Proposed 2014 Judging Approval Process Proposal Overview – Feedback Sought

The American Kennel Club is seeking feedback on the following Judges Approval Process. Please review the proposal and send in your comments to judgingapproval@akc.org  no later than Tuesday, November 18, 2014.

The proposed Judges Approval Process was designed in response to feedback from exhibitors, clubs, and judges. In developing the proposal there were three objectives in addition to the one overriding principle of providing knowledgeable, credibly trained and prepared judging for the exhibitor at AKC conformation events:

• Provide exhibitors more choices of judges at all levels of competition. Currently 27% of the judges adjudicate 80% of the entries.
• Provide clubs access to more judges at all levels of competition in order to be able to offer exhibitors a diversity of opinions while maintaining reasonable entry fees.
• Provide current and aspiring judges a clear path to breed and group status based on educational experiences believed to develop the skills necessary to evaluate dogs presented to them.

The process is based on the following concepts:

• The goal of this process is it be simple and well defined so that judges will know what is expected of them in order to be approved to judge both their first and additional breeds. It is based on what AKC Parent Clubs believe to be important preparation to judge their breed.
• The process uses a combination of mandatory as well as optional educational components. Each optional component activity is assigned a point value based upon its perceived relative importance to the preparation process. The points are referred to as Component Educational Units (CEU). The prospective judge can chose which educational components to utilize as he or she prepares to judge a particular breed. The number of CEUs per breed that a prospective judge must present for breed approval is contained on the Judge Education Component Requirements Chart. Once those requirements are met the prospective judge can apply for approval to judge the breed.
• The total number of CEU’s per breed, per application required of an applicant varies depending upon the experience (group approvals) of the applicant. The proposed process recognizes that a judge just beginning his or her career requires more experience and training before applying for additional breeds than does a judge already approved for multiple groups. Thus, a multi-group judge can apply for additional breeds with fewer CEU’s than a judge finishing his or her first group.

Executive Field Representatives:

• The Executive Field Representative is an important part of AKCs presence at shows and in the communities we serve. In recognition of the experience and expertise of the Executive Field Representative, in addition to their ongoing responsibilities under the policy with the judging community, they will work with parent clubs in their efforts to develop and provide educational training about their breed as well as provide training in the use of scales, wicket, ramp, table and other breed related matters. They will serve as a valuable resource to Clubs and assist, as requested, in the management of their shows and special programs. They will serve as the “face” of the American Kennel Club with the public and the fancy.
• The Executive Field Representative is relied upon to help train and educate judges in proper ring procedure, demeanor, and rule/policy interpretation as well as implementation of safe, courteous and efficient handling of the ring and all participants. They will observe the newly approved judge in the ring with respect to those aspects of judging.
• Executive Field Representatives will no longer observe, comment upon, critique or evaluate placements of dogs or question a judge’s awards. A judge may ask an Executive Field Representative for feedback or coaching but any such request will not become part of the judge’s record but rather part of the education process to become a better judge. Such interaction is encouraged for those breed(s) in which the Executive Field Representative has in-depth personal knowledge.
• First time judge applicants are interviewed by Executive Field Representatives to assure that the aspiring judge is fully conversant with appropriate ring procedures, AKC, rules, guidelines and policies and the behavior and demeanor expected of an AKC judge.

Process Requirements:

• A breed standard test is required with all applications for a breed regardless of the number Groups an applicant is approved to judge.
• Once an applicant has satisfied the requirements of the Qualifying Components (mandatory and educational components) application is made to AKC requesting granting of the breed on a “Permit” basis. After completion of six assignments Regular status for that breed is granted. There is no Judges Review Committee.
• Low Entry Breeds are subject to the same overall requirements as all other breeds. The Judge Education Component Requirements Chart identifies the number of Qualifying Components required of a judge based upon the applicant’s experience and based upon the identification of a breed as a low entry or regular entry breed. Low entry breeds require fewer CEUs since fewer educational opportunities for low entry breeds are available.
• An application for an additional breed may be submitted, regardless of Permit status of other breeds, when a prospective judge has completed the necessary CEUs for the breed for which the application is made.
• The Appeals Committee of the Board of Directors is available to adjudicate applicant appeals should a dispute arise between a judge and the Judging Operations Department in implementing and interpreting the Policy. Such appeals are subject to a filing fee of $50.

In order to gain a better understanding of the proposed process a “FAQ Question and Answer” paper has been prepared. Please refer to it in addition to the Judging Approval Policy and the Judge Education Component Requirements Chart which combined constitute the entire Board of Director’s Policy.

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Posted by chesliepickett on Oct 28 2014. Filed under Breaking News, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.