Wichitan Marcia Alterman receives national officiating honor

When Marcia Alterman was 16, she told her mother she wanted a job where she would be excited to wake up for it every morning.

Alterman, now 62 and still living in Wichita, would go on to find that four-decade career in volleyball officiating. Tuesday, Alterman received the profession’s ultimate honor, the Gold Whistle Award, from the National Association of Sports Officials.

While Alterman was honored to join the likes of Joe Crawford (NBA), Mills Lane (boxing), Ed Hightower (college basketball), and Jerry Markbreit (NFL) as winners of the award, she was most proud of the fact she is the third woman enshrined and the first volleyball official recognized in the award’s 28-year history.

“It means a great deal to me and I’m personally very proud of what I’ve done,” Alterman said. “This is a pretty male-dominated field, so I’m especially proud that I’m only the third female to get in. I’m still stunned that they would include me in that caliber.”

Alterman played volleyball for Wichita State in college, but she also took an officiating class and became more interested in that aspect of the game. She started out calling high school games, then graduated to small colleges, then worked her way up to the Division I level.

But Alterman’s true impact to the sport came when she transitioned to an executive director role with the Professional Association of Volleyball Officials, a position she still holds. She now coordinates officiating in six major Division I conferences and travels the country to put on seminars and train new officials.

“I’m kind of a star-maker now,” Alterman said. “When I help someone or mentor someone and they wind up getting big assignments, I take just as much pride in that as anything that I did.”

There is an art to officiating volleyball, which is the only sport where the official makes calls from a stationary position. That’s where Alterman comes in. The most important trait of a good volleyball official is knowledge of the game, and not just the rules.

“You have to be really good at anticipating where the next play is going to take place so your eyes can beat the ball to that location,” Alterman said.

Alterman spent the past three days in St. Louis, where the NASO convention is being held. It’s an event she regularly attends and gives her a chance to network with fellow officials and brainstorm ways to improve the game she loves.

But this summer’s trip has been special. She was introduced at home plate at Busch Stadium during a St. Louis Cardinals home gameMonday night and received the Gold Whistle Award and gave an acceptance speech Tuesday night.

It’s been an exciting week to celebrate a lifetime of achievement.

“I would definitely say that I found my dream job,” Alterman said. “I get the best seat in the house watching volleyball matches every weekend. I love what I do.”

This story was originally published July 28, 2015 at 4:50 PM with the headline "Wichitan Marcia Alterman receives national officiating honor."