Background Screening

All adult coaches, officials, board members, employees, volunteers, and anyone else who will have regular contact with, or authority over, athletes under the age of 18 are required to submit to a background screen before any such contact with those athletes. 

There is a $30 processing fee.

All staff that will be added to an official USA Hockey roster will need to complete SafeSport Core Training. This is required annually.

USA Hockey and the Coaching Education Program require both certification and registration to be eligible to coach. Registration is done online on a yearly basis. Certification is also required. A few basic steps requirements are as follows:

USA Hockey Requirements (Must be completed before participating in any team activities)

• Register as a member of USA Hockey. (Cost is $46 plus any affiliate fees if applicable). Click here for more information.
• Complete the background screening. Click Here
• Complete the USA Hockey Safe Sport Training. (Required every year and cannot be added to a roster until completed). Click here for more information.
• Complete the online age-specific module(s) for the age level of play you are coaching. (Cost is $10 per module and only needs to be completed once per age level. Must be completed PRIOR to participating in any team activities and cannot be added to a roster until completed) Click here to register for the modules.

Coaching Education Program Certification Clinic Requirements (Must be completed by Dec. 31)

• Find, register and attend the required certification clinic. (Cost is $50. You can only attend one clinic per season and all coaches start at Level 1. (The coaching clinic season for Levels 1-3 officially runs from September 1 to December 31). Click here to locate a clinic.

This page serves as the start for all things related to USA Hockey’s Coaching Education Program. Click on any of the menu items to the left to find out more information about that subject.  

• Rules and Requiements: Outlines the standards all USA Hockey certified coaches must meet.
• Coaching Clinics:  Requires a USAHockey.com login (this login is NOT related to your USA Hockey member registration, modules, or level 3 recertification)
• Age-Specific Modules: Links to the online program for this CEP requirement  
• Level 3 Recertification: Links to the online Level 3 recertification. This is NOT the age-specific module 
• Online Certification List: Search for a coach’s certification and completion of an online age-specific module, and print a CEP card
• Student Coaches: Information on the student coach rules
• Coaching Ethics: Links to the Coaching Ethics Code