Glossary of WSO terms

• Alternate: Teams consist of 15 students, but in reality there is a large group of students helping prepare the team throughout the year.  Some of these helpers are considered alternates.  They can be substitutes if one of the competing students is ill, injured, or cannot compete for another reason.
  • Inform the tournament director if an alternate is competing in place of another teammate.  
  • Alternates can also audit events beyond the 23 competition events.  
  • There can be alternate students and even an alternate team.  Alternate teams can compete only in invitational tournaments.
• Arbitration: When head coach (and only the head coach) has a complaint that his/her team was not treated fairly according to the rules that head coach approaches the YESS team member (see below).  If necessary the Event Supervisor is consulted.  Often issues can be resolved through this discussion.  If there is still a disagreement then the head coach can file an appeal.  The appeal form is delivered by the Associate Director to the Arbitration team.  Arbitration will make the final decision on the matter and both the head coach and Event Supervisor are notified.
• Associate Director:  Assists the State WSO director in all matters related to the organization.  Helps develop resources for coaches and event supervisors.  Some of the State tournament responsibilities include recruiting Event Supervisors and YESS team members, assigning volunteers to events, and organizing hotel accommodations.
• Director: The individual in charge of planning and running the tournament.  There are directors of the various regional/invitational tournaments and an overall State WSO director.  The State WSO director oversees all activities related to WSO.
• Event Supervisor: Highly qualified professionals who prepare, implement, and score the competitors in the event.  The event rules MUST be followed when creating the testing conditions.  They are volunteering their time, so it is very nice if the students thank them for the experience.
• Headquarters: Location where tournament organizers may be found.  It is the location where all Event Supervisors have their results verified/finalized.
• Impound: Indicates that a team-built device needs to be turned in before competition begins.  Watch carefully if your event has an impound time indicated and ensure the device is turned in within that time period.
• Invitational: Practice tournaments.  It is an opportunity to see others devices, obtain practice tests, and prepare for regionals.  Invitations are not sent out.  You will contact the director of that tournament, fill out a registration form if required, and possibly pay a small fee.  Alternate teams can compete in these tournaments.
• Regional: There are 4 Division C regionals and 2 Division B regionals.  Each team is assigned to a regional tournament and they need to compete to qualify for state.  
• Registration: Visit the WSO website to register your team(s).  Discounts are available for schools with 3 or more teams.
• Self-schedule: Certain events are designated self-schedule.  This means that time slots are available for teams to choose rather than the event being in the hour time blocks (see example schedule).  Ensure you self-schedule as soon as possible to avoid time conflicts with other events.
• State: The state tournament rotates between UW-Milwaukee and UW-Stout.  Three criteria need to be met to qualify for state:
  • Participate (in at least 10 events) in a regional in their geographic region 
  • Provide at least one regional Event Supervisor or Assistant as well as the materials, exam, equipment, personnel for at least one regional event.
  • Finish in the top 50 medal count for all regional tournaments
  • See the WSO website for additional information on state qualification
• Event Volunteers: Often college students, but can be parents, teachers, or anyone interested in helping with events.  Each Event Supervisor will identify the number of volunteers they need to make their event run smoothly.
• YESS team: This stands for Your Event Supervisor Support.  YESS team members are part of the state tournament organizational team.  Each YESS team member is assigned to 1-4 events and ensures that the Event Supervisor has everything they need, helps with checking in of students, discusses any issues with the head coach, monitors crowd control in hallways and around events, assists anyone with questions, and helps enter scores into the online scoring program.