Special Olympics North Bay is a community-based sports program which is operated by a dedicated group of volunteers who support athletes in a variety of sport programs. As a regional partner of Special Olympics Ontario and part of a global social movement, Special Olympics North Bay transforms lives through the joy of sport.
Through the power of sport, individuals living with intellectual disabilities discover new strengths and abilities, skills and success. Special Olympics North Bay athletes find joy, confidence and fulfillment – on the playing field and in life.
Special Olympics offers many ways to take part. The first step to getting involved—whether you want to be an athlete, coach or volunteer—is to connect with Special Olympics North Bay for more details.
Athlete inquiries: northbay.dba@specialolympicsontario.ca
Volunteer inquiries: meganedryden@gmail.com
Coaching inquiries: northbay.sporttech@specialolympicsontario.ca
Step 1:
Sign up as a Volunteer on the Special Olympics Ontario website:
https://www1.specialolympicsontario.com/get-involved/become-a-volunteer/
Please select Register Now. DO NOT choose Volunteer for Games.
Complete the registration form. Once you do this, you should receive an email from SOO. Our local data manager will also receive a notice that you are interested in volunteering/coaching.
You will need two references and their respective email addresses. Family cannot be used as a reference. Ensure your reference knows that an email will be sent to them for a reference check.
If you have taken coaching courses within the NCCP program previously, please ensure you enter your NCCP number.
Step 2:
Sign into your local police service to complete a Vulnerable Sector Police Check.
You will need a letter of support from Special Olympics. Please find the letter here:
https://www1.specialolympicsontario.com/support/police-check-request-letter-for-volunteer/
Some police services charge a fee for the VSC. If that is the case, please pay for the check, keep your receipt and send the receipt to your local Community Coordinator for reimbursement.
The VSC can take up to 8 weeks! The sooner you start this process the better.
Once, you receive this, please add it to your Volunteer registration online or contact your Community Coordinator and they will connect you with our database manager who will support you in uploading this information to our portal.
Step 3:
Create a National Coaching Certification Program profile (NCCP) in the Coaching Association of Canada’s Locker system if you do not already have an account.
https://thelocker.coach.ca/home
Step 4:
Complete Safe Sport Training. Log into your CAC Locker. Go to E-Learning. Find Safe Sport Training.
This is a 90 minute training module that all coaches in Canada must complete (generic and Special Olympics). This course is FREE. Once it is completed, it will be uploaded to your profile on the Locker.
Once you confirm that the course has been added to the Locker, please share your NCCP number with your Volunteer Coordinator, if you had not previously submitted your number.
This certification will then be added to your portal profile for Special Olympics.
Step 5:
There are excellent resources available on the SOO library as well for new volunteers to review.
https://www1.specialolympicsontario.com/resources/volunteers/getting-started/
Step 6:
After you are registered and ready to go with your police check and Safe Sport, you can take further steps to become certified as a coach in Special Olympics.
· Take the Special Olympics Coaches Competition Course – this is a terrific course for coaches working with Special Olympic athletes. It is a required course for any coach interested in being involved in Provincial Championships. This course is online or in-person. Reach out to the local Community Coordinator to find an upcoming course and for possible support in funding your participation.
· Take Making Headway course – in e-learning on the Locker platform. This course provides education on concussions and return to play processes. Completing it is part of SOO’s response to Rowans Law legislation and is required within the first year of coaching with SOO.
· If you are interested in expanding your expertise in your sport, there are many courses available through the NCCP Locker to enhance your coaching toolkit.
· There are also many awesome courses directly connected to working with Special Olympic athletes that will support your coaching and are free in the Locker eLearning platform. You can find these by going to the Locker, selecting eLearning, and then scrolling the vertical navigation bar on the left hand side until you see Special Olympics.
If you have any questions regarding coaching education, please connect with your Community Coordinator or Jarrod Copland, Manager, Sport and Competition with SOO Provincial Office, jarrodc@specialolympicsontario.com