Q. WHAT DOES MY CHILD GET FOR THE REGISTRATION FEE? WHERE DO THE FEES GO AFTER WE PAY THEM?
A. Valpo Pop Warner works extremely hard to keep our registration costs one of the lowest throughout Northwest Indiana. Each season it costs our organization over $80,000 to participate in football and cheer. Only a portion of the registration fees we charge each participant cover these expenses. What monies we raise in our fundraising efforts, gate fees and from corporate sponsorships help us to subsidize the remaining costs. The cost factors within our organization are:
ADMINISTRATIVE – Bank fees, copy services, office supplies, postage, P.O. Box, tax filing fees, CPA, on-line and financial software and bank fees, registration fees
CHEER – All needed cheer equipment, uniforms and supplies
FOOTBALL – Helmet reconditioning, all needed safety equipment and supplies, uniforms
ASSOCIATION – Conference fees for football & cheer, competition fees, bowl games, cheer competitions and playoff fees, game fees, scholastic participation fees, conference participation patches, third party host fees, etc.
FIELD USE – All practice and game field costs, lights, medical supplies,
INSURANCE – Insurance on all league participants, equipment, supplies, director and officer insurance fees, player and spirit insurance fees
REFEREE & SECURITY – Payment to referees and security for all home games
SCHOLARSHIPS – Given to former participants who qualify for the Valpo Pop Warner Scholarship to be used for their college or choice. Also, we offer scholarships for current participants for those who are having financial challenges.
MISC. – All other expenses
Q. DOES VALPO POP WARNER ADVERTISE REGISTRATION?
A. Yes. Each year before and during registration VPW will advertise on our Facebook page, at community events and through our website: www.valpopopwarner.com
Q. HOW ARE HEAD COACHES SELECTED?
A. Head coaches are selected every year. Association approval is required for all coaches, returning or not, prior to each season. To be a coach in VPW is a privilege, not a lifetime job, and previous coaching experience does not guarantee a coaching position for the upcoming season. Please remember that all coaches are purely on a volunteer basis. All coaches and team volunteers must have a current background check on file with VPW and comply with the required 20+ hours of training and certifications as mandated by Pop Warner.
Note: Keep in mind that while a winning record is nice to have, team records do not play a part in the Head Coach Selection process.
Q. WHAT QUALIFICATIONS OR CERTIFICATIONS ARE HEAD COACHES REQUIRED TO HAVE?
A: All Head Coaches, Rostered Staff and Board Members must pass a thorough background check. At least one rostered staff member must be certified in First Aid/CPR. Football coaches must be certified by USA Football, Concussion Training, and MidAmerica Pop Warner. Cheer coaches must be certified by YCADA (Youth Cheer and Dance Alliance), Concussion Training, and MidAmerica Pop Warner. Certification is obtained by attending a combination of in person coaching clinics and by taking on-line courses which is very time intensive and requires passing scores on all testing post training.
Q: WHAT IS VALPO POP WARNER DOING TO KEEP PLAYERS SAFE AND REDUCE CONCUSSIONS?
A: Equipment – Although the industry requirement is every two years, Valpo Pop Warner recertifies all of our helmets each year.
Training – We require at least one member of the rostered staff per team be both First Aid and CPR certified. Additionally, all rostered staff, (Head Coaches, Assistant Coaches, Trainers, and Team Parents) must be certified through USA Football/YCADA, MidAmerica Pop Warner, and Heads up Concussion.
Security - VPW works with the Valparaiso Police Department to try and provide officers to be available at all home games.
Q. WHEN DOES THE FOOTBALL AND CHEER SEASON BEGIN AND END?
A. Practices may begin July 15th. The first (pre-season) game is generally on the last Saturday of August. Regular season games begin the next week and run for 8-10 consecutive weeks. Tackle Football teams and cheer squads that qualify for bowl games, regional championships or cheer competitions may be active through early December if they reach the National Championship level.
Q. BEFORE PRACTICE STARTS ON JULY 15TH, HOW WILL I KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON AND WHAT I HAVE TO DO NEXT?
“Parent Meeting” – Before the season starts, we will hold a parent meeting. We will discuss the upcoming season for both football and cheer. All parents are encouraged to attend to get the latest information and ask any questions that they might have.
“Team Meeting” – After teams are formed, your Head Coach will host a team meeting for parents and players/cheerleaders. Separate meetings will be held for players and cheerleaders. At this very important meeting, you will officially meet your entire team staff. Your Head Coach will preview his or her team rules, goals, and coaching philosophy, review what to expect in terms of individual and team discipline, the procedure for handling any issues and concerns you may have and answer any and all questions regarding the upcoming season. This meeting is mandatory for all parents, players, and cheerleaders.
Valpo Pop Warner wants you to have the most current information available. Please continue to check our website, www.valpopopwarner.com. All participants will be required to create an account, and download the Sports Engine app. This will be the main form of communication throughout the season. It will also be the app that all teams will be using to communicate with your coaches/players and see their schedules.
"Communication" - Starting March 1st, 2025, VPW will transition from Sports Engine as our communication/scheduling platform to Sports Connect. Sports Connect is the required software by Northern, our governing organization, and will allow us to reduce paperwork as all necessary documents will be uploaded to Sports Connect and available to Northern electronically. This will be the main form of communication from VPW to the coaches and teams as well as between coaches and their teams.
***Please note that Sports Engine WILL remain the main form of communication for our Spring 2025 Cheer and Flag Football leagues.
Q. HOW OFTEN ARE GAMES AND PRACTICES? WHAT IS THE TIME COMMITMENT PER WEEK?
A. Ultimately it is up to the Head Coach to determine each individual team’s practice schedule. In most cases most teams will practice 5 days a week for the first couple of weeks to get their REQUIRED conditioning hours in to be eligible to play in their first game. Once those conditions are met, usually practice will drop down to 2-3 times a week depending on coaches’ preference and/or level/age of the team. Practices are usually anywhere from 2-2.5 hours a day. Games are usually held on Sundays at various locations/times throughout Northwest Indiana. Valpo HOME games are usually held at Valparaiso High School.
Q. HOW MUCH WILL MY CHILD PLAY IN FOOTBALL AND WHAT POSITION WILL HE/SHE PLAY?
A. Decisions about playing time and positions are made by the coaches of the team and are the final responsibility of the Head Coach.
National Pop Warner rules require (the Minimum Play Rule or MPR) that players who attend all scheduled practices will play at least 8 to 12 plays in a game (most games include 20-60 plays).
Coaches will make playing time and position assignment decisions based on hard work, practice attendance, experience, demonstrated skills at assigned positions, game performance and concern for player safety. Keep in mind that all teams at all levels want to win games and no coach wants to put a player in an unfair situation where he has little chance of succeeding or a high chance of injury.
First time players should expect less playing time than returning, experienced players until they gain confidence and demonstrate their abilities to their Head Coach. Head Coaches are encouraged to carefully evaluate players on a week to week basis. Over time, first year players will gain more playing time based upon improvement shown.
Q. WHEN AND WHERE ARE THE PRACTICES HELD?
A. Practice locations will be at a combination of Valpo City Parks/Schools locations. Specific practice times will be provided by your Head Coach just as soon as they have been finalized. Your Head Coach will provide this information to all families at his or her team meeting.
Q. WHAT IS THE ALL AMERICAN LITTLE SCHOLAR PROGRAM AND HOW CAN WE PARTICIPATE?
A. Every participant in Valpo Pop Warner is involved in our Little Scholars program. We require each participant to maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0/70% or a C average, which is verified by their yearend report card. If a participant does not have a 2.0/70% GPA to meet the requirements of scholastic fitness a Scholastic Eligibility Form is needed.
The National All American Scholar program is a recognition program that is sponsored by Pop Warner. To qualify, a GPA of 94% or above and a completed application is needed for players that are entering 5th grade and have submitted their 4th grade year report card with Fall Registration. All American Scholars are chosen at the Regional and National levels and are announced in January and April every year for the prior year report card. There are various scholarship opportunities and a banquet to celebrate this success. VPW Scholastics Director will provide more information when Applications are available.
Q. IF MY SON OR DAUGHTER IS INJURED DURING A PRACTICE OR GAME, DOES POP WARNER INSURANCE PAY FOR ANY REQUIRED MEDICAL CARE?
A. Valpo Pop Warner has medical insurance that covers all injuries incurred at Pop Warner Events for our participants and volunteers. VPW insurance is SECONDARY to all other family medical insurance.