Captains – Who are they and what do they do?
Conference Captain – Jacob Smith
Our region’s Conference Captain will be the Area Captains’ point of contact for mini-conferences, mock tournaments, or even helping support someone who might be hosting a large Regional Conference for the first time. I will work with them to coordinate foil allocations, number of conferences, what areas have had events recently, and all else conference. Jacob is NOT responsible for organizing every mini-conference, but is instead a point of contact to ensure someone who wants to organize a conference doesn’t have to do it alone and from scratch.
Education Captain – Nik Zitomer
Our Region’s Education Captain and I will help to organize, consolidate, and share current education materials and efforts between Area Captains, as well as others wanting to run Online or In-Person Classes. Nik has been running classes since before I even moved to Atlanta, and over the past few years we’ve grown and developed our shared resources. I’m excited to expand education efforts to the entire region, and look forward to bringing many new judges into our wonderful community, as well as building those already here.
Area Captains are meant to be “point people” in their area – they help judge candidates connect with mentors, stores connect with judges, give feedback about up-and-coming judges, and know the judges and stores in their local areas well. They are by NO means the only ones allowed to run conferences, test judges, or work with stores! However, it helps to have a single point of contact who is familiar with the area and can help connect people to the best person for each particular job. The Area Captains for our region are below:
Area Captain (Mississippi) – Steven L. Romero
Area Captain (Alabama) – Gary Roland
Area Captain (North Georgia/Atlanta Area) – Adam Blaylock
Area Captain (South/East Georgia) – Michael Starr
Area Captain (South Carolina) – Brendan Whatley
Area Captain (North Florida/Panhandle) – Benjamin Bloodworth
Area Captain (Central Florida) – Matthew Newnam
Area Captain (South Florida/Keys) – Casey Sutliff
What don’t Captains do?
The USA North made some great clarifications on what Captains do and don’t do, which I’ve included below as reference.
Captains don’t have to solve all problems themselves. They are enablers – they exist to help people connect with other people. They aren’t responsible for certifying or mentoring everyone themselves, and will probably connect you to someone else. That’s what they are supposed to do!
Captains don’t arbitrate disputes between stores, judges, players, or Wizards of the Coast. If there is an issue with a judge, contact the Regional Coordinator. If there is an issue with a store doing something like breaking street date, report that to investigations@wizards.com. If you have an issue with a player, write up the details and pass it to the Regional Coordinator, who can open a case with the Player Investigations Committee.
Captains don’t force judges to judge events – they help find judges, but judges aren’t required to judge any particular event. Being hired for an event is between the judge and the Tournament Organizer. If a judge has agreed to judge an event and backed out or done something bad related to that event, please contact the Regional Coordinator, who handles conduct disputes. (If you would rather be anonymous or the issue is with the Regional Coordinator, the Magic Judge Feedback Form is available.)