Based on the input from more than 21 forums and focus groups hosted by local communities from coast to coast as well as 26 topics discussed through the Ultimate Revolution online blog, the following strategies were tackled by those participating in the Boston, Atlanta, Minneapolis and Seattle.
The total votes cast by participants for strategies and tactics discussed at the respective summits are as follows:
|
BOS |
ATL |
MIN |
SEA |
Total |
No Change Votes |
|
|
Grow Youth Ultimate |
108 |
114 |
73 |
69 |
365 |
|
| Invest heavily in Observer System |
37 |
69 |
30 |
67 |
203 |
5 |
| Communicate SOTG clearly/ often & hold players/teams accountable so it permeates competition |
64 |
32 |
30 |
60 |
183 |
|
| Provide tools to increase effectiveness/credibility of leagues |
59 |
60 |
19 |
45 |
183 |
|
| Make signficant changes to the Championship Series |
16 |
90 |
48 |
19 |
173 |
|
| Provide new/increased opportunities to play |
53 |
56 |
26 |
20 |
155 |
|
| Advocate/provide tools to improve field access |
34 |
65 |
20 |
16 |
135 |
1 |
| Offer reduced rate membership for non-series players/others with interest in being connected to Ultimate |
45 |
41 |
24 |
19 |
129 |
|
| Gain credibility/legitimacy by increasing participation & awareness at the local youth, grassroots level |
8 |
68 |
40 |
8 |
124 |
|
| Focus on rule knowledge, devise methods to enable old and ew players to learn them well |
38 |
35 |
16 |
33 |
122 |
|
| Establish policies to enable business, organizational partnerships |
43 |
42 |
10 |
13 |
108 |
|
| Encourage participation of women in Ultimate (added MN) |
NA |
NA |
45 |
58 |
103 |
|
| Aggressively move toward NCAA, Olympics, HS varsity status |
6 |
59 |
8 |
22 |
95 |
2 |
| Provide tools/support for college teams |
43 |
38 |
0 |
12 |
93 |
|
| Define SOTG so it can be explained, understood |
31 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
91 |
|
| Re-engage former members, engage new members |
NA |
36 |
32 |
10 |
78 |
|
| Become an international force, provide services around the world |
18 |
11 |
13 |
34 |
76 |
|
| Increase coverage of elite play |
18 |
43 |
1 |
11 |
73 |
|
| Using clear definition of SOTG, establish new spirit awards, rankings |
8 |
43 |
0 |
10 |
61 |
|
| Require rule knowledge in order to compete |
2 |
4 |
24 |
20 |
50 |
|
| Review/improve college eligibility policy |
24 |
5 |
18 |
0 |
47 |
7 |
| Establish affiliate relationship with leagues, increase incentives to sanction w/UPA |
19 |
NA |
17 |
11 |
47 |
|
| Experiment with competition with referees |
2 |
0 |
14 |
26 |
42 |
32 |
| Have regional Board to provide support for leagues. teams and others |
NA |
NA |
16 |
0 |
16 |
|
| Explore name change for the sport |
5 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
11 |
18 |
| Experiment w ith modifying observers in Youth Ultimate to teach SOTG and self-officiating |
8 |
1 |
2 |
NA |
11 |
|
| Explore prospects for professional league |
1 |
5 |
0 |
2 |
8 |
3 |
| Exclude non-US teams in WFDF qualification years |
0 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
4 |
2 |
Armed with the information gathered from the four Summits -- including hundreds of ideas for tactical approaches and ideal outcomes -- the UPA Board of Directors, strategic planning committee and staff met the weekend of July 20-22 to establish priorities and next steps.
A copy of the two slide presentations shared at the Summits can be found below. The Assessment presents an overview of the key data gathered through the surveys, forums, and dialogues. The Strategies document presents information on areas of convergence, as well as concepts shown as having popular and mixed support through the forums and online blog.