UREC encourages all students interested in starting a club to pursue the club recognition process outlined below.
Contact the Assistant Director for Sport Clubs to discuss the following: Is the proposed activity competitive or instructional from a physical/active standpoint? Does the proposed activity require specific facilities or polices involving risk management? Does the proposed activity require participant or administrative expertise?
Clubs may not be approved based in risk and resource factors. While Sport Clubs are an opportunity to develop new sports in which students have interest, there are also some sports that do not fit well in the JMU Sport Club model. Because our clubs operate independently and do not have direct day to day supervision by trained professionals, there are activities that are prohibited from becoming sport clubs on campus. This would include clubs where the risk of serious injury or death are a regular risk inherent in the activity (even when operated properly) or where the resource demands for support and medical care are outside the ability of the University’s model to provide. This also may include clubs that require specialized facilities or spaces to operate a sport properly, although there are instances where a club can mitigate this by identifying a space off campus where these activities can be safely held. A risk management review is part of any new sport club request process and would be conducted prior to any sport being started even on a trial basis. There are a few sport clubs that have been proposed over the years that have been ruled to not meet the criteria for approval based on these risk and resource factors. These are: boxing, skydiving, mixed martial arts fighting, and tackle football. While all of these sports have their own merits, the risk and resource factors preclude them from being offered as a sport club at JMU.
- If the answers to the above questions are deemed "yes", the student or students interested in creating this new “sport club” would be asked to provide the following in writing: A draft of the proposed sport club constitution. The names of at least 10 interested student participants and the name of an interested faculty advisor who is committed to the future of the sport club. A risk statement detailing the level of risk for proposed activity, how could participants be injured and how would the student participants take measures to minimize injury. This should address the risk associated with the activity as well as possible risks associated with facility usage during the activity (if any). A needs statement that would include facility needs to be successful, equipment needs and any other needs that can be identified.
- Once the appropriate documents have been received by the Assistant Director for Sport Clubs they will be reviewed by the Sport Club Executive Committee.
- After review, the proposed Sport Club representative will be contacted to set up a meeting with the Sport Club Executive Committee to present the proposed club to the committee. The proposed club will be contacted within a week to discuss the decision of the Sport Club Executive Committee.
- If approved, the club will abide by the expectations set forth in the UREC Sports Club Manual. If the club is approved, it will be approved under the following funding model:
- 1st Year: Club will be required to establish a team checking account for deposit of dues and fundraising money. No money will be awarded from the UREC budget and the club will not be eligible for matching funds. Club will actively participate in requirements needed to earn points in the Sport Club System.
- 2nd Year: Club will continue collecting dues and fundraising, but will now be eligible for matching funds from UREC. Club will continue to earn points in the Sport Club System.
- 3rd Year: Club will continue collecting dues and fundraising as well as be eligible for matching funds. Club funding will be determine based on University approval of the club through UREC. If the Initiative is not approved the club will operate as stated for a second year club.
