth Sports program and leagues:

• Promote respect, citizenship, and sportsmanship
• Teach the fundamentals of sports, with the progression of skills, drills and gameplay throughout the season/program.
• Make sure all players know that they are safe, they matter, they are supported, and they are connected to the team- regardless of any difference they may have.
• Give all players the benefits and life skills that Youth Sports provides.
• Give all players a LOVE OF THE GAME that will spark an interest that will last a lifetime. 

We are passionate about Youth Sports and how it can positively impact a child's life. We are passionate about the "bigger picture" of what makes Youth Sports great.

We pride ourselves in constantly looking to improve our leagues and programs to better serve our community- and your feedback is vital to helping us achieve that goal. Click here to complete a short survey about your Youth Sports Participation.

CARD Code of Conduct: To ensure the safety of all participants and staff in our programs, individuals are responsible for adhering to program policies whenever at the program.  this includes the use of appropriate language, a civil tone of voice, a calm demeanor, respecting personal space, and maintaining professional boundaries.  Any person who does not meet conduct expectations will be asked to leave the premises immediately, and the participant may be removed from the program. Click here to see more specifics.

Buddy Request Information

To better serve our participants, we allow the option to submit one buddy request for each league.  Coach and practice requests are not accepted. *Buddies must request each other to remain valid requests* PLEASE NOTE THESE ARE REQUESTS AND NOT GUARANTED! 

Buddy Requests: Due to the large volume of requests, please make sure to follow the below carefully to ensure your request is valid. Please keep in mind these are requests only and we can never guarantee the request will be honored. 

• A buddy request option will be given during the registration process. All requests must be turned in at this time. No buddy requests will be taken on-site, or past the registration deadline/when the league fills (whichever comes first).
• You may only submit ONE buddy request for your child. Requesting more than one will automatically void your request.
• A buddy request must be completed and submitted by both requesting parties (buddies must request each other). For example, Tommy can request Johnny, but Johnny also must request Tommy in return for the request to be valid. If both parties do not request each other, the single request will be void.
• The requested "buddy" must be in the same grade.
• For regular leagues, the requested "buddy" must attend the same school. Buddies from different schools will be taken into consideration but may not be possible based on the number of participants registered. 

Types of Programming

ShortE Sports programs are typically for ages 3-5 years old and features CARD paid coaches that create a positive, non-threatening environment for your little one to gain a “love of the game.” Staff use age-appropriate equipment, modify stations and games, and are trained specifically for toddlers to make sure all participants are set up for success. You will not be contacted by a coach, and should show up the first day at your registered time ready to play. General youth sports jersey are optional (can be purchased at the CARD Office for $15).

Little Athletes programs are typically for grades K-2nd and feature CARD paid coaches that create a positive, non-threatening environment to allow athletes to excel. Coaches will work with players the first 2-3 weeks to introduce the sport using basic skill techniques and formations and build confidence in each player to get them ready to play. The last 2-3 weeks will be 20 minute practices and 40 minute formal games each day. Fundamentals and simple game strategy will be taught throughout the program. Staff use age-appropriate equipment, modify stations and games, and are trained specifically to make sure all participants are set up for success. You will not be contacted by a coach, and should show up the first day at your registered time ready to play. General youth sports jersey are optional but highly recommended for the program scrimmages (can be purchased at the CARD Office for $18).

Academies, Camps and Clinics (Instructional Programs) are available for grades 2nd-8th and are coached by our outstanding paid CARD staff, and focus on building fundamentals through skills, drills, stations and small sided games to best allow your player to excel at the game. Each session will progressively build in more game play, and focus on FUN to ensure your player wants to keep coming back for more.

All leagues for 5th grade and below are coached by a volunteer CARD coach, with a 6-game guarantee during the season (no end-of-season tournament). Each team will have approximately one practice and one game a week during the season (this may vary slightly by team). The score is only kept for the 5th grade (no score for 4th grade and below) in order to allow coaches to emphasize creating better athletes, and more importantly, better people by using youth sports as a vessel to learn life skills.

Genders and grades will be separated if there are enough players (this historically happens in basketball, but not flag football or volleyball). If there are not enough players, they will be combined. Teams will be loosely based on where the player attends school, with a mandatory skills evaluation being held by CARD staff for schools that have enough players registered for more than one team.

Volunteer coaches can click here to find our Volunteer Application process.

All leagues for 6th grade and up are coached by paid CARD coach, with a 6-game guarantee- including a single-elimination end-of-season tournament (game 6 is the start of the tournament). The score will be kept each game, and teams will be seeded for the tournament based on their league standings. Each team will have one practice and one game a week during the season (this may vary slightly by team).

Genders and grades will be separated if there are enough players (this historically happens in basketball, but not flag football or volleyball). If there are not enough players, grades will be combined. Teams will be loosely based on where the player attends school, with a mandatory skills evaluation being held by CARD staff for schools that have enough players registered for more than one team.

Coaches interested in becoming a CARD-paid staff can click here to see open positions available. All positions are open until filled.

Jersey Information

In an effort to reduce program costs and offer lower program fees to our customers, we will be using a single jersey for all elementary sports. Each elementary sport will note whether the jersey is mandatory or optional in the sport's description. Jerseys are available for purchase in the CARD office for $17. If you buy a jersey and your child outgrows it, or is no longer going to use it, please donate it back to CARD for our "Almost New" jersey program that will help youth sports families in need of a jersey!

SPORT PROGRAM | JERSEY REQUIREMENT

• Academies, Camps and Clinics | Jersey purchase optional
• Little Athletes Sports | Jersey purchase optional
• ShortE All-Stars/Toddler Sports | Jersey purchase optional
• Flag Football Leagues | Jersey purchase required. Mouthguards are required to participate in practices and games. No red or yellow shorts/pants are worn during games.
• Elementary Basketball Leagues | Jersey purchase required
• Jr. High & High School Basketball Leagues | Jersey cost included in the cost of registration
• Volleyball Leagues | Team shirt included in the cost of registration
• Jr. Giants Leagues | Team shirt included in the registration

Practice Information for Leagues

All leagues are required to have at least one practice per week during the season (weather permitting for some sports).

Sports League | Practice Information

Make sure to review the specific sports website for up to date information at www.ChicoRec.com/youth-sports. 

• Flag Football Leagues | Practices are on Mondays at DeGarmo Park. Times will vary based on team.
• Elementary Basketball Leagues | Practice days are assigned based on the league.
• Jr. High & High School Basketball Leagues | Practice time and location is assigned to the coach by CARD at a community gym based on availability. 
• Volleyball Leagues | Practice days are assigned based on the league.
• Jr. Giants Baseball Leagues | Practice days are assigned based on the league.

Team Formation Information for Leagues

All team formation is at the discretion of CARD staff.

• TYPES OF LEAGUES: REGULAR LEAGUES: Teams will be loosely based on grade and where players attend school. Children who are home-schooled will be placed at the discretion of the Recreation staff.While participants register by the school, leagues are CARD programs and are in no way governed by the schools or any school district. All league decisions are made by CARD staff.CARD reserves the right to add additional players to any team in order to meet the needs of the program. Schools should not recruit only enough players to stay below the maximum as this does NOT guarantee that the school will not be combined with another we want everyone to play! MINI LEAGUES: Teams will be formed with information from the registration and/or by skills evaluations by CARD Staff, with all schools mixed within teams.
• GENDERS & GRADES: Genders & grades will be combined if there are not enough players to sustain a league on its own. Historically, genders are combined in flag football and volleyball leagues. 
• PLAYING UP: Participants must register in the grade they are attending unless special permission has been given by the Recreation staff (to get permission to play up one grade, please email us at kcrane@chicorec.com; egonzales@chicorec.com). We do not allow athletes to play up more than one grade unless we are very familiar with their skill level.
• VOLUNTEER COACHES: The head coach's child and one assistant coach's child will be guaranteed placement on that particular team.CARD reserves the right to ask for confirmation regarding the school and grade of its participants if necessary.
• TEAM FORMATION: It is the discretion of the Recreation Supervisor and Recreation Coordinator to form teams for the best interest of the majority of the participants and the best interest of the league.