bulletin

Volume 82, Issue 1, Fall 2012Volume 82, Issue 1, Fall 2012

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THE BULLETINOfficial Publication of the

Minnesota State High School League2100 Freeway Boulevard

Brooklyn Center, MN 55430-1735763-560-2262

http://www.MSHSL.org

Information within this Bulletinmay be reprinted only with the

permission of the MSHSL.

Volume 82, Issue 1Fall 2012

Editorial StaffEditor:

Howard W. VoigtAssistant Editor:Ellen Rajkowski

Contributing Editors:David SteadKevin Merkle

Lisa LissimoreCraig Perry

Jody RedmanJohn MilleaRich Matter

Chris Franson

Board of DirectorsRegions 1-2A

Scott McCready, St. CharlesRegions 3-4A

Bob Grey, MontevideoRegions 5-6A

Rick Bleichner, BreckenridgeRegions 7-8A

Mike Kolness, Ada-BorupRegions 1-2AA

Mark Fredericksen, WaconiaRegions 3-4AA

Mike Manning, RosemountRegions 5-6AA

Dan Johnson, HopkinsRegions 7-8AA

Tom Conzemius, Sauk Rapids-RiceState School Boards Assn.

Roz Peterson, LakevilleWalter Hautala, Mesabi East

MN Assn. of Secondary PrincipalsJohn Hamann, Underwood

Erich Martens, Sauk Rapids-RiceBoys Sports

Mark Solberg, Cambridge-IsantiGirls Sports

Shelly Hotzler, Jackson County CentralMN Music Educators Assn.Lane Powell, Fillmore Central

Speech Assn. of MNChris McDonald, EaganGovernor's Appointees

Lea B. Olsen, MinneapolisMike Rusinko, Eden Prairie

Laurie Esau, OronoSteve Eklund, Braham

Printed byCarlson Print Group

7490 Golden Triangle DriveEden Prairie, MN 55344

The MSHSL Bulletin is publishedin Fall, Winter and Spring and

is designed to meet the needs ofthe 525 member Schools.

League Office PersonnelThe Minnesota State High School League Officehas been established to provide special services tothe member schools. Listed below are the officepersonnel:

Extension / Voice MailboxExecutive Director - David Stead ........................ 480

Executive Assistant - Lynne Johnson ........... 490Associate Director - Jody Redman ..................... 481

Administrative Assistant - Amie Symens ...... 491Associate Director - Kevin Merkle ...................... 484

Administrative Assistant - Amanda Johnson 494Officials Coordinator- Katie Vanderpoel ........ 496

Associate Director - Craig Perry ......................... 482Administrative Assistant - Susi Hollenbeck ... 492

Associate Director - Lisa Lissimore .................... 483Administrative Assistant - Sheila Robinson .. 493

Director of Information - Howard W. Voigt .......... 485Assistant - Ellen Rajkowski ........................... 542

Assistant Director - Richard Matter ..................... 497Accounting Assistant - Sharon Bahma ......... 541Ticketing Assistant - Nancy Myers ................ 487

Assistant Director - Chris Franson ...................... 488Web Site Coordinator - Nancy Etter .............. 551Technology Assistant - Tracie Bressler ........ 552

Media Specialist - John Millea ............................ 554Program Specialist - Amy Doherty ..................... 495Office Manager - Kristi Vesall ............................. 489

Administrative Assistant - Yvonne Walsh ..... 486Receptionist - Ann Bailey .............................. 540

The MSHSL Logo is a registered mark of the organizationand use in any manner is prohibited unless prior approval is

obtained from the League.

Schedule of Board of Directors Meetings

October 4 ................................. MSHSL OfficeBrooklyn Center

December 6 ............................. MSHSL OfficeBrooklyn Center

January 24 ............................... MSHSL OfficeBrooklyn Center

April 4 ....................................... MSHSL OfficeBrooklyn Center

June 3 ...................................... MSHSL OfficeBrooklyn Center

Representative Assembly Meeting

TBD ............... Edinburgh USA, Brooklyn Park

When calling the League Office (763-560-2262),direct your requests to staff persons as designated:

Accounts Payable .............................................................. Sharon BahmaAccounts Receivable ......................................................... Yvonne WalshActivity / Late Registrations ................................................ Chris FransonActivity Section Assignments ............................................. Chris FransonAdministrative Regions ........................................................... Dave SteadArchive Information ........................................................ Howard W. VoigtAthletic / Activity Director Advisory Committee ................... Kevin MerkleBoard of Directors Information ............................................... Dave SteadCamps and Clinics .................................................................. Craig PerryCharter Officials Associations .............................................. Kevin MerkleChemical Rule Interpretations ............................................... Craig PerryCooperative Sponsorship ................................................. Lynne JohnsonDebate & Music Judges ..................................................... Chris FransonDebate Judge & Music Judge Registrations ......................... Nancy EtterExCEL Program ................................................................. Lisa LissimoreFine Arts Rules Interp. (Debate & Music) .......................... Chris FransonFine Arts Rules Interp. (One Act & Visual Arts) ................ Chris FransonFine Arts Rules Interp. (Speech) ....................................... Chris FransonGender Equity ......................................................................... Dave SteadGeneral Information on MSHSL ............................................. Dave SteadHall of Fame ....................................................................... Lisa LissimoreInsurance ................................................................................ Rich MatterInterstate Sanctions ................................................................ Dave SteadLeague Publications ...................................................... Howard W. VoigtMarketing and Promotions ................................................ Lisa LissimoreMembership Information .................................................. Lynne JohnsonNews Media Services .................................................... Howard W. VoigtNon-School Competition ........................................................ Craig PerryOffice Management ................................................................ Kristi VesallOfficials Program .................................................................. Kevin MerkleOne Act Play Judge Registrations ......................................... Nancy EtterOne Act Play Judges .......................................................... Chris FransonPSAs and TV Visuals .................................................... Howard W. VoigtRegistration of Officials ................................................ Katie VanderpoelResults and Records ..................................................... Howard W. VoigtRulebooks, Supplies, Awards ........................................... Yvonne WalshRules Interpretation Meetings ...................................... Katie VanderpoelSchool Eligibility ...................................................................... Craig PerrySpeech Judges .................................................................. Chris FransonSpeech Judge Registrations .................................................. Nancy EtterSports Medicine Advisory Committee .................................... Craig PerrySportsmanship Program ................................................... Lisa LissimoreSpotlight on Scholarship Program .................................... Lisa LissimoreStudent Ejections ..................................................................... Ann BaileyStudent Eligibility .................................................................... Craig PerrySupplemental Allowances ...................................................... Kristi VesallTEAM UP Advisory Committee .......................................... Jody RedmanTEAM UP Program ............................................................. Jody RedmanTicket Assistant .................................................................... Nancy MyersTriple “A” Award .................................................................. Jody RedmanWeb Site Development ....................................................... Chris FransonWeb Site Assistance ............................................................... Nancy Etter

Activity Rule Interpretations,Coach Incidents Reports, andActivity Advisory Committees

Adapted Athletics (Bowling, Floor Hockey, Soccer, Softball) .. Rich MatterAlpine Skiing / Boys’ & Girls’ .................................................. Rich MatterBadminton / Girls’ .............................................................. Lisa LissimoreBaseball ................................................................................. Kevin MerkleBasketball / Boys’ ................................................................. Kevin MerkleBasketball / Girls’ ............................................................... Lisa LissimoreCheerleaders ...................................................................... Jody RedmanCross Country Running / Boys’ & Girls’ ............................ Lisa LissimoreDance Team / Girls’ .............................................................. Kevin MerkleDebate ................................................................................. Chris FransonFootball .................................................................................. Kevin MerkleGolf / Boys’ & Girls’ ................................................................. Dave SteadGymnastics / Girls’ .............................................................. Jody RedmanIce Hockey / Boys’ & Girls’ ..................................................... Craig PerryLacrosse / Boys' & Girls’ ........................................................ Rich MatterMusic ................................................................................... Chris FransonNordic Ski Racing / Boys’ & Girls’ .......................................... Rich MatterOne Act Play ....................................................................... Chris FransonSoccer / Boys’ & Girls’ ........................................................ Jody RedmanSoftball / Girls’ .................................................................... Lisa LissimoreSpeech ................................................................................ Chris FransonSwimming and Diving / Boys’ & Girls’ ............................... Lisa LissimoreSynchronized Swimming / Girls’ ....................................... Lisa LissimoreTennis / Boys’ & Girls’ ............................................................ Craig PerryTrack & Field / Boys’ & Girls’ .............................................. Jody RedmanVisual Arts ........................................................................... Chris FransonVolleyball / Girls’ ................................................................. Jody RedmanWrestling ................................................................................. Craig Perry

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www.MSHSL.org Fall 2012 Bulletin 1

Dave’s DialogueDave’s DialogueDave’s DialogueDave’s DialogueDave’s DialogueStudent’s Concussion Leads Her To Implore “When In Doubt, Sit It Out” ................................................ 2

News and FNews and FNews and FNews and FNews and Featureseatureseatureseatureseatures

Inside This Issue

OfficialsOfficialsOfficialsOfficialsOfficials2011-2012 Service Awards Presented ...................................................................................................... 25

Pilot Phase Of Promotional Level Program Under Way ............................................................................ 26

AlsoAlsoAlsoAlsoAlsoBoard Of Directors Meeting Minutes........................................................................................................ 30

Fall 2012 Calendars Of Meetings & State Events...................................................................................... 32

4Eden Prairie, Dawson-Boyd, The Blake SchoolWin 2011-12 Challenge Cups

Student Participation Shows Slight Increase .................................................... 6

National Participation Hits All-Time High ........................................................... 7

Important Questions To Consider About Coaching .......................................... 8

Managing And Leading A High School Athletic Department: League Has Tools To Assist ..................... 18

School Menu Changes Too Harsh? ........................................................................................................... 19

Sports Medicine Advisory Committee Works To Minimize Risk To High School Athletes ...................... 20

How Much Hitting Will Football Players Do? — Football Coach Stresses Safety .................................... 23

10Coon Rapids Athletes HelpBarnum, Moose Lake Flood Victims

7.6 Million Reasons To Keep High School Sports ........................................... 11

Spotlight On Scholarship Recognizes The Best ............................................. 12

Some Female Pioneers In State Associations Pre-Dated Title IX ................... 14

Athletic ActivitiesAthletic ActivitiesAthletic ActivitiesAthletic ActivitiesAthletic Activities

2 Fall 2012 Bulletin www.MSHSL.org

Dave’s Dialogue

Dave Stead

See SitSitSitSitSit on Page 3

By Dave SteadExecutive Director

Hanna Haegele is an incredible young woman. She is a senior atMaple Lake High School and is once again active in cross country,basketball, and track and field; and, she sings in the school choir. As ajunior at Maple Lake High School, Hannah suffered what she nowknows was a concussion and suffered nearly all of the second semester.Her condition is known as a Post-Concussion Syndrome.

Hannah wrote the following letter which was read at her school thisfall at a meeting of players and parents. She speaks from her heartabout her concussion experience and provides first-hand advice forothers.

Hannah has now returned to competitive running, plans to playbasketball this winter and run track in the spring. Her post-high schoolplans include college with a possible major in sports journalism. Givenher passion for others and her writing skills, I’m sure we’ll hear moreabout her in the future.

Please take time to read Hannah’s story. This is worth sharing everyseason with every gathering of athletes, parents, and coaches.

When in doubt, sit it out. I can clearly remember one year agohearing those simple words, “When in doubt, sit it out,” over andover again. I remember the catchy phrase being the cause of somelaughter between myself and my friends. I remember the stories, theprecautions, and the signs to watch for, and I remember thinking tomyself, I highly doubt I’ll ever have a concussion, but if I do, I willmake sure I sit it out. I told myself I would never let the gameinterfere with my life. I mean, after all, life was good, and I didn’twant to take the risk of losing any part of it. Why, then, did Idisregard all of that on Dec. 15, 2011? Let me tell you the story.

I don’t really recall much of the practice, but I do remember thefirst time I got hit in the head. Coach always said, “If the ball is onthe ground, you are on the ground.” Well, I was on the ground and sowas my head with my teammate sitting right on top of me. It barelyfazed me. Then, a few drills later, I was frustrated by my constantmistakes. I was dribbling to my left, trying to get around a screen,and I felt a hit to my head. I’m not really sure what happened. I justremember foggily seeing the ball rolling into the back court. With myhead throbbing, I dribbled it back. The only words I could find were“I’m fine, I’m fine, I’m fine.” And that’s how easy it was for me tomake the decision that changed my teenage life dramatically. Afterthat, I struggled to remember simple plays and I was ready to gohome.

That night was painful. Not only did my head hurt, but my mombrought up the dreaded word, “concussion.” After seeing the bumpson my head, she suggested that I do an ImPact test just to be safe,but dreading it, I said, “Well, Dean (Dean Adams, the athletictrainer) isn’t here on Fridays so he couldn’t do it, and after the gamewe have Christmas break with no games until the HolidayTournament. I will be fine.” So it was settled; I was playing.

Friday came and my head was worse than the day before. Iremember the choir concert was coming, and the stage lightsseemed 100 times brighter. Then I saw Mrs. Fynboh (assistantbasketball coach and Spanish teacher) walk into the auditorium, andI thought, “Oh great, I hope she doesn’t see me squinting!” When sheasked me how I felt I said, “Yup, I’m good to go,” and she said,“Great. I’ll tell (Coach) Ronnenberg.” Oh boy, I thought, what did Iget myself into? If you have ever driven to BBE (Belgrade-Brooten-

Concussion led to pain and disappointment;student using the experience as lesson for others

When In Doubt, Sit It OutElrosa), you would know how painfully long it is. But unless you ridein a bus with a headache, you might not realize how BUMPY it is!!!

Then warm-ups began. And, of course, the BBE band was in thefront row blasting as loud as they could. My head was hurting andmy stomach was turning, but with the game about to begin,adrenaline is the best medicine. Everything seemed to be good. Wewon the game, and I think I did alright. Finally, I could relax. Thatnight my family went to Applebee’s to celebrate the victory. I am nota shy eater, and usually I would have eaten the whole plate ofchicken wings myself, but this night I didn’t want much. I just didn’tfeel good.

After a nice break for Christmas, I felt much better, refreshedand renewed. I played my best game at our tournament, and I wasfeeling good. I stayed feeling good until after the break was over.Suddenly, I wasn’t feeling quite right again. At halftime of the St.Cloud Cathedral game I just wanted a garbage can. In the secondhalf, I was not focusing at all. My head was all over the place, and inthe final seconds my heart sank when I misjudged a pass that costus the game.

In the days and weeks afterward, I still wasn’t feeling myself. Ihad no energy, and I was not in a good mood. Then, one day atschool, it was too much. I could barely make it through the end ofthe day, and there was no way I could practice. So I walked to CoachRonnenberg’s office and explained that my head hurt. He told me togo home and get some rest. I went into the doctor, but I was toldeverything was fine. I still wasn’t feeling better though.

One day during practice I went into the bathroom because ISTILL didn’t feel good. By this time, the anxiety of how I was feelingwas really building up. Later that week, we played our game atHoldingford. Little did I know this would be my last game of theseason. We won by a lot. But after the game, I STILL did not feelgood, and I was in a bad mood.

When Coach kindly made a joke about how poor my free throwswere looking, I started crying. I am not an emotional person, and Inever get offended by a quick joke. But at the time, in that moment,my head was in a million different places. I wasn’t me.


News & Features

Sit .................................................................................... continued from Page 2

It was then when I really hit bottom. Everything seemed to bewrong. I didn’t know which end was up. Many times I had consideredquitting the sport that I had worked so hard at for so many yearsbecause I couldn’t get through how I felt. I decided to have a talkwith the coaches and my mom, and it became clear that I was achanged person. At the time, I was unhappy and frustrated andblamed other things and other people for my problems. I wish Icould take it all back, because I said and did everything out offrustration. They suggested I take a break to re-group and that Icheck in with Dean and take an ImPact test.

I failed my very first test. An epic failure. Everything was off.Reaction time, symptom score, memory, it was all wrong. Finally, Ifound the answer to all of the lingering and unanswered questions.Because of my decision to not sit out back in December, I hadsomething called Post-Concussion Syndrome, which is exactly whatMinnesota Twin Justin Morneau had gone through. I was notprepared for the treatment plan to help me recover, but what I waseven less prepared for was the dramatic impact the symptomswould have on my life.

Often times we take the regular things in our life for grantedincluding, most often, our health. If we only knew that our healthcan change in an instant and our health impacts every aspect of ourlives, maybe we would be more cautious.

I know you are all here at this meeting because you are a MapleLake athlete ready to compete and fight for the Irish, the team welove. But let me ask you a question. Imagine that your team is in aplayoff game against your rival school. The score is tied and youonly need a spark to change the momentum. You could be the one toknock down a three-pointer, but instead you are on the bench. Youdon’t have a cast and you appear to be perfectly fine. People in thestands are wondering why you are sitting on the bench and not onthe floor helping your team.

Inside, your head is pounding, your mind is racing, and all youwant to do is go home and sleep. Then imagine the pain, notphysical pain but the emotional guilt, when your team loses thegame. What if you had been in there? Why did this happen to you?

I believe everything happens for a reason, and I know now thepurpose of my sitting on that bench is to help prevent someone elsefrom being that person. I made a poor decision to play in one gamewhen I was not feeling right, and it cost me many more importantgames during my basketball season. But that was not all.

After many appointments, therapy, and retaking ImPact tests, Iwas able to join the track team. As happy as I was to have that partof my life back, each and every day was a struggle. I still had a hardtime in school, and when I got to track, I was amazed anddisappointed how difficult it was for me. At practice, I had a hardtime even doing half the work I was used to. Finally, the end-of-school-year stress, track, and prom took me back to a place I didn’twant to go. Concussion symptoms again.

Last season I participated in one track meet. Again, the onedecision I made on Dec. 15 not only cost me half of my basketballseason, but an entire season of the sport I had been doing sinceseventh grade. When you put in that many years of hard work anddedication and end up sitting at home on the day your team achievesthe goal you have been wanting for so long, it’s more thanfrustration. It’s tears, pain and heartbreak. I was so happy foreveryone; yet so heartbroken inside.

Of all the symptoms of a concussion (headaches, fatigue, andlight sensitivity), none compare to the worst symptom of all—regret.So much of my life had been taken away from me, but it was all myfault. No one can change the past, but we can change the future.

So this is my motivation in sharing my story with everyone eventhough it has never been easy to open up about something I wouldrather just forget. I can’t change what happened to me, but I canhope to prevent it from happening to anybody else. There is noshortage of news about concussions, but we are always the first tothink those stories will never happen to us. Well, it can.

You are all here because you will be playing sports this year, sothese are the Top 5 messages I ask all of you to keep in mind:

1) You are in control of you. Coaches, referees and parents canhelp, but ultimately you need to be in control of your own health.

2) Know the symptoms of concussion. If you are educated aboutwhat to look for, you will have an easier time knowing when to stopand get checked out. And, remember, it IS NOT how hard you get hit.Any bump can be serious.

3) If you sustain a concussion, do not rush back into anything.Listen to your coach, your trainer, and your doctor and do exactlywhat they say. Take time right away so it doesn’t end up taking moretime later.

4) No time is a good time to get a concussion, but the time to getit checked out is RIGHT AWAY. If you don’t, you could end up losingmore than a week or two. You could lose seasons.

5) Lastly, and most importantly, if you know someone who isgoing through a concussion, be supportive. It is not easy for them,but it is easier to recover if you are in good spirits and if you havepeople to lift you up. If someone needs help in school, please bethere for them and always remind them they will get better.

I would just like to thank everyone who has supported me in myhealing process. I am so grateful to live in a supportive communityand have wonderful coaches, teachers, teammates and others whodid everything possible to help me. I hope that by sharing my story,you can see the serious side of concussions and make sure you makethe right decisions so that you all can stay in the game and always beIrish Strong! Good luck to all of the athletes and teams thisupcoming year.

Sincerely,Hannah Haegele

Of all the symptoms of a concussion(headaches, fatigue, and lightsensitivity), none compare to the worstsymptom of all—regret. So much of mylife had been taken away from me, butit was all my fault. No one can changethe past, but we can change the future.

I can’t change what happened to me,but I can hope to prevent it from

happening to anybody else. There is noshortage of news about concussions,but we are always the first to think

those stories will never happen to us.Well, it can.


News & Features

By Lisa LissimoreAssociate Director

For the sixth time in nine years, EdenPrairie High School has won the MinnesotaState High School League large schoolChallenge Cup competition. Eden Prairie is theonly school—large or small—to achieve thismilestone. Other schools earning top honorsfor the 2011-12 school year are four-timeChallenge Cup winner The Blake School ofMinneapolis and first-time winner Dawson-Boyd.

Created in 2003 and sponsored by WellsFargo, the League’s premier corporatesponsor, the Challenge Cup is a statewide,year-long competition among Minnesota highschools. Points are awarded to schools basedon their success in section and state fine artsand athletic tournaments. The school earningthe most points at the end of the year in eachclassification—A, AA and AAA—receives thetraveling Challenge Cup. This is only thesecond time that the Cup has been awarded tothree schools. Previously it went to twoschools representing Class A and AA schools.

During the 2011-12 school year, EdenPrairie participated in 25 state tournaments

basketball teams, and participants in speech,debate, boys’ tennis and boys’ golf. The 2012Cup is Eden Prairie’s fifth consecutive.

Other Class AAA schools finishing in thetop five include Minnetonka (578 points),Edina (540 points), Eastview, Apple Valley(539 points), and Wayzata (511 points).

The Class AA trophy moved across townfrom Breck High School of Golden Valley to TheBlake School of Minneapolis. The Bears earnedtheir 521 Challenge Cup points by winning thegirls’ lacrosse, girls’ tennis, and girls’ soccertournaments. They also had individualchampions in girls’ cross country running,boys’ swimming and diving, and girls’ andboys’ track and field. Team members fromdebate, speech, boys’ and girls’ Alpine skiing,boys’ cross country and boys’ tennis alsocontributed to the school’s success. The BlakeSchool won the Challenge Cup in 2005, 2007and 2009. They were runners-up in 2008.

St. Cloud Cathedral (348 points), Breck(284 points), Rochester Lourdes (246 points),and Detroit Lakes (245 points) rounded outthe top five schools in Class AA.

Dawson-Boyd is the new Class A ChallengeCup winner. With 138 points, the Blackjackswon the Class A Prep Bowl, finished third inboys’ golf and fifth in girls’ dance team. Theyalso placed fifth in the doubles competition atthe girls’ tennis tournament. Other ChallengeCup points came from runners in girls’ trackand field and three wrestlers who placedsecond at state.

Minneota, the 2011 Cup winner (127points), Ada-Borup (128 points), Nevis (75points), and Bethlehem Academy, Faribault (74points) are the other small schools to finish inthe top five.

The Challenge Cup champions will berecognized at ceremonies early this fall. Thethree schools will be presented with atraveling crystal Challenge Cup, which moveseach year to the winning schools.

Previous Challenge Cup winners include St.Cloud Cathedral—2004 and 2006; EdenPrairie—2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011;Lakeville—2004 and 2005; The Blake School—2005, 2007 and 2009; Wayzata—2007;Perham—2008; Breck—2010 and 2011; andMinneota—2011.

For a complete list of all the schools thatearned Challenge Cup points for the 2011-12school year, go to the League web site at—www.MSHSL.org—and click on theRecognition tab.

Eden Prairie, Dawson-Boyd, The Blake School win Challenge Cups

Dillon Danielson (right), personal bankerfrom Wells Fargo in Marshall, presents

the traveling crystal Cup to DaleVanderwerf, former Dawson-Boyd

athletic director and long-time coach.

and earned 766 Challenge Cups points. TheEagles won state championships in football,boys’ soccer, and girls’ volleyball. EdenPrairie’s dance team and both the girls’ andboys’ lacrosse teams each finished second atstate, plus several swimmers, gymnasts,Alpine skiers and wrestlers placed first intheir respective sports. Other points camefrom the school’s adapted soccer and floorhockey teams, the baseball and boys’

Dale Vanderwerf hoists the 2012 Challenge Cup in front of the Dawson-Boyd studentsection at a recent home football game.

ACT:Oct. 27, Dec. 8, Feb. 9, April 13, June 8.

2012-13 college entrance exam scheduleSAT:Nov. 3, Dec. 1, Jan. 26, March 9, May 4,June 1.

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Editor’s Note: At the beginningof every meeting of the League’sBoard of Directors one member isasked to offer the Reflection. Thisis the Reflection offered by JillLofald of Duluth at the February2012 Board meeting. Her termrepresenting the speechcommunity ended this pastsummer.

By Jill Lofald

Good morning.What’s in a name? “A rose by

any other name would still smellas sweet.” Anybody recognizethat quote? That’s from Romeoand Juliet – a play that I teach inmy English 9 class. Juliet is tryingto convince herself that the boyshe loves, if he had another name,could still be the boy with whomshe could fall in love. She impliesthat names aren’t important. Ireally respect Shakespeare, but Ihave to disagree with him on thispoint.

I really believe that names areeverything; that names are reallyimportant. In fact they are soimportant that if you are in myclassroom; be it my ninth gradeclassroom or my seniors, on thefirst days of class I play the namegame. Yep, it’s a tradition.Classes know that they’re goingto play it. They think that they aregoing to be able to write the

names down, but I take thosepens away.

The name game goes like this:David would say, “Hi my name isDavid and I like doughnuts.” Theitem has to be something thatstarts with the first letter of thestudents’ first name. And thenMindy would have to say, “Hisname is David and he likesdoughnuts. My name is Mindy andI like marshmallows.” And thenMark would have to say, “Hisname is David and he likesdoughnuts. Her name is Mindyand she like marshmallows. And,my name is Mark and I likemoney.”

That’s the name game and bythe time we’ve gone all the wayaround my classroom, I knowtheir names. And, if I know theirname I have a great chance ofbuilding a relationship andteaching them.

My father was a man of fewwords, but I can remember sittingin his car just before going intothe family bank to take out a loanso I could go to college. We didn’thave a lot of money and takingout a loan was really a big deal. Iwas just a mess. My dad reachedover, put his hand on my shoulder,and said, “I couldn’t give you a lotof things, Jill. We didn’t have a lotof money or a big fancy home; butthe one thing I have given you thatyou can always be proud of isyour name.”

Your name. Wow. That juststuck with me, and if I was goingto misbehave; I thought twiceabout the consequences becausemy father told me to be proud ofmy name.

Which leads me to theMinnesota State High School

What’s in a name?

League. What a name. What anincredible name. And, I am soproud to be associated with thatname. It stands for many things,but if I could pick just three, I’dpick these:

First, the League stands forcharacter. The people involved inthis organization, the leaders, thestaff, those who serve oncommittees, and the volunteers attournaments are people ofcharacter. That came into focusthis past month when hockeyinjuries and the penalty structurewere at the forefront. That’s whenthe League could have been in aposition where people didn’t trustus or didn’t believe in us. Butinstead, because there ischaracter in every aspect of ourorganization, our name and theresulting changes were affirmed,and we can continually be proudof the reputation and character ofour organization.

The second thing thatimpresses me is the intelligenceof our members. I know some ofyou just might think that’s justsomething that comes with theterritory, but because I work withhigh school kids I know thatintelligence is a thing to value. Itjust doesn’t come naturally. Again,I am reminded about theintelligence in this organization.It’s not just the people who workin the building; the people whovolunteer; those who serve oncommittees and the Board. Ourmember schools are filled withintelligent people making the rightdecisions and the tough calls,when difficult issues arepresented.

The third thing I’d choose iscreativity. I love the creativity ofthis organization. Every meeting Ilearn about some new initiative orsome new program one of youaround the board table hasthought about because you are allsuch creative thinkers. You thinkoutside the box. That creativityenhances the programs for ourathletes and fine arts students.The resulting discussions providea springboard for new andinnovative ideas that support ourschool programs encompassingthose three core areas.

So, when I think about a name,about what’s in a name, I have todisagree with Juliet, even thoughRomeo and Juliet is my favoriteplay. You know what’s in a name?It’s everything.

So, I thank all of you for beingan integral part of the MinnesotaState High School League. That’sa name I am so proud of.

My father was a man of few words, but Ican remember sitting in his car just

before going into the family bank to takeout a loan so I could go to college. We

didn’t have a lot of money and taking outa loan was really a big deal. I was just amess. My dad reached over, put his hand

on my shoulder, and said, “I couldn’t giveyou a lot of things, Jill. We didn’t have a

lot of money or a big fancy home; but theone thing I have given you that you can

always be proud of is your name.”

Which leads me to the Minnesota State High School League.What a name. What an incredible name. And, I am so proud tobe associated with that name. It stands for many things, but if Icould pick just three, I’d pick these: First, the League standsfor character. The people involved in this organization, theleaders, the staff, those who serve on committees, and thevolunteers at tournaments are people of character. ... Thesecond thing that impresses me is the intelligence of ourmembers. ... The third thing I’d choose is creativity. I love thecreativity of this organization.

News & Features


Student participation shows slight increase

COMPETITIVE ATHLETIC ACTIVITY 2011-2012 2010-2011

Schools Teams Boys Girls Total Schools Teams Boys Girls TotalAdapted Bowling – CI (Co-ed) 37 33 168 134 302 36 32 163 124 287Adapted Bowling – PI (Co-ed) 28 27 58 34 92 25 24 55 31 86Adapted Floor Hockey - CI (Co-ed) 51 17 172 115 287 51 14 188 100 288Adapted Floor Hockey - PI (Co-ed) 59 13 98 68 166 59 17 108 57 165Adapted Soccer - CI (Co-ed) 65 19 162 111 273 64 19 153 78 231Adapted Soccer - PI (Co-ed) 48 11 75 49 124 48 11 64 49 113Adapted Softball - CI (Co-ed) 64 18 205 134 339 64 43 199 129 328Adapted Softball - PI (Co-ed) 48 10 85 59 144 48 36 81 58 139Badminton, Girls’ 19 19 654 654 17 17 593 593Baseball 426 372 13,215 7 13,322 427 373 13,449 9 13,458Basketball, Boys’ 467 427 13,481 13,481 462 428 13,468 13,468Basketball, Girls’ 456 421 11,630 11,630 457 420 11,144 11,144Cross Country Running, Boys’ 339 293 6,878 6,878 338 291 6,451 6,451Cross Country Running, Girls’ 339 292 5,421 5,421 338 290 4,952 4,952Dance Team, Girls’ – Jazz 162 150 3,863 3,863 160 149 3,832 3,832Dance Team, Girls’ – High Kick 172 159 4,495 4,495 169 157 4,431 4,431

Football - 11-Man 340 308 23,816 7 23,823 360 318 24,083 24,083Football - 9-Man 93 74 2,045 2,045 80 66 2,068 2,068

Football - Total 433 382 25,861 7 25,868 440 384 26,151 26,151Golf, Boys’ 381 342 5,879 5,879 376 340 6,037 6,037Golf, Girls’ 363 326 4,096 4,096 359 324 4,188 4,188Gymnastics, Girls’ 182 142 2,381 2,381 181 140 2,372 2,372Hockey, Boys’ 274 156 5,589 5,589 270 158 5,640 5,640Hockey, Girls’ 240 122 3,658 3,658 243 124 3,672 3,672Lacrosse, Boys’ 71 57 3,021 3,021 68 54 2,929 2,929Lacrosse, Girls’ 78 63 3,108 3,108 76 60 3,032 3,032Skiing, Boys’ Alpine 114 84 981 981 111 78 975 975Skiing, Girls’ Alpine 115 86 772 772 114 78 773 773Ski Racing, Boys’ Nordic 111 96 1,795 1,795 111 95 1,704 1,704Ski Racing, Girls’ Nordic 113 99 2,246 2,246 113 98 2,084 2,084Soccer, Boys’ 241 192 8,830 8,830 238 191 8,907 8,907Soccer Girls’ 221 185 8,090 8,090 219 185 8,117 8,117Softball, Girls’ Fast-Pitch 415 369 11,215 11,215 418 369 11,500 11,500Swimming and Diving, Boys’ 148 123 3,811 3,811 141 123 3,828 3,828Swimming and Diving, Girls’ 194 151 5,404 5,404 194 150 5,292 5,292Synchronized Swimming, Girls’ 21 14 417 417 21 14 399 399Tennis, Boys’ 192 169 5,018 5,018 191 169 5,176 5,176Tennis, Girls’ 226 200 6,308 6,308 225 200 6,320 6,320Track and Field, Boys’ 432 355 16,120 16,120 426 352 16,101 16,101Track and Field, Girls’ 434 358 15,408 15,408 431 355 15,283 15,283Volleyball, Girls’ 452 415 14,805 14,805 451 415 14,910 14,910Wrestling 343 250 8,137 26 8,163 340 248 8,165 24 8,189 TOTAL PARTICIPATIONS 119,639 104,615 224,254 119,992 103,553 223,545

The total number of studentcompetitive athleticsparticipations reported for the2011-2012 school year increasedslightly compared to the 2010-2011 school year. However, it isvery important to note that theLeague’s participation figures arealways best “guess-timates.” Best“guess-timates” are formulatedbased on the number of schoolsthat reported participation figures(only 65 to 70 percent) comparedto the number of schools thatreported nothing.

The total number ofparticipations (duplicatedparticipants) for 2011-2012 was

224,254, an increase of slightlyless than 1 percent, compared to223,545 participations for 2010-2011. Girls’ participationsincreased by 1,062 while boys’participations decreased by 353.

Football remains the activityinvolving the most boys—25,861.

The total number of football teamsincreased by eight 9-man teamsand declined by 14 11-man teams,from 384 total teams to 378. Thenext highest participation sportsfor boys are track and field(16,120), basketball (13,481), andbaseball (13,322).

Track and field is the sportinvolving the greatest number ofgirls—15,408 in 2011-2012 on358 teams. The next highestparticipation sports for girls arevolleyball (14,805), basketball(11,630), and fast-pitch softball(11,215).

League member schools areasked to submit theirparticipation numbers to theLeague office at the end of eachseason, but some schools do notcomply. League staff then includesbest “guess-timates” for thoseschools that did not submit their

The total number of participations(duplicated participants) for 2011-2012was 224,254, an increase of slightly less

than 1 percent, compared to 223,545participations for 2010-2011.

See Increase Increase Increase Increase Increase on Page 7

News & Features


SPIRIT SQUADS 2011-2012 2010-2011 Schools Total Schools Total Cheerleading (Non-Competitive) 235 3,395 232 4,780 Drill / Related Units 51 619 54 661 TOTAL PARTICIPATIONS 4,014 5,441

FINE ARTS 2011-2012 2010-2011 Speaking: Schools Teams Total Schools Teams Total Debate 65 65 681 60 60 704 One Act Play 295 292 3,010 283 277 2,929 Speech 329 314 5,784 323 305 5,802

Total Speaking Arts: 9,475 9,435 Visual Arts 202 3,168 202 3,038 TOTAL PARTICIPATIONS 12,643 12,473

MUSIC 2011-2012 2010-2011 Schools Total Schools Total Bands 419 32,004 418 31,878 Orchestra 218 4,058 219 4,126 Vocal 428 33,542 430 33,332 TOTAL PARTICIPATIONS 69,604 69,336

participation numbers based on their enrollment and/orprevious participation figures.

The accuracy of the League’s annual participationsurvey is dependent upon all member schools supplyingaccurate numbers to the League office. Howard W. Voigt,League director of information, coordinates collection ofthe data and works closely with League Assistant

Increase............................................................................... continued from Page 6

Director Chris Franson in devising best“guess-timate” formulas to attempt to arriveat reasonable participation numbers for thosemember schools that do not provide the data.

“Just is in past years, the annual increasesand decreases are probably more a matter ofhow we tweaked the data we did get to comeup with our ‘guess-timate’ formulas from yearto year,” Voigt explained.

Football remains the activityinvolving the most boys—25,861.Track and field is the sportinvolving the greatest number ofgirls—15,408.

Boosted by continued growthin several girls’ sports,participation in high schoolsports increased for the 23rdconsecutive year in 2011-12,according to the annual HighSchool Athletics ParticipationSurvey conducted by the NationalFederation of State High SchoolAssociations.

Based on figures from the 51NFHS-member state high schoolathletic/activity associations,which includes the District ofColumbia, sports participation forthe 2011-12 school year reachedan all-time high of 7,692,520participants— an increase of24,565 from the previous year.

“In this time of ever-increasingfinancial challenges in our nation’shigh schools, we are greatlyencouraged to know thatparticipation in high school sportscontinues to rise,” said BobGardner, NFHS executive director.“With more than 55 percent ofstudents enrolled in high schoolsparticipating in athletics, the valueof these programs in aneducation-based setting continuesto be significant.”

An additional 33,984 girlsparticipated in high school sportslast year, making the all-timerecord total 3,207,533. This alsomarks the 23rd consecutive yearfor an increase in the number of

femaleparticipants.Outdoor trackand field(468,747),basketball(435,885) andvolleyball(418,903)continued to bethe top threeparticipatorysports for girls,with volleyballup 9,571participantsfrom 2010-11.

Soccer(370,975)surpassed fast-pitch softball(367,023) asthe fourthmost-populargirls sport, up9,419 from lastyear, while

continued to climb, boys’participation figures dipped forthe first time since the 1992-93school year, down 9,419 from the2010-11 number of 4,494,406 to4,484,987. Seven of the top 10boys sports registered drops inparticipation, with 11-playerfootball (1,095,993), outdoortrack and field (575,628),basketball (535,289), wrestling

(272,149), tennis (159,800), golf(152,725) and swimming anddiving (133,823) all down fromlast year. Baseball (474,219),soccer (411,757) and crosscountry running (248,494) all hadincreases from the previous year,with soccer registering the largestincrease of 13,406.

National participation hits all-time highMost Popular Boys’ Programs

Schools Participants 1. Basketball .................................. 18,099 1.Football – 11-Player ................. 1,095,993 2. Track and Field – Outdoor ....... 16,218 2. Track and Field – Outdoor ......... 575,628 3. Baseball ..................................... 15,838 3.Basketball .................................... 535,289 4. Football – 11-Player ................. 14,241 4. Baseball ...................................... 474,219 5. Cross Country Running ........... 14,155 5. Soccer ......................................... 411,757 6. Golf ............................................ 13,624 6. Wrestling ..................................... 272,149 7. Soccer ....................................... 11,600 7. Cross Country Running ............. 248,494 8. Wrestling ................................... 10,407 8. Tennis .......................................... 159,800 9. Tennis .......................................... 9,841 9. Golf .............................................. 152,72510. Swimming & Diving ................... 7,001 10. Swimming & Diving .................. 133,823

Most Popular Girls’ ProgramsSchools Participants

1. Basketball .................................. 17,768 1. Track and Field – Outdoor ......... 468,747 2. Track and Field – Outdoor ....... 16,143 2. Basketball ................................... 435,885 3. Volleyball .................................. 15,569 3. Volleyball .................................... 418,903 4. Softball – Fast Pitch ................. 14,142 4. Soccer ......................................... 370,975 5. Cross Country Running ........... 13,970 5. Softball – Fast Pitch ................... 367,023 6. Soccer ....................................... 11,127 6. Cross Country Running ............. 212,262 7. Tennis ........................................ 10,058 7. Tennis .......................................... 180,870 8. Golf .............................................. 9,667 8. Swimming & Diving ................... 160,456 9. Swimming & Diving ................... 7,221 9. Competitive Spirit Squads ........ 108,30710. Competitive Spirit Squads ........ 4,916 10. Lacrosse ....................................... 74,993

cross country running (212,262),tennis (180,870), swimming anddiving (160,456), competitivespirit squads (108,307) andlacrosse (74,993) completed thetop 10. Along with soccer andvolleyball, cross country running,competitive spirit squads andlacrosse all had increasedparticipation from 2010-11.

While girls’ participation See PPPPParticipation articipation articipation articipation articipation on

News & Features


Jody Redman

By Jody RedmanAssociate Director

With the start of another school year, we are provided with a freshstart and an opportunity to provide great experiences for the studentswe coach. As we begin this new year and reflect on this opportunityplease take a moment and ask yourself the following simple question:“Why do I coach?”

Why do I coach?To positively impact the students who participate on our teams, we

must start by identifying our coaching purpose. In doing so, wepurposefully identify the road we want to take to get to the place wewant to be, instead of ending up down an unintentional path,wondering how we got there.

We spend a considerable amount of time on the technical andtactical aspects of the sports we coach, but there is so much more to

Transactional Coach, one who uses questionable tactics, manipulationand threats to achieve goals. “When players perform well, they arerewarded,” he writes. “When they don’t perform well, some kind ofpunishment is inflicted, be it yelling or the withholding of praise,playing time, or participation.”

The coaches we aspire to be are Transformational Coaches.Ehrmann defines these coaches as those who inspire, motivate, andproduce positive change in their student-athletes. They understand theneeds of young people and “offer individual support andencouragement for each player and have a clear vision for the desiredimpact on their players’ lives. And not surprisingly, a TransformationalCoach, even in organized athletics, allows and encourages youngpeople to simply play.”

Spend a few moments and think about the coaches you played forand identify the experience. Was it a Transactional one in which youonly got something when you proved your value and worth, or was itTransformational, an experience from which you consistently grew?Now that you are the coach, what type of experience are you providingthe students who play for you?

What does it feel like to be coached by you?Identifying whether we are Transactional or Transformational will

determine how it feels to be coached by us. Students who have playedon a team will remember the time spent with their coach and have

Expanding our view, twisting our lens, redefining our purposeImportant questions to consider

A clear coachingpurpose will assist

us in focusing onthe students we are

entrusted withrather than on the

X’s and O’s,winning and losing,

and will make usaware of the truevalue that comes

from coachingopportunities.

consider. Joe Ehrmann, author ofInSideOut Coaching, states,“Coaching shouldn’t start with theX’s and O’s but with the Y’s. ThisWHY should be a clear andconcise statement defining theimpact we are trying to make inour players’ lives. WHY directsthe expenditures of our time,energy, and effort and provides afinal destination. Answering thequestion ‘Why do I coach?’ canhelp a coach identify selfishagendas and develop a purposethat transcends personal,vocational, financial, or ego-driven needs. WHY prompts us toanswer the questions of whenand how to use the power ofcoaching to affect players fortheir lifetime.”

A clear coaching purpose willassist us in focusing on thestudents we are entrusted with rather than on the X’s and O’s, winningand losing, and will make us aware of the true value that comes fromcoaching opportunities. We have to get intentional, twist the lens andfocus on the WHYs of what we do.

Why do I coach the way I do?Coaches have an incredible opportunity to dramatically influence

How have thecoaches in yourpast impacted theway that you coachtoday? Look in themirror. Good orbad, how much ofhow you coach isbased on what youlearned from them?

their students’ lives. Take amoment and think back: How didyour high school coaches impactyou? We can all name the coachesthat we couldn’t wait to spendtime with and those whosepractices dragged on, those whowere heroes in our lives andthose we despised. Why do youcoach the way you do? How havethe coaches in your pastimpacted the way that you coachtoday? Look in the mirror. Goodor bad, how much of how youcoach is based on what youlearned from them?

Ehrmann defines the coachwho strips away fun as a

Through everyexperience and

interaction, we arecreating pathwaysin our students for

future responses,solutions, and

attitudes.

stories and memories of theirexperiences. Through everyexperience and interaction, weare creating pathways in ourstudents for future responses,solutions, and attitudes.Positively or negatively, we willforever be a part of each person’slife that we have had the privilegeof coaching. We are modeling howto interact, how to treat others,how to deal with conflict, how tohelp others succeed, how to showappreciation, how to do our best,how to do things we don’t want to do, and how to work with otherpeople. We are leaving our imprint on the students we interact with fora lifetime.

What will our coaching legacy be with the students who played forus? Will it be a legacy of Transaction or Transformation? Will it bedefined only by the outcome on the scoreboard or more intentionally bythe process and the path that we experienced together? Much of this isdetermined by defining success.

See PPPPPurpose urpose urpose urpose urpose on Page 9

News & Features


Lacrosse, which ranks No. 11in participation among boys’sports, topped the 100,000 mark(100,641) with about 5,000additional participants. Wrestlingcontinued its rise in popularityamong girls, with almost 1,000

Participation......................................................................... continued from Page 7additional participants, up to8,235.

Participants by state stayedtrue to last year’s order, as Texasand California once again toppedthe list with 808,806 and781,912, respectively, followed byNew York (389,475), Illinois

(346,896), Ohio (333,349),Pennsylvania (317,869), Michigan(308,080), New Jersey (259,219),Florida (257,282) and Minnesota(238,363). Twenty statesregistered increases inparticipation in 2011-12.

The participation survey has

been compiled since 1971 by theNFHS through numbers itreceives from its memberassociations. The complete 2011-12 High School AthleticsParticipation Survey is availableon the NFHS Web site atwww.nfhs.org.

Purpose ............................................................................... continued from Page 8How do you define success?Success can be determined in many ways. Unfortunately in our

culture, it is most often defined by the outcome on the scoreboard. Ourjob as educators is to make students aware of additional possibilities.Ehrmann urges us to “define success before we measure it. If wemeasure ourselves against ourselves, we can determine if we are trulysuccessful. This is especially important in our ‘win at all cost’ sportsculture where success is defined only by winning and in the vastmajority of situations, we are left to feel that we didn’t measure up.”

Focus your definition of success on the aspects of coaching we cancontrol: improvement in performance rather than our record, providinga fun environment for participation, and making our students betterpeople, not just better athletes.

Redefining our focusAs coaches, we know there are important lessons to be learned

through participation in high school athletics programs. By expandingour view, twisting our lens and redefining our purpose, we can providea positive learning experience that will influence the students on ourteams for a lifetime. Face it—with less than three percent of ourstudents going on to play college or professional sports, we are notproviding these opportunities to help them get scholarships orprofessional careers. A greater and more important purpose of ourprograms is to provide opportunities to make ethical, caring,empathetic people. It is an incredible opportunity and responsibility,one that we as coaches need to approach with conscious intent. Wehave the power over young people to either do a tremendous amountof good or a tremendous amount of harm.

If students who played for us can define winning and losing as anoutcome of the WHY and not the purpose of the WHY, then we ascoaches have been successful.

The key is being intentional, utilizing teachable moments, andholding ourselves as coaches accountable to the WHYs.

Choose intentionally, define your purpose, reflect on how it feels tobe coached by you, and why you coach the way you do. Commit to

making success about the WHY values and not the final score. Givestudents the positive experience we as coaches longed

for as young people involved in high schoolathletics.

This is the first installment of a periodicseries. The next installment will take an in-depthlook at the WHY values of “How’d Ya Do?” TroyUrdahl, activities director at St. Anthony Villageand an instructor for the League’s coachingeducation course, contributed to this article. Otherresources in this article are from InSideOutCoaching by Joe Ehrmann and How’d Ya Do, a Top20 Training Concept.

Focus your definition of success on theaspects of coaching we can control:

improvement in performance rather thanour record, providing a fun environment

for participation, and making ourstudents better people, not just better

athletes.

Choose intentionally, define yourpurpose, reflect on how it feelsto be coached by you, and whyyou coach the way you do.Commit to making successabout the WHY values and notthe final score. Give studentsthe positive experience we ascoaches longed for as youngpeople involved in highschool athletics.

Teaching studentsto answer the

question, “How’d YaDo?” with more

than “we won” or“we lost” is the first

step to creatingawareness in them

on how to definesuccess.

How’d Ya Do?Teaching students to answer

the question, “How’d Ya Do?”with more than “we won” or “welost” is the first step to creatingawareness in them on how todefine success. By focusing onthe following WHY values as theoutcome and a new way toanswer the “How’d Ya Do?”question, we teach them the truepurpose of participation:

1) To have fun;2) To learn;3) To help others succeed;4) To improve;5) To conduct yourself well;6) To appreciate the opponent;7) To do your best;8) To learn life skills (Star Qualities);9) To learn from both winning and losing.

News & Features


By Ellen M. Perrault

Tears of anguish turned to tears of joy forresidents of Barnum and Moose Lake as theyrealized a bus full of Coon Rapids High Schoolathletes were in town to help with floodrecovery efforts on June 29.

When a call went out for volunteers to helpvictims of the flooding in northern Minnesota,Scott Storrick, Coon Rapids tennis coach,contacted head football coach Jon Young andtrack coach Russ Sullivan and asked if theirathletes would volunteer to help. Storrickrelated that without hesitation both men saidit was a good idea. The men spread the wordabout the opportunity and about 40 athletesand alum signed up for the trip.

Storrick contacted Kottkes’ Bus Service torent a bus. When Kottkes’ General ManagerMike Pipenhagen heard about the request, heoffered to donate a bus and trailer for the day.Pipenhangen also found a driver, Jim Kelley ofAndover, to donate his time for the day.

“What Kottkes’ did was just outstanding,”Storrick said. “And the driver wasphenomenal; he got his hands dirty with us.”

Parents donated food and beverages forthe trip, including a parent who is a masterchef at the Hilton who made box lunches andgreat desserts. Both communities are locatedsouthwest of Duluth; Moose Lake has about2,500 residents and Barnum is a town of lessthan 600.

With more than one-third of Moose Lakeimpacted by the flooding and water fillingbasements in Barnum, the students had theirwork cut out for them.

Students working in Moose Lake removedbleachers and gutted the locker room in thecity’s hockey arena. Students in both cities diddemolition work in people’s homes, removingflooring, dry wall and other items touched bythe floodwater. Storrick, an industrialtechnology teacher, said groups of studentswent from house to house asking people ifthey needed help.

“Jon took a group to a trailer park in

Barnum,”Storrick said.“Jon and three ofthe boys walkedup to a womanand asked if sheneeded help. Shethanked themand said, ‘yes.’As soon as shesaw six otherfootball playerscome around thecorner to helpshe startedcrying.

“The kidswere great; theywere rock stars.A lot of peopleheard this big

Coon Rapids athletes help Barnum, Moose Lake flood victims“Jon took a group to a trailer park in Barnum. Jon and

three of the boys walked up to a woman and asked ifshe needed help. She thanked them and said, ‘yes.’ As

soon as she saw six other football players come aroundthe corner to help she started crying.”

As one group hauled out ruined belongings, another group waitedto enter to do the same thing.group was in

town and droveout of their way to come and thank us.”

The students’ work was so appreciated bythe cities’ residents because many of themdidn’t have time to get contractors in to do thedemolition work or they didn’t have themoney. Young estimates the students didbetween $10,000 and $20,000 worth of workduring their day of service.

“One lady broke into tears and said wesaved her home,” said Young, a specialeducation teacher. “It was incrediblyrewarding.”

Young also shared the story of how thestudents worked to take apart a 500-poundcast-iron boiler in a basement. The boiler was

so big the house was actually builtaround it. The students had to takeit apart to remove it from the home.

Seeing the work the students’did for others was very powerful forYoung.

“When we got into towneverything seemed OK and

we wondered where thedamage was, but then we

got into people’s homesand realized, ‘Oh, this iswhere it is.’ No one hadflood insurance so theyneeded the support of

others.”“It was really rewarding to see the pride of

work ethic and the selflessness our kidsexuded on that day,” he said. “It was hot,smelly, gross, and dirty work. They got toswing axes and use sledgehammers. Somekids had never done that kind of work before;it was pretty neat.”

Joe Rising, a member of the football teamwho is a junior this year, was one of thestudents on the trip. The son of Judy LeMoineand Ron Rising, said he went on the trip tohelp others and because he thought it wouldbe eye-opening to see the damage.

Rising spent time tearing down drywall andremoving carpeting and appliances fromhomes. He was one of the students who

Above: The students assisted in guttinga locker room in the Moose Lake icearena. Right: The Cardinals posed for agroup photo before heading back home. See Flood Flood Flood Flood Flood on Page 11

News & Features


helped remove the boiler from the home inMoose Lake.

“When we got into town everything seemedOK and we wondered where the damage was,but then we got into people’s homes andrealized, ‘Oh, this is where it is,’” Rising said.“No one had flood insurance so they neededthe support of others. Barnum is an oldercommunity but everyone came together. Theyhad a system where they would write downwhat houses needed help and then tell peoplewhere to go.

“I told people who didn’tgo that day they shouldhave come. They reallymissed out. We felt supergood about the work wedid. I wish I could havestayed longer.”

“When we were eatinglunch, a woman thankedus. Another woman said,

‘If there are any problemsin Coon Rapids, we’ll come

to help you.’”

“The people in the town were very nice.They were very grateful for what we weredoing.”

In addition to helping people, Rising said itwas a good bonding experience for membersof the football team. The students were givencertain amounts of time to do their work. Oneof the final houses they worked in, thestudents had 45 minutes to remove carpetingfrom a large house. Rising said the teamworked together and got the work done ontime. It was an impressive feat and the coachwas happy with their work.

“I told people who didn’t go that day theyshould have come,” Rising said. “They reallymissed out. We felt super good about the workwe did. I wish I could have stayed longer.”

Libby Storrick, the daughter of Scott andAmy Storrick who is a 2012 Coon Rapidsgraduate, also went on the trip. A member ofthe tennis, basketball and lacrosse teams, shewent on the trip because her dad was involvedand she thought it would be nice to help out.

Storrick was part of the group that guttedthe locker room in the Moose Lake Arena. She

also worked in houses to remove moldy woodand tile. Storrick said she was surprised howappreciative people were of the students’help.

“When we were eating lunch, a womanthanked us,” Storrick said. “Another womansaid, ‘If there are any problems in CoonRapids, we’ll come to help you.’”

Ellen M. Perrault is a communicationsspecialist with the Anoka-Hennepin SchoolDistrict.

Flood .................................................................................. continued from Page 10

By Bob Gardner

I’m not quite sure whatqualifies a former collegebasketball coach to assess thestate of high school sports, butlast week (May 7) in USA Today’sonline edition, the followingheadline caught my attention:“Former college coach proposesending high school sports.” Wow!

This article, which originallywas published in the Reno(Nevada) Gazette-Journal,contained thoughts and ideas ofLen Stevens, a former collegebasketball coach and currentexecutive director of the Reno-Sparks Chamber of Commerce.Mr. Stevens suggests we should“kick it (high school sports) to thecurb” and go the way of theEuropean model focusing solelyon club sports.

The author of the article, DanHinxman, suggests that Mr.Stevens’ thoughts might bepreposterous, ludicrous and,perhaps, downright offensive tosome individuals. Mr. Hinxman iscorrect. As the head of anorganization that providesleadership to 51 state high schoolassociations, 19,000 high schoolsand more than 7.6 millionstudent-athletes involved in highschool sports, I am pleased toreport that funeral arrangementshave been cancelled.

What Mr. Stevensprobably doesn’tknow is that manyof those countriesemploying the“European model”would trade theirmodel in an instantfor the education-based philosophy ofhigh school sportsin the United States.After listening to myreport at the 9thInternational Session forEducators at the InternationalOlympic Academy in Greece lastsummer, representatives frommany nations marveled that ourprograms receive little or nogovernment support in ourschools, and the universal wish ofthe delegates from other nationswas that their programs could bemore like ours.

Mr. Stevens suggests thatsince club sports have beengrowing in the United States weshould end high school sportsand go exclusively with clubsports, which “would answer a lotof problems and put the highschool focus back where itbelongs – on education.”

What Mr. Stevens doesn’taccount for is that if sports wereremoved from American highschools, the focus would not beon education. The focus would be

on trying to locatestudents whoabruptly left school– dropouts – whensports were takenaway.

And, by the way,the educationcomponent is thesingular uniquecomponent of theU.S. model.Student-athleteslearn much more

than how to set a screen inbasketball or cover the first-basebag in baseball. While the numberof teacher-coaches has dwindled,most schools that employ out-of-school coaches require thoseindividuals to complete aneducation course, such as theNFHS Fundamentals of Coachingcourse.

On the other hand, club sportslack an educational component.These programs exist solely forthe purpose of improving one’sathletic skills and, through thatprocess, hopefully landing acollege scholarship. The teamconcept rarely exists and there isno overall philosophy to helpprepare students for life afterschool, which is a major goal ofeducation-based sports within theschools.

Mr. Stevens also noted that noone attends games anymore.

Really? A survey conducted bythe NFHS last year indicated thatmore than 510 million peopleattended high school sportingevents during the 2009-10 schoolyear. On Friday nights in the fall,there are 7,000 high schoolgames being played every week.On winter nights – two to threetimes a week – there are about18,000 girls’ and boys’ basketballgames being played. More than7.6 million high school studentscompete in high school sports,and those numbers have risen for22 consecutive years.

How many of those 7.6 millionkids would still be around if theonly option was to join a clubteam? The clubs only want thevery best athletes, and fees canrange from $5,000 to $10,000 ayear to be involved with a year-round traveling team.

A large majority of high schoolstudents who are involved insports are there to have fun, to bewith their friends, to compete andlearn and to be a part of a team.Kids have a need to be neededand to be a part of somethingpositive, to be involved with theirpeers and coaches who care.Many students involved in sportsdo not have a support system athome – their high schoolteammates and coaches are their

7.6 million reasons to keep high school sports

See Reasons Reasons Reasons Reasons Reasons on

News & Features


News & Features

Lisa Lissimore

By Lisa LissimoreAssociate Director

You can help us shine the spotlight on Minnesota youth who pushthemselves to do their best in the classroom, in the arts, and inathletics by participating in the Spotlight on Scholarship Program.

Sponsored by the Minnesota State High School League for 17 years,this year-round recognition program honors high school students foroutstanding academic performance in two distinct ways: individuallyand collectively.

31,343 certificates distributedThrough the Spotlight on Scholarship certificate program, the

League provides certificates to every athlete and fine arts participantin the state who has a “B” average or better. More than thirty-onethousand students representing 203 schools received certificatesduring the 2011-2012 school year. This brings the total number ofstudents who have represented their school in this program to587,968.

Following is a breakdown of the distribution of Spotlight onScholarship certificates over a 10 year period:

programs are progressing in their individual program at the expectedrate.

3) The grade-point averages of each student be computed from thegrading period ending closest to the end of each activity season.

4) Each school must use its own system for computing the gradesfor each student.

5) Certificate order forms (one per school) be submitted by theschool principal or athletic director at the end of each grading period.

Spotlight on ScholarshipRecognizing the best for doing their best

To participate in the Spotlight on Scholarship certificate programschools must: 1) compute the grade averages of each student at theend of each activity season; 2) record this information on the reportingform; and 3) send the form to the League office and staff will send the

appropriate number ofcertificates to each participatingschool.

Other program criteriarequires that:

1) Students must be a memberof a varsity, junior varsity, or “B”squad (sophomore) athletics, orfine arts team.

2) Cheerleaders, dance teams,and students in adapted athleticprograms are eligible for thisaward. School administratorsmust verify that students whoparticipate in adapted athletic

Each order form must include theprincipal’s signature.

Teams also recognizedIn addition to honoring

students for their individualefforts, the Spotlight onScholarship Program providesbanners to League memberschools whose varsity fine artsand athletics teams collectivelyachieve a grade point average of3.0 or higher. One-hundred andseventy-eight schools now havebanners hanging in theirgymnasiums.

Member schools should followthese guidelines when completingthe application for a Spotlight onScholarship banner:

1) This is a varsity teamaward. Junior varsity and “B”squad teams are not eligible.

2) The grade-point average forall varsity athletic and fine artsteams must be computed at the

end of the school year and reported to the League.3) Each school is required to use its own system for computing

team grade-point averages.4) The athletic team grade averages must include every member of

the official varsity team, including team managers. If the varsity teamincludes students in grades seven through nine, their grades must alsobe included in the team average.

5) The team grade averages for track and field, swimming anddiving, synchronized swimming, chess, and gymnastics must includemembers that enter the first level of state qualifying competition.

6) The grade-point averages of debate, one act play (cast/crewmembers) and speech teams must include every member of the teamthat enters the first level of the state qualifying competition. Studentsinvolved in music (instrumental/vocal/individual/group) quality byentry at the section/state level.

General information about the Spotlight on Scholarship programcan be found on the League’s website under the “Recognition” tab. Theprogram report forms are posted on the website’s administrative side.


lifeblood. This concept simplydoes not exist through clubsports.

At our recent National AthleticDirectors Conference inIndianapolis, several high schoolathletic directors talked abouttheir days as high school athletesand the importance of theseprograms.

Monica Maxwell, a middleschool athletic director fromIndianapolis, said, “I knew Iwanted to get out of myneighborhood. If it wasn’t going tobe through athletics, it was goingto be through the military . . . Ithink that story – my story – is astory of many athletes. Theyknow that their ticket out of theirneighborhoods is going to beathletics.”

Lanness Robinson, an athleticdirector from Tampa, Florida,said, “If I didn’t maintain a 3.5grade-point average, my momwouldn’t let me play sports.That’s the only reason I triedbecause otherwise I didn’t care. Ibelieve that athletics is thegreatest dropout preventionprogram that we have . . . I thinkthe three most identifiable peopleon the school campus . . . are thehead football coach, the principaland the quarterback. What doesthat say about school? I’ve readstories where schools haveactually made the decision to cutprograms and I think in mostcases, they reinstate athleticprograms because they found thatit doesn’t work.”

John Evers, a retired athleticdirector from Indiana, said “Whengood things happen – if a team ismaking a great playoff run – thecommunity comes together.That’s not something you oftenget outside of athletics. I’ve neverseen a town rally around achemistry class, but I have seenthem rally around a team of kidsdoing something special.”

Becky Oakes, director ofsports at the NFHS, said in arecent issue of High School Today,“Students enjoy the school-community identity that comeswith playing in high school. Ingeneral, high school coaches willtreat each student as part of theteam and the community; this isthe selling point that high schoolshave far over any club team.”

Certainly, there are challengesin many states, mainly due tofunding issues. But even in thosesituations when funds becometight, more often than not thecommunity responds because itsees the value of these programsfor young people. With all duerespect to Mr. Stevens, there are7.6 million reasons we’re going tokeep sports within our schools.

Editor’s Note: Bob Gardner isexecutive director of theIndianapolis-based NationalFederation of State High SchoolAssociations, the nationalleadership organization for highschool athletic and activityprograms. The Minnesota StateHigh School League is a member.

Reasons ............................................................................. continued from Page 11

We’re counting on you tonominate members from yourschool community – students,coaches, fine arts directors,contest officials – for thefollowing League-sponsoredrecognition programs. Fornomination forms and additionalinformation about theseprograms go the League websiteand click on the Recognition taband then click the link for theprogram you’re interested in.

ExCEL AwardThis program recognizes high

school juniors who are active infine arts and athletic activities,who show leadership qualities,and who are model citizens intheir communities.

Each school is encouraged tonominate two students—one boyand one girl—for this award.Nominees must be:

● a junior in high school;● making satisfactory

progress toward graduationrequirements;

● participating in a League-sponsored fine arts and/orathletic activity;

● hold a leadership positionin their school;

● work voluntarily in thecommunity;

● meet League GeneralEligibility Requirements (Bylaw206).

ExCEL award recipients willbe selected by an independentpanel of judges from schoolsthroughout Minnesota. Awardrecipients will be recognized onKSTC-TV, Channel 45 during thebroadcasts of the MinnesotaState High School League wintertournaments. They also will takepart in an on-court awardceremony during the State Girls’Basketball Tournament in March.

The ExCEL nomination form isposted on the administration sideof the League’s website.Nominations will be acceptedthrough December 14, 2012.We’re counting on you to help usrecognize student leaders in yourschool who are making adifference.

Academics, Arts, andAthletics AwardThe Triple “A” program

was created in 1988 torecognize high schoolstudents who excelin the arts,athletics and theclassroom. Seniorswho have a “B” orhigher grade-point average andwho participate in League-sponsored athletic and fine artsactivities are eligible fornomination. Nominations arelimited to two qualifying studentsper school—one boy and one girl.Triple “A” state award recipients

Other recognition programs to consider(four total) will receive a four-year $1,000 scholarship.

Region award recipients willbe recognized on KSTC-TV,Channel 45 during the broadcastsof the Minnesota State HighSchool League wintertournaments. They also will takepart in an on-court awardceremony during the State Boys’Basketball Tournament in March.Triple “A” nomination forms areposted on the League websiteunder the “Recognition” tab.Students must complete theirnomination materials online,print them out and submit themto their school’s activitiesdirector.

The timelines for this year’sprogram are:

● Date TBD by IndividualAdministrative Regions—Finaldate for student nominations to

be submitted toregion secretariesor region committeedesignee;

● Feb. 19,2013—Deadline for

region winners to besubmitted to the League

office;● March 23, 2013—Triple

“A” Recognition Luncheon andCeremony.

Hall of FameEstablished in 1991 and

housed at the League office,members of the Hall of Fame areselected through a multi-levelprocess that includes the

League’s member schools and acommittee of athletic, fine arts,and educational leaders.Nominations are solicited in ninecategories: athlete, coach,official, administrator, fine artsparticipant/director/adjudicator,activity/athletic director, andcontributor (someone who hasmade outstanding contributions tohigh school activities in somecapacity other than thosepreviously mentioned, includingsuch areas as sports medicine andsports media). All candidates forthe Hall of Fame must be at least35-years of age. They may beretired from their field or stillactive.

Hall of Fame nominations willbe accepted through Dec. 14,2012. The induction ceremonywill be held Sunday, May 19,2013. The 2013 inductees will bethe 20th group to be enshrined inthe Hall of Fame. The 186 Hall ofFame members are listed on theLeague’s website under the“Recognition” tab. Nominationforms and instructions are alsoposted there.

News & Features


News & Features

By Bruce Howard

Not only did the passage of Title IX open awhole new world for girls to compete in highschool sports, it also created newopportunities for females in the areas ofcoaching, administration and state highschool associations.

As high schools began opening the doorsfor girls to compete in sports in the early1970s, state associations began to hirefemale administrators to direct statewideevents for girls. Looking back, there wereseveral leaders in state association officeswho played significant roles in the earlygrowth of high school sports opportunities forgirls—women who etched their names inhistory.

Seven of those individuals have beeninducted into the NFHS’ National High SchoolHall of Fame, and any discussion about thehistory of girls’ high school sports in theUnited States has to start with theincomparable Ola Bundy of Illinois.

credit for where we are today, Ola will alwaysbe considered the valedictorian of the class.”

continued working,expanding our effortsand encouraging schoolsto develop teams asquickly as they could.

“Our first statetournament for girls wastrack and field in1972—the year thatTitle IX was passed.Even Congress had noidea what it had passedwould end up with afocus on equity inathletics and wouldchange the face ofsports by the end of thedecade. I enjoyed eachand every ‘first’ statetournament, but myfavorite memory waswatching the flag beingraised at the very firstMSHSL State Girls’Basketball Tournamentin 1976.”

Dodson joined theVirginia High SchoolLeague (VHSL) in 1971and was one of the

Title IX 40 years laterFemale pioneers in state associations led the growth of girls’ sports

Known by many inthe Midwest as the“First Lady of America’sGirls InterscholasticAthletics,” Bundybecame the first stateassociation femaleadministrator when shejoined the Illinois HighSchool Association

(IHSA) staff in August 1967. During herstoried 30-year career, the late Bundyadministered statewide events for girls in thesports of volleyball, track and field, tennis,bowling, badminton, golf, field hockey,swimming and gymnastics.

In addition, Bundy helped write the IllinoisState Board of Education Sex Equity Rules,which are standards for all secondary schoolsin Illinois, and which have served as a modelin many other states.

“No one in Illinois, and possible thecountry, did more to promote interscholasticathletic programs for high school girls thanOla Bundy,” said Marty Hickman, IHSAexecutive director who served on theadministrative staff with Bundy during thelatter years of her tenure. “She was a tirelessfighter and advocate for young women. Olaled the crusade from participation in the Girls

Ola Bundy

“She was atirelessfighterandadvocatefor youngwomen.”

Athletic Association(GAA) to participation ina full-blowninterscholastic programfor high school girls inIllinois.

“We are proud tooffer a wide variety ofinterscholasticprograms for highschool girls in Illinois;and while many deserve

In the western partof the United States,Sharon Wilch ofColorado was the earlyleader in the fight forgirls’ sports. Wilchjoined the ColoradoHigh School ActivitiesAssociation (CHSAA)staff in 1969, and wasSharon Wilch

one of the first administrators in the nation toform a summit for state educators on how toeffectively deal with equity issues.

During her outstanding 27-year career atthe CHSAA, Wilch was involved in organizingand operating every sanctioned CHSAAactivity. She also was involved with the U.S.Olympic Committee in the sports ofgymnastics and swimming, and she was chairof the NFHS Girls’ Gymnastics RulesCommittee for 15 years.

Three other states also beat the Title IXclock with the hiring offuture Hall of Fameleaders—DorothyMcIntyre (1970) inMinnesota, the lateClaudia Dodson (1971)in Virginia, and KarenKuhn (1971) inWisconsin.

McIntyre’sremarkable 32-yearcareer began in 1970when the MinnesotaState High SchoolLeague (MSHSL) hiredher to assist schools indeveloping girls’ sportsprograms. McIntyre wasinvolved in tournamentmanagement for thesports of girls’ tennis,girls’ volleyball, girls’basketball, and girls’and boys’ track andfield.

“The early pioneerswho promoted bringinggirls’ sports teams intothe schools met withresistance, apathy andeventually somesupport,” McIntyre said.“In Minnesota, our hard work resulted in theMSHSL approving our recommendation thatthe League sponsor girls’ sports as they didfor boys sports. That was in 1969, well aheadof the passage of Title IX.

“I was hired in 1970 to help schoolsdevelop teams. The landscape was still prettybare with a scattering of school teamsexperimenting with some competition invarious sports around the state. So we

Dorothy McIntyre

Claudia Dodson

Karen Kuhn

“The earlypioneers

whopromotedbringing

girls’sports

teams intothe

schoolsmet with

resistance,apathy

andeventually

somesupport.”

nation’s recognized leaders for girls’ athleticsduring her 30-year career. Only a few schoolsin Virginia had organized sports when Dodsonjoined the VHSL staff, and there was only onesport in which girls could earn individualchampionships (gymnastics), but no teamcompetition existed.

From that beginning, Dodson developed astatewide program that featured 32 statechampionships in 13 different sports for girls.She was the first woman to serve on theNational Basketball Rules Committee for theNCAA, NAIA and NFHS. She also was the firstwoman to serve on the NFHS Basketball RulesCommittee.

“Claudia Dodson stood at the forefrontwith a handful of state associationadministrators who were trailblazers indeveloping programs and opportunities thatbenefited hundreds of thousands of femaleathletes, coaches, athletic directors andofficials,” said Ken Tilley, executive director ofthe VHSL. “We all owe Claudia Dodson andher colleagues a huge debt of gratitude formaking a difference in so many lives. What anincredible legacy they have given us.”

Also in 1971, Karen Kuhn was helping tolaunch girls’ sports in Wisconsin. When shejoined the Wisconsin Interscholastic AthleticAssociation (WIAA) in 1971, there were statemeets for girls in swimming and diving, trackand field, and gymnastics. Under Kuhn’sguidance, that number increased to 11.

“When I was hired in 1971, girls

See Title IX Title IX Title IX Title IX Title IX on Page 15


Title IX................................................................................. continued from Page 14

interscholastic sports were just getting started as state associationshad changed their constitutions to allow girls sports,” Kuhn said.“Many schools, however, were critical of their state association formoving too quickly in organizing statewide competition. After five to 10years with the help of Title IX, the programs arrived and continued toadvance.

“My best memory from the 1970s was in May of 1976 when ourWIAA Boys’ and Girls’ Track and Field Tournaments were combined. …This change allowed a field event coach, for example, to work with boththe female and male shot putters—and these athletes to then cheer forall their competing classmates at meets. Female athletes were nowbeing given the same recognition as their male counterparts.”

Two more Hall of Fame members made their appearances in stateassociations in the mid-1970s—Ruth Rehn in South Dakota (1974) andSandy Scott in New York (1975).

Rehn championed the cause for 34 years in South Dakota until herretirement in 2008. She was responsible for the addition of basketball,volleyball, cross country and competitive cheer/dance as girls’ sportsin South Dakota.

Rehn was a pioneer nationally with some of her statewide changes.South Dakota was the first state to experiment with the use of asmaller basketball for girls, which eventually was adopted at thenational level. Rehn also led the way in volleyball by experimentingwith the use of rally scoring and the libero player. She also assistedwith the switch of seasons in girls’ basketball and girls’ volleyball inSouth Dakota.

Scott joined the New York State Public High School AthleticAssociation (NYSPHSAA) in 1975 as an assistant director and thenmade history 15 years later when she became the first female in thenation to lead a state athletic/activity association on a full-time basis.Scott orchestrated the growth of athletics for high school boys andgirls in New York, including increasing the fiscal control of statetournaments and the number of state championships that theNYSPHSAA offered.

Although they might not have had the national impact of theaforementioned seven leaders, five other women helped jump-startgirls programs in their states in the early 1970s.

Patricia Roy, who served 27 years as an assistant commissionerwith the Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA), started herwork in 1972 and was a pioneer of girls’ athletics in the Hoosier state.As the IHSAA’s first director of girls’ athletics, Roy was the leader inthe implementation of girls’ athletics programs in Indiana schools

during the 1972-73 school year.Bob Gardner, currently executive director of the NFHS, worked with

Roy during his years with the IHSAA and saw first-hand hercontributions to girls athletics programs.

“Pat Roy led Indiana into girls sports with passion, vision andcourage,” Gardner said. “She often met resistance from those who didnot want to share the stage with girls’ programs. She persevered anddeveloped a sports program for girls that made a difference in the livesof thousands of young ladies.

“Pat stood courtside in historic Hinkle Fieldhouse when the doorsopened for the first-ever Indiana Girls’ State Basketball Finals in 1976.She did not know if the girls would draw (a crowd). It did not take longfor the answer. The seats started filling—the girls program hadarrived. Pat Roy’s dedication paved the way.”

In Texas, Bonnie Northcutt was the early leader after her hiring bythe Texas University Interscholastic League (UIL) in 1972.

“Bonnie was a role model, especially for girls and women,” saidformer UIL Executive Director Bill Farney. “She was a pioneer showinghow effective women could be in positions like hers at a time when notmany women across the U.S. held them.”

The late Dolores Billhardt was the early leader in Ohio. Billhardtjoined the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) in 1971 andwas instrumental in starting girls’ programs in field hockey, volleyball,gymnastics, basketball and softball. Nationally, she served on NFHSrules committees in softball, volleyball and basketball. She died in atragic car accident in 1988 after 17 years on the OHSAA staff.

In Rhode Island, Alice Sullivan wore many hats while building thefoundation for girls’ sports. She was a teacher and coach at EastProvidence High School, but she was the recognized expert on girls’athletics across the state and helped the Rhode Island InterscholasticLeague implement statewide programs.

In New Jersey, Flo Peragallo joined the New Jersey StateInterscholastic Athletic Association in the early 1970s and served for20 years.

On the other side of the country, Margaret Davis joined theCalifornia Interscholastic Federation-Southern Section in 1974 and iscredited with the implementation of girls’ sports programs in that areaof California. She later was associate executive director of the CIFstate office and had a profound impact on girls’ sports during hertenure.

In addition, two other women helped start programs in Michiganand North Dakota in the early 1970s but had short tenures. JoanWarrington helped start programs for the Michigan High SchoolAthletic Association, and Mary Anderson did the same with the NorthDakota High School Activities Association.

In the second half of the 1970s, there were seven others who joinedstate high school associations and played significant roles indeveloping programs for girls. They are Myrna Johns (1976) of Idaho,Cecelia Jackson (1976) of Florida, Suzanne Martin (1977) of Michigan,Virginia Yankoskie (1977) of Oregon, Mildred Ball (1977) of Indiana,Sheryl Solberg (1978) of North Dakota, and Brigid DeVries (1979) ofKentucky.

And no review of the magnificent growth of girls’ high school sportswould be complete without mention of the tremendous contributions atthe national level by Susan True, who served as NFHS assistantdirector for 17 years and was the national leader in the sports ofgymnastics, volleyball, field hockey, swimming and diving, water poloand spirit.

In addition to her work in the rules-writing area and with nationalgoverning bodies, True was instrumental in starting the NFHS EquityCommittee, which helped to produce diversity on NFHS rulescommittees and throughout other NFHS programs.

While the passage of the law by Congress in 1972 opened the doorfor girls to play high school sports, those opportunities would not havebeen available without the tremendous efforts of these leaders—andothers who followed in their footsteps—in state association offices.

Bruce Howard is director of publications and communications for theNFHS and editor of High School Today. Published in the May 2012 issueand reprinted with permission.

Pioneers for girls’ sports(Top L-R): Patricia Roy, Bonnie Northcutt, Alice Sullivan,Margaret Davis. (Middle L-R): Myrna Johns, Cecelia Jackson,Suzanne Martin, Virginia Yankoskie. (Bottom L-R): MildredBall, Sheryl Solberg, Brigid DeVries, Susan True.

News & Features


By Cyndi Nightengale

Rosemount High School is no stranger tothe Minnesota State High School Leaguefootball tournament semifinals. For the thirdyear in a row Irish students were on the field,soaking in all the energy and passion of themoment, the wow of the big play.

No, the Irish students were not playing in agame; instead they were part of theGrandStadium webcast team for the event.Students from Rosemount’s broadcastjournalism and digital film production classeswere behind the scenes providing the crewand talent for the live webcast of the gamesand it was no less exciting than if they wereplayers on the field.

Senior Michael Gubbels, a backupcornerback for the Irish, was glad to be backat the Metrodome. He recalls being on thefield as a player in 2010, trying to take ineverything, trying to stay focused on what theteam was trying to accomplish in the game.Now he can add another perspective to hisPrep Bowl experience. In 2011 he got to runthe camera and interact with the players asan on-field reporter.

Gubbels, who planned to attend Iowa Statethis fall, used his experiences as a playerduring interviews to ask pertinent questionsand help the athletes feel at ease on camera.This was Gubbels’ first time working awebcast and he thoroughly enjoyed theexperience.

“When I was a player, everything on thefield seemed so chaotic and a bit surreal,”Gubbels said. “When you are filming, you arecapturing one moment. And that was cool,getting over the shoulder of a player for ashot, to get their point of view.

“Then when you see a shot that youcaptured up on the video board, you get soexcited you just want to try something else.With the GrandStadium crew, they let you trydifferent shots and be creative.”

Senior April Bailey is happy to be back tothe Prep Bowl, too. She worked with theGrandStadium team in 2010. Bailey, who isconsidering a career in broadcasting, lovesbeing able to work hands-on with everyavailable position from grip to on-fieldreporting.

“This is a wonderful experience,” Baileysaid. “Yes, I have to get up super early (5a.m.) and work a really long day (10-12hours), but I get to try new things. And withthis being my second time here at thesemifinals, I feel like I know what is going on.I love working in the truck doing slo-mo,coordinating people, working as a director. Itis hard work, but it is some of the mostrewarding work I have ever done. It isdefinitely a great thing to have on a resume,too.” Bailey, who is undecided about college,but plans to major in video production

GrandStadium tournament experiencejust one facet of Rosemount’s curriculum

Students involved in GrandStadiumwebcasts of League state tournaments

have numerous opportunities for hands-onexperience, including camera work.

Sideline reporting and interviews areincorporated into the student’s

experiences during GrandStadiumwebcasts.

wherever she lands.Experiences such as the football

tournament are just one of many that Gubbelsand Bailey cherish. At Rosemount, they havehad other video production projects they won’tsoon forget. They are grateful for two teacherswho put together a curriculum to ensurestudents keep their hands in video andbroadcast production, whether it is in theclassroom or field work.

James Norris, a broadcast journalisminstructor and Mark Hubbard, who teachesdigital film production, are not onlyshowcasing the basics of video and broadcastproduction, but they have also set up anenvironment to get the students’ creativejuices flowing.

About 80 students are enrolled in classeswith Norris and Hubbard, who madearrangements for the Metrodome “field trip”with GrandStadium. The 2011 semifinals werethe school’s third year at the Metrodome.

There are 30 editing systems available tothe students at the school, so they can getstarted on their projects right away. Norris

and Hubbard do their best to stay current onthe latest technology and software. Theyteach the basics of each and let the studentstake it from there. The students seem torespond well to the ebb and flow of their timein class.

“It’s a pretty awesome class,” said Bailey.“You get to do what you want. It is a reallynice blend of structure and unstructured time.We all know the rules, but you get to be a partof all the creative aspects.

“The longest days are film days for ‘IrishUpdate,’ but having the independence to doyour work and see how well it turns out givesyou a lot of pride. It feels good.”

Said Norris: “Each day is a progression forthe ‘Update.’ We air the show every week tothe school. It is a seven- to 10-minuteproduction with four story slots and lots ofcrew work. The students want to be there andthey want to create. I love the energy andpassion of the students.”

Hubbard agrees, adding that the studentsget so much more.

“We are teaching creative problemsolving—how to do this and that, where theresources are to get to the solution. Our goalis to empower them to move forward,” saidHubbard.

They have achieved so much success atRosemount, students from other schools inthe district have enrolled in the classes.Essentially, the course work is all productionbased, meaning the students are creating andairing shows and films that are viewed weeklyat the school. There is also a film festival atIMAX, where students can premiere their filmprojects.

These classes require a lot of outside work,but most of all creativity. Once a project hasbegun, the students team up and tackle allaspects of crew details for the project fromstart to finish. Along the way, Norris andHubbard are there to encourage and guidestudents through the technical and creativeprocess.

In other words, the students learn theprocess of empowerment. GrandStadium ispart of that process.

“By taking them out of the classroom andout of their comfort zone, the students grow,”Norris said. “The value of getting high schoolstudents involved in real world experiences isgreat. This is good for them.”

If you would like your high school toparticipate in the GrandStadium webcastingprogram, find more information atinfo.grandstadium.tv, or call 612-208-6650.There is no cost to the program and travel andrelated expenses are reimbursed by theMinnesota State High School LeagueFoundation.

Cyndi Nightengale is a freelance writer forcynbadmedia.com.

News & Features

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See TTTTToolsoolsoolsoolsools on Page 19

Craig Perry

By Craig PerryAssociate Director

In the world of athletic administration, no two days are alike forhigh school athletic directors. The many hats worn each day arevaried, and as a manager and leader you seamlessly move in and outof your responsibilities and duties. On any given day your tasks couldinclude game site preparation, a meeting with booster club members,confirming transportation departure times, checking up on a studentinjured in a contest last night, conducting a performance review withone of your coaches, or finding a way to stretch limited budgets.

But with these continual changes there is one constant: the dailyreview of student eligibility and the maintenance of school and Leaguerules, policies and bylaws.

Simply put, you ensure your school remains a member school ingood standing. And to help you, the League has prepared a number oftools to assist you in this process. A number of informationaldocuments and tools are available on the League website.

For example, in the General Section of the Rules and Policies foreach sport or activity are the following items to help you do what youdo more efficiently and with more information.

● Forward● Athletic Director’s Checklist● Coaches Responsibility: Student Eligibility Checklist● Competition Index for Heat and Cold● General Information● Lightning/Threatening Weather—Board Policy● Multiple Level Teams at the Sub-Varsity Levels● Official Balls for MSHSL Tournaments● Official Squad Size Chart● Revenue Sharing Plan for School Reimbursement● Substitution in League Tournaments● Thermal Injury Risk Recommendations● Concussion Legislation

Athletic Director’s ChecklistA good document to start with is the Athletic Director’s Checklist.

This document is intended to serve as a reminder of important eventsand reports prior to, during and at the completion of each athleticseason.

The following checklist is intended to serve as a reminder ofimportant events and reports. It is recommended that you list the dateeach item is completed.

_____If a serious injury should occur to a student under theconditions of the MSHSL Catastrophe Policy, please notify theMSHSL.

_____Each head coach has been instructed to review the section ofthe Athletic Rules and Policies information for their activity.

_____Confirm that all coaches B-squad and above have completedthe sport-specific or fine arts online rules interpretationmeeting for their activity (currently online rules interpretationmeetings are not required for tennis and cross country). Theschedule is posted on the League website.

_____Collect a copy of the emergency action plan for all trainingand competition sites from each coach at every level.

_____Eligibility Information Brochure Statements have been read,explained, and discussed with the students by the principal,superintendent or athletic director.

_____Eligibility Information Brochure Statements are signed byparents and on file for each participant in your program.

_____Certification of a physical examination is on file for eachparticipant in the athletic program. Physicals are good forthree years.

_____Students have been listed on a Master Eligibility List threedays before the first contest. The Master Eligibility Lists is tobe kept on file in the school.

_____Eligibility status of all transfer students has been submittedonline and approved by the MSHSL.

_____Notify game officials in advance of contests. Be sure onlyregistered officials are hired for those activities requiringregistered officials.

_____Review schedules and game limitations for all sports._____League dues for each sponsored activity must be paid on or

before October 1. Schools cannot compete in section or statetournaments unless dues are paid for that activity.

_____Ensure that state and national sanctions have been approvedfor those contests requiring sanctions.

_____Conduct staff meetings for coaches to review philosophy andrules and regulations of MSHSL.

_____Keep school’s pages on the League website current withrosters, schedules, results and statistics.

_____Submit team pictures for State Tournament programs bydeadline date if your team is a potential entry.

_____Late registrations for activities must be made by September15 - Fall; December 15 - Winter; March 15 - Spring.

_____You have reviewed the daily and season participation limitswith your coaches and players.

_____Roster Verification form has been electronically submitted tothe League prior to the first varsity game for each sport.

_____Confirm a background check for all coaches has beencompleted.

_____Confirm officials for varsity and lower levels havesuccessfully completed concussion education training.

_____Confirm you have a signed and completed summer coachingwaiver form on file for all coaches who will be coachingmembers of their high school team during the summer waiverperiod.

As you can see, this document will serve as a good checks and

Managing and leading a high school athletic department: League has tools to assistManaging and leading a high school athletic department: League has tools to assistManaging and leading a high school athletic department: League has tools to assistManaging and leading a high school athletic department: League has tools to assistManaging and leading a high school athletic department: League has tools to assist

In the world of athletic administration,no two days are alike for high school

athletic directors. The many hats worneach day are varied, and as a managerand leader you seamlessly move in and

out of your responsibilities and duties. ...But with these continual changes there isone constant: the daily review of studenteligibility and the maintenance of school

and League rules, policies and bylaws.

Athletic Activities


Tools ................................................................................... continued from Page 18balances to help you operate your programs. Additionally, if you havenot done so already you should visit with your head coaches andreview a number of these educational tools together. The “CoachesResponsibility: Student Eligibility Checklist” is a good starting point.Working together with your coaches you can help to maintain yourprograms by properly administering the League’s rules, policies andbylaws.

Wednesday WebinarsBeyond the documents available on the League website, League

staff will be hosting informational webinars on the second Wednesdayof every month. The topics from month to month will vary and they willinclude current issues, upcoming events, and they will also includeleadership and management components. The webinars will be 60minutes or less and also provide attendees the opportunity forquestions and answers with League staff. Below you will find theupcoming webinar topics and dates.

Oct. 10, 2012: Bylaw 111 – Transfer; Bylaw 205 – Chemical

Eligibility; New AD Workshop – State Tournaments 101, RecognitionPrograms, Q & A

Nov. 14, 2012: Sportsmanship & Fan Behavior; Bylaw 206 – StudentCode of Conduct; Q & A

Dec. 12, 2012: Tournament Classification and Section Assignments;Bylaw 209 – Non-School Competition

Jan. 9, 2013: Bylaw 111 – Transfers; Coaches Education; Q & AFeb. 13, 2013: New AD Workshop – Topics TBD; Other Topics TBD;

Q & AApril 10, 2013: Coaches Education; Other Topics TBD; Q & AService, education and efficiency are the focus points of League

staff when we work with school athletic administrators and memberschools. We recognize the many hats you wear and your role as aschool leader. It is our goal to help you do what you do better and withmore information, while at the same time also help you manage yourprograms more efficiently. Regardless of what hat you are wearing orthe task at hand, using the tools available on the League website andparticipating in the Wednesday Webinars will help you best serve theneeds of your students, coaches and school community.

By Ryan Johnson

Schools across the country areback in full swing and not all ofthe kids are happy about it. Thisfall kicks off the new U.S. Dept. ofAgriculture Federal School Lunchpolicies. The cookies and sweetsthat once occupied many schoolcafeteria menus have beenreplaced by more fruits andvegetables.

That’s not a bad thing, right?However upon further review, I’venoticed that we may be getting alittle too extreme with thechanges. For example, manyschools are now no longer evenserving ketchup. I’m leftwondering if this is the bestsolution to curb childhoodobesity. What about mandatingmore exercise?

After hearing my middleschool children rant about wheatcrust pizza and nothing to slathertheir chicken nuggets in, I decidedto investigate a bit for myself. Aquick Internet search led me tothe USDA website—School MealsRegulation—where a report withthe heading Nutrition Standardsin the National School Lunch andSchool Breakfast Programoutlined the following summativeinfo regarding the new practices.

For the Cliff Notes version ofthe report, schools are requiredto increase fruits and vegetables,offer a meat alternative, providefat-free and low-fat milk,incorporate whole grains, reducesodium, and eliminate meals withtrans fats.

This new school mealsinitiative comes on the heels of

the 2010 AllianceSchool BeverageGuidelines FinalProgress Report,which in generalcalled for theremoval of full-calorie beverages,and reduced-sizedservings of caloricbeverages inschools across thecountry. All in all,the reduction ofliquid calories was applauded inmost circles as an effort toreduce the obesity trends in theyouth across the country. So, nowthe sugary sodas in our schoolvending machines have beenreplaced by diet versions. Which,interestingly enough, sometimescontain a higher amount ofsodium.

In the district that my childrenattend, all condiments have beenremoved from the schools. Noketchup, no BBQ sauce, and holdthe mayo. Cookies have also beenremoved from the menu as wellas 2% milk. Classroom teacherscan no longer reward kids withtreats, and birthdays are nolongercelebrated withcupcakes orsnacks either.Though much ofthat decisionhas to do withthe prevalenceof nut allergies,to me, I see atrend developingin our schools.

And so do

School menu changes too harsh?the kids. Across thecountry there is anuprising from kidsto “brown bag it.”Twitter accountsand Facebook pagesare popping upeverywhere. Theirgoal is to boycottschool lunches untilthey can have theircake and eat it too.Well not quite, butyou get the point.

I find myself pondering a lot ofaspects of this recentdevelopment. We can mandatewhat a kid eats in the lunch room,but we can’t control what the buyfrom the vending machine a mere20 feet from the lunchroom, letalone what they go home andgraze on after school. Thegovernment is not educating thekids, they are simply removingthe entire thought process ofhealthy choices.

And as a physical educationteacher, I wonder why there isn’ta federal policy on everydayphysical education? To be honest,I am finding myself on the side ofthe kids. I say give the kids their

ketchup with aside of physicaleducation.

Ryan Johnsonis head strengthand conditioningcoach atWayzata HighSchool. He isalso a frequentblogger forTraining &

Conditioning magazine where thiscolumn originally appeared. Hecan be reached at:[email protected] with permission.

FEEDBACK:I too am an educator at a

secondary school in New Jersey. Iagree, that there needs to bemore done in the way ofeducating the students (and theirparents) about nutrition andexercise. I also believe, however,that the cafeteria is a role modelfor nutrition, and is therefore(somewhat) accountable forsetting good examples. We can’tcontrol what students put in theirbrown bags, or how many times aweek they eat fast food. We can,however, educate by example.Our cafeteria serves French friesand pizza every day. This sends amessage that it’s ok to eat thesesfoods on a daily basis, which, inmy opinion is wrong. It is time tochange today’s “traditionalcafeteria fare” from a “fast foodfocus” to more sound offeringslike fruits, vegetables, wholegrains, lean unprocessed meats,and healthy fats. Although this isonly part of the total nutritionequation, it is, I believe, anecessary component. Let’s faceit, no one likes change, or to betold (in this case) what to eat.

Audrey Tannenbaum ME.d,A.T.,C., CSCSFlorence Township Memorial HighSchoolFlorence, New Jersey

Athletic Activities


Dr. William Roberts

SportsMedicine

By William O. Roberts, M.D., M.S.

As we begin a new school year, the League’s Sports MedicineAdvisory Committee continues to monitor and discuss issues thatimpact Minnesota’s high school athletes. Here are several issues thecommittee has been closely involved with developing and monitoring:

Emergency Action Plan—Anyone Can Save A LifeThis pioneering cardiac arrest protocol has been expanded to create

a general emergency action plan that can be implemented in yourschools to respond to collapsed athletes from the range of problemsthat occur on the field of play, from heart attack to heat stroke toconcussion.

A rehearsed and orderly response plan will reduce response timesand increase the potential for survival. The program is designed forathletes, but will more likely, from a risk perspective, be applied tocoaches and fans. The program will be available to all Minnesotaschools. It is also being adopted by several other states, a testament tothe innovation coming out of the Minnesota State High School League.

Heat stress and WBGTThe Sports Medicine Advisory Committee has recommended that heatstress be measured using wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT), whichcombines ambient temperature, relative humidity, and the radiant heatof the sun to give a measure that most accurately reflects risk toathletes.

The WBGT can be determined using local ambient temperature andrelative humidity utilizing the chart on the League website. This takesthe place of the Heat Index, which tends to underestimate the heatstress of conditions at the upper ends of ambient temperature andrelative humidity; potentially allowing high school athletes to competeor practice in unacceptable risk conditions.

Sports Medicine Advisory Committeeworks to minimize risks to high school athletes

Concussion gearWith the introduction of state laws requiring removal from activity

and evaluation of athletes for potential concussion injuries, companiesare responding with products to augment the protective value ofhelmets, padding the head in non-helmeted sports, or providing ameasure of impact to a player’s helmet. These products have not beenshown to change the outcomes of head impacts or to reduce theincidence of concussion.

The Sports Medicine Advisory Committee does not currentlyendorse the use of these products and is concerned that theintroduction of the devices may provide players a false sense ofsecurity regarding head and brain safety. Reducing head impactthrough coaching proper technique and enforcing game play rules,along with player respect and restraint, is the most effective means ofreducing high school sports head and brain injury.

William O. Roberts, M.D., M.S., is a professor of Family Medicine andCommunity Health, Division of Sports Medicine, University of MinnesotaMedical School, and also is chair of the League’s Sports MedicineAdvisory Committee.

Olympic coaches must get athletes in thebest physical, technical and emotionalcondition of their lives while not overtrainingthem and manage a totally complexenvironment full of distractions,” said DanielGould, Ph.D., CC-AASP, Department ofKinesiology, Michigan State University.

This was a consistent finding over threeOlympiads in a series of comprehensiveresearch projects commissioned by the UnitedStates Olympic Commission (USOC) andexecuted by Dr. Gould, who is a Fellow andPast President of the Association for AppliedSport Psychology (AASP). The team ofresearchers conducted individual and focusgroup interviews and surveys examiningfactors associated with Olympic success andfailure involving athletes and coaches.

“We looked at a broad spectrum ofphysical, psychological and environmentalfactors associated with performancesuccess,” said Dr. Gould, who is sharing thefindings in clinics and psychological skills

training workshops with American athletesand coaches, as well as internationalorganizations.

Research provides valuable knowledge,strategies for preparing to perform well at theOlympics. When the public watches theOlympic Games they can see the performancefactors influencing an athlete’s outcome,however, many other factors influencingperformance take place behind-the-scenes.Research showed how the influence of suchbehind-the-scenes issues as a snoringroommate, attendance at the OpeningCeremonies, transportation snafus, and familyconcerns can play a major role in the finalresults.

The conclusions and solutions provide alesson that can be applied to all levels ofathletes, as well as non-athletes to apply indaily lives. Dr. Gould shared key lessons fromthe research:

Dealing with distractionsOne of the biggest performance detractors

leading up to and at the Games is dealing withall types of distractions. These can range fromathletes from less popular sports meetingsome of the most visible athletes in the worldin the Olympic village dining hall, to trafficproblems that disrupt an athlete’s normaltraining time. Other distractions includehaving a roommate that snores or having anevent scheduled towards the end of theGames but living in a village where mostathletes are finished competing and are incelebration mode.

Research showed that better athletes andteams, while optimistic, went in expectingsome distractions and made a commitmentthat they would not let those distractionsinterfere with what they needed to do tooptimally prepare for performance, and be

Psychological preparation is key to Olympic performance

Research documents factors influencing athlete, team and coach perResearch documents factors influencing athlete, team and coach perResearch documents factors influencing athlete, team and coach perResearch documents factors influencing athlete, team and coach perResearch documents factors influencing athlete, team and coach performanceformanceformanceformanceformance

See PPPPPerformanceerformanceerformanceerformanceerformance on Page 21

Athletic Activities


Performance ....................................................................... continued from Page 20

prepared for the bureaucracy and intensemedia coverage.

Expect the unexpectedWhile more successful performers went

into the Olympics with a positive attitude andframe of mind, at the same time, they alsoanticipated some unexpected events, andwhen they did, would employ some alreadylearned coping strategies (e.g., a wrestlersteps out of bounds, takes a deep breathe,and refocuses on what he needs to do to makea certain move work, such as say the word“penetrate,” before returning to the center ofthe mat to resume action). Less successfulathletes often had gone into the Gamesexpecting everything to be perfect and whenthese issues arose they got distracted and lostsome or all of their performance focus.

Develop and stick to your routine“We heard repeatedly from coaches and

athletes that more successful athletes andteams set pre-performance physical andmental preparation routines. They did not feelthat they had to mentally and physicallyprepare differently than if they had enteredthe first round of the competition againstlesser opponents or were in the finals facingtheir archrival. This point was illustrated byone athlete who said, ‘More than anything,athletes need to have already a routineestablished and they need to stick to thatroutine and take refuge in that routinebecause at the Games, everything changes.’Participants emphasized that it was especiallyimportant to avoid last minute changes – noeasy task in an Olympic environment where awide range of changes occur from one’snormal and competitive environment,”explained Dr. Gould.

Opening Ceremonies – energizing orenergy zapping?“Deciding whether to attend Opening

Ceremonies can be very a difficult decision forOlympic athletes if they are going to performwithin 24 to 48 hours of those ceremonies.Our research revealed that it could be awonderful, exhilarating experience andworked to motivate some athletes. Others,however, found all the standing aroundzapped their energy and resulted in lacklusterperformance. It should be discussed with theathletes, taking care to examine the potentialpositive versus negative consequences,” Dr.Gould added.

The influence of family and friends“A factor that we did not anticipate coming

out of our research was the importance of theinfluence family and friends can have onathlete and team performance. For manyathletes having their parents and friends atthe Games is a tremendous source ofenjoyment and a form of social support thathelps them perform,” said Dr. Gould. However,for others, parents and friends canunknowingly serve as distractions, constantlyasking questions about performanceoutcomes, next opponents or theramifications of wins and losses.

As the issue was identified, a solutionfollowed: provide some education or guidanceso families and friends can understand whattheir roles are relative to helping their athleteperform his or her best at the Games. Forexample, suggestions included setting up asystem for getting family and friends tickets,having a plan to deal with family and friendcommunication during the Games andinforming parents that there will be times thattheir athlete will have opportunities to seethem at the Games, but other times that theathlete will need to limit contact with them forperformance enhancement reasons.

A summary of findingsAccording to Dr. Gould, the most important

findings coming out of the research providedlessons for coaches to consider relative tohow they want their athletes to be feeling andfocused in the time leading up to and duringthe Games. These include:

● Developing and maintaining a goodattitude

● Being prepared to deal with distractionsand unexpected events

● Expecting the unexpected● Sticking with their routine● Considering whether to attend Opening

Ceremonies● Dealing with the Olympic village● Having a plan for dealing with family

and friends● Being ready to handle the mediaDr. Gould also indicated that many of these

lessons can be applied to athletes competingat other levels, such as high school teamscompeting in regional or state championships,or for individuals performing in other highlyevaluative and important situations. Examplesof non-sport performance include a dancerperforming a major recital, an executivegiving a critical presentation, and a surgeonperforming a very difficult medical procedure.

Editor’s Note: This a May 2012 newsrelease published by the Association forApplied Sport Psychology (AASP), whichpromotes ethical practice, science andadvocacy in the field of sport and exercisepsychology. Founded in 1986, AASP is aninternational, multidisciplinary, professionalorganization that offers certification toqualified professionals in the field of sport andexercise psychology. With more than 1,500members in 39 countries, AASP is a worldwideleader, sharing research and resources withthe public via its websitewww.appliedsportpsych.org.

Help to ready field for play unexpected, appreciated

The following note was sent to Executive Director Dave Stead.

Dave,I want to share a great story from this past weekend. St. Charles hosted the 1AA East

Subsection softball semifinals and finals, as we have done for the past several years. The semisstarted on schedule at 11:00 using adjacent fields. As both games were approaching the finalinning, the skies grew dark and we knew that we were in for a storm. Luckily we got the final outsfinished just before the thunder, lightning, and rain. Teams and fans scattered, took shelter, andwaited as we still hoped to play the championship game once it blew over.

Well, it rained very hard for the next 90 minutes, but we knew that we could get the fieldplayable once it stopped raining, so we sat around and waited. The next part of the story is why Ilove high school activities so much. It finally stopped raining and within seconds we had thegrounds crew from St. Charles working on the field as would be expected, but beyond that we had all three umpires, the local radioannouncer, coaches from teams not playing in the game, and multiple ADs in attendance helping to remove water from the field. Allof this without any prompting from the host team.

People involved in high school activities are simply hard-wired to help out when needed. It was a long and tiring day, but onevery enjoyable day as well. The championship game started two hours late, but was finished on its scheduled day which didn’t seempossible at one point. I witnessed once again the great lessons learned and memories created by MSHSL-sponsored activities.

I am looking forward to a fun 3-4 weeks of upcoming spring tournaments. See you then.

Scott McCready, Athletic DirectorSt. Charles High School

Athletic Activities


By Fran Bradley

Did you see the inspiring storyrecently in the Post-Bulletinsports section about Pine Islandsenior Kathryn Lubahn? She wasshown competing in the shot putfrom a special chair with the helpof her fellow teammates.

Kathryn is one of fiveMinnesotans competing inwheelchair track and field events.Born with spina bifida, Kathryn isnot about to let her disabilitiesstop her from achieving hersports goals. Now that theseevents have been sanctioned bythe Minnesota State High SchoolLeague, Kathryn’s participation ispart of the total track and fieldteam events and can add scoresto her school’s totals.

Quite a story—thanks, DonnyHenn for bringing it to ourattention.

For me this is just anothercase of “inspiration by specialpeople.” I have had the honor andprivilege to attend many adaptedsports events in whichparticipants have either physicalor cognitive impairments. Our 15-year-old grandson, Cullen, hasDuchenne muscular dystrophyand is wheelchair-dependent.

His adapted floor hockey teamhad a great season, culminatedby a third-place finish at last

winter’s statetournament. Hisadapted softballteam is so farundefeated and willdo well (fromGrandpa’s biasedpoint of view) intheir statetournament June 1-2. You can be surethat Grandma andGrandpa will becheering wildly forour grandson’s team.

My hat is off to the manyvolunteers who make theseadapted sports work so well forthese incredible young people.They open the door of opportunityfor young people with so much tooffer.

With rules and facilitiesadjusted to maximize the abilitiesof physically and cognitivelyimpaired youngsters, these sportsevents are every bit as exciting asany regular high school events.We have had many nail-bitingexperiences with both wins andlosses. The athletes compete withevery ounce of their energy andskills. Some fly around the floorin their “athletic” wheelchairs;others move around nimbly evenwith their impairments.

Our grandson is among thosewith power wheelchairs who

Everyday inspiration from special athletesblock floor hockeyshots as goalie orplay on base in thesoftball game. Theathletes are wellcoached and playwell together as ateam. I know Iwould not be able toperform at theirlevel.

Beyond theathletics, there areso many other

inspiring and often tear-jerking(yes, I will admit it) aspects tothese athletic events. At a recentadapted softball game, a younggirl tapped the softball off the teeand ran to first base with thebiggest smile you have ever seen.When she got there before thethrow, she jumped for joy and gota loud cheer from the fans. Youcould see how much thisopportunity to compete meant tothis young athlete and herteammates.

On another play, anoutstanding athlete who holds therecord for most goals scored in aseason in floor hockey wasplaying shortstop for mygrandson’s softball team. Anopponent hit a weak grounder tothis boy and he fumbled the balljust long enough to allow thehitter to make it to first basesafely. No doubt, the shortstop

could easily have fielded the balland thrown out the runner. Histeam was in the lead and hechose to allow the runner to havethe special opportunity to reachbase. Another bunch of happytears!

We can learn so much fromthese talented, special youngpeople. Rather than complainabout physical or mentalchallenges, they live life to itsfullest. Little things that so manyof us take for granted becomegratifying experiences. Focusinginstead on what they can dorather than their limitations, theyaccomplish inspiringachievements.

In a world overwhelmed withsuper athletes and supermodels,let’s take time to see people withspecial needs doing inspiringeveryday things. Volunteer if youcan, enjoy and support if youcan’t.

Allow yourself to apply thelessons to your life. Perhaps ourchallenges aren’t soinsurmountable after all. Maybewe can embrace and enjoy thelittle things in life a lot more.

Fran Bradley is a formermember of the Minnesota House ofRepresentatives. His columnappears monthly in the RochesterPost-Bulletin. Reprinted withpermission.

Memories that willlast a lifetime

The following letter to theeditor was published in theChaska Herald.

The Drakes of BlackduckHigh School wish to thank thecommunity of Chaska for thewonderful hospitality inhosting the Class A baseballtournament. Athletic Park is abeautiful venue and our teamcreated memories that will last a lifetime.

We commend the organizers, site managers and the groundscrew for making our stay a memorable one. We only hope thatwe will earn our way back next season.

Thanks Chaska.Go Drakes!

Dwight Kalvig, Head baseball CoachBlackduck High School

P.S. Blackduck finished fourth in the tournament in their firstappearance.

TheNCAAEligibilityCenterCoachingEducationcourse hasbeen jointlydevelopedby theEligibilityCenter andthe National Federation ofState High SchoolAssociations. The course isdesigned to educate teachers,coaches, parents, andcounselors about the NCAA’sinitial eligibility requirements.

After completing thecourse, you will be more

preparedto adviseyourstudent-athletesabout thenecessarysteps tobecomecertified tocompete inNCAA

Divisions I and II athletics.Coaches can complete acourse immediately and willhave up to one year to reviewand access all printableresources.

It is one of six free coursesoffered atwww.NFHSLearn.com.

Free NCAA eligibility course available

Athletic Activities


By Tim Engstrom

It’s about football season, and I have to askyou, at least the readers who are parents ofboys, will you let them play football?

A few weeks ago I listened online to a Juneconversation at the Aspen Ideas Festivalbetween several football experts. The topic was“Can Football Be Saved From Itself?”

They mentioned how even some formerfootball stars, such as Troy Aikman and KurtWarner, aren’t letting their sons play footballbecause of issues with concussions. Sure thesport also has issues with painkillers, socialwoes, you name it, but brain injuries are the bigdeal right now. And the Aspen talk was about amonth after legendary linebacker Junior Seaushocked the sports world by committing suicide.

Believe me, I like watching football. SkolVikings! I even played football in high school, butI wasn’t very good, so I warmed the sidelines. Itwas the only varsity sport available for boys toplay in the fall at my tiny high school, and boyswere expected to go out. Still, the knowledge Igained thanks to taxpayers, aids me nowadays,um, as a fan, I suppose. I know things like thenumbering scheme, how to use the threads tothrow a spiral, the proper way to hit a tacklingdummy or even the single-wing offense.

But we have a lot more knowledge of therepurcussions of football now than we did backthen. It’s an issue for parents. It wasn’t then.

In Aspen, Chris Nowinsky, co-director of theBoston University Center for the Study ofTraumatic Encephalopathy and co-founder of theSports Legacy Institute, made an interestingpoint about brain injuries:

“You know, I think, the big question goingforward is, you know, we have to agree and we

How much hitting will football players do?practice, and the Ivy League said, all right, twodays is the max. Pop Warner then went to threehours a few weeks ago.

“So no more—you went to 10 hours a weekof kids colliding to three hours. That’s going todramatically reduce it. And one of the things thatwe are pushing through Sports Legacy toadvance that discussion of, you know, less ismore is something called the hit count.

“Basically we—now that we have sensorsand helmets, we can count how many timespeople are hit and we saw it happen in baseballof pitch counts.

“There is a little bit of evidence that said youcan wear out your elbow if you throw too manytimes. …

“And we’ve sat around and said, gee, I thinkyour brain is more important than your elbow.And so why don’t we limit how many times youget hit in the head and maybe mandate rest inbetween hitting days. And I think that’s—again,that’s the fastest way to get to lower trauma. Isit enough? It’s still high. And then you’re gettinginto—you have to diagnose your concussions.

“We’ll miss 90 percent of them becausechildren don’t know to speak up. We don’t havethe technology to see them.”

Interesting, huh? I like football, but I alsovery much care about the athletes we cover.

If you are going to allow your son to go outfor football, might I politely suggest you ask acoach about the number of days and hours aweek the boys will hit during practice.

Albert Lea Tribune Managing Editor TimEngstrom’s column, Pothole Prairie, waspublished Aug. 14, 2012. Reprinted withpermission.

have to appreciatethat the footballthat we played forthe last 50 to a 100years was far toodangerous, foranybody involved. Imean in the brainbank, you know, it’snot a great way tostudy people post-mortem to figureout how manypeople have this,you know, 18 to the first 19 NFL former playerswe studied have it.

“Every college football player we studied hasit. We found it in high school football players asyoung as 17. It’s bad, and so what we’re—nowthat we finally have agreed that this is real,we’re trying to figure out, can football survive?And what we’re—the way we’re doing it is notunlike the cigarette industry. We’re going withlight cigarettes. Well, what if we cut the numberof hits to the head in half and we treat theconcussions and we educate and the medicalcare gets better?

“Fingers crossed, that works, but, you know,that’s all you have, is hope. The science isn’tthere to say where we’ve taken it or where we’regoing to take it, we’ll be safe enough.”

Then later, when asked about solutions,Nowinsky addressed the idea of hit counts.

“You know, the No. 1 thing you can do tomake youth football safer is to lower theexposure, and over half the exposure comes inpractice. So what we’ve been pushing forward,the NFL was actually the first to move on this.They can only have one day of hitting a week in

In the Aug. 14 edition of the Albert LeaTribune, Tim Engstrom’s column “PotholePrairie” addressed a serious issue in football:concussions. I would like to take this chance toinform our readers of how seriously we take thisissue in our Tiger football program. I will alsotake this opportunity to address other issues inhis column.

First and foremost in our program we wantour players to be safe. We outfit our players withhigh quality helmets. We stress to them theimportance of wearing a form fitted mouth guardas that also will help with the prevention ofconcussions. If there is a collision it’s importantthat these two protective measures are taken.We also teach our players the proper techniquein tackling.

In the summer of 2011, Gov. Mark Daytonsigned a bill that all coaches had to take acourse on concussions. This was for all coachesin all sports. Not only that, but all officials thatwork for the Minnesota State High SchoolLeague are also required to take the concussioncourse.

Football coach stresses safetyThe course stressed identifying the symptoms

of a concussion. Coaches and officials are moreaware of these symptoms, and we hope that thiswill help in the early detection of a possibleconcussion. If a player is removed from a gameby an official, coach or medical staff, that playercannot return to the contest until they arecleared by medical personnel. This is a statehigh school league rule and a good one.

In Albert Lea we have two athletic trainersthat work with our athletes. Afton Wacholz andLynn Scheevel do a wonderful job of caring forour athletes. Our athletes are given a baselineconcussion test that is taken on the computer. Ifan athlete is suspected of having a concussionthey will take that concussion test again. Theathlete’s baseline numbers will be compared tothe athlete’s current numbers. That will give ourtrainers a great indication of the athlete’s health.Again, and I stress, our athletes are not allowedto practice or compete until they are cleared bymedical staff.

I was however, disappointed to read that Tim

didn’t gain anything from being out for football.He thanked the taxpayers for knowing thingssuch as “numbering scheme, how to use thethreads to throw a spiral, the proper way to hit atackling dummy or even the single-wing offense.”It was unfortunate to read that.

Football taught me the concept of teamwork,how to deal with adversity, how to set goals,how to be a leader, and football built friendships.

For those players that go through Albert Leafootball, it’s my hope that you take away fromyour experiences more than learning numberingschemes, how to throw a spiral, the proper wayto hit a tackling dummy or even any offensivescheme we may run. I want you to look back andhope you gained valuable life learning skills,experiences and friendships the way I did.

Max Jeffrey, Head Football CoachAlbert Lea High School

Published in the Aug. 22 edition of the AlbertLea Tribune and reprinted with permission.

Athletic Activities


Athletic ActivitiesHobey Baker winnerendorses Minnesota’shockey model

The following letter waspublished in a recent issue ofMinnesota Hockey magazine.

Dear Minnesota Hockey:

I recently had the honor andprivilege of being named the2012 Hobey Baker Awardrecipient as the top men’s college hockey player. Wow! Justtyping that sentence and reading it over and over causes allkinds of wonderful emotions and thoughts in my head. But moreso than anything, it makes me realize how fortunate I am to befrom Minnesota, especially Duluth.

I put my skates on for the first time in the warming house atthe Duluth Heights outdoor rink when I was four. And some ofthe other four-year-old kids that were putting their skates on forthe first time next to me in the warming house that winter arestill some of my best friends today, 18 years later. We grew upon the outdoor ice rinks and then eventually the indoor ice rinksin the Duluth area. My friends and I are extremely lucky to havebeen coached by so many wonderful people who instilled in allof us a passion and respect for the game.

I was fortunate enough to play in the state high school hockeytournament and eventually play for my hometown Bulldogs,being part of a memorable team that won the school’s firstnational championship. But it all started with the foundation thatwas built for me by the community hockey system thatMinnesota has.

In recent years, I’ve been able to play on teams with playersfrom all over North America. After talking about our childhoodhockey experiences, I quickly realized that hockey elsewhere isnot quite like hockey in Minnesota. As a Mite and Squirt playingfor Duluth Heights, all I wanted to do was beat the other Duluthneighborhood teams, including Piedmont Heights, Glen Avon,Portman, Congdon Park, Woodland, etc. Then at the PeeWee andBantam level I played for Duluth East, which increased my list ofrivals to places such as Cloquet, Grand Rapids, and Hibbing.Then came high school hockey at Duluth Marshall and gamesagainst Hermantown. The only thing better than a high schoolgame against Hermantown was a win against Hermantown!

All of this was done with my friends. All of this was donewhile living in the same house where I’d fall asleep as a four-year-old dreaming about hockey. All of this was done whilecontinuing to play soccer at a high level throughout high school.No, I didn’t join an all-star team of 10-year-old kids in the winterand go to tournaments in Quebec City or Buffalo. I played withkids from across the alley and down the street and a big roadtrip was a tournament in Coleraine. I didn’t move away at age 14to pursue my hockey dreams. Instead I stayed home to play thegame I love with my friends, and had a blast doing it!

I did develop. I developed as a hockey player and as a person.And for that I want to thank everyone who is involved in hockeyin Minnesota. The coaches at Duluth Heights that picked me upwhen I fell as a four-year-old. The people connected withMinnesota Hockey that oversee all of the communityassociations in the state. I truly appreciate all that you havedone for me and for other young hockey players in Minnesota. Iencourage you to keep doing it because hockey in Minnesotaworks and is indeed special.

From the bottom of my brand new Hobey Baker award, thankyou!

Jack Connolly

Coach disputed ownteam’s goal, takes loss

The following note was sentto Associate Director KevinMerkle.

Hi Kevin,I wanted to let you know

about a very sporting act in amatch that occurred in theTwin Cities last night. I don’tknow if the parties involvedwill end up reporting this to you, but you and the League shouldhear about it because this is the exact kind of behavior andexample we should be asking of coaches in Minnesota. I knowabout it because the coach who did this was my brother, and hetook a lot of anger and heat for what he did from his own playersand parents. It would be nice, I don’t know how, if the HighSchool League could make some sort of gesture or effort tocommend what he did, to reinforce his actions.

My brother, Dave, coaches the girls’ varsity soccer team atHoly Angels. They’ve started the season 0-2, and after lastnight’s game, are 0-3 for the first time in his six years coachingthere. At the very end of regulation last night in their game withMinnehaha Academy, one of his players launched a shot.According to him and the trail assistant referee standing in frontof him, the ball had clearly not entered the goal when thescoreboard hit 0:00 and the horn sounded.

The referee checked with the lead assistant, then awardedthe goal and announced the game was over. Dave and the trailAR immediately agreed that the decision was wrong and thegame should not end on what was clearly an incorrect decision.They approached the referee and the lead AR and told them thatthere was no way the ball entered the net before time expired.Mind you, Dave’s stance was such that he was taking away histeam’s apparent victory and sending the game into overtime. Inovertime, Minnehaha Academy scored and won the game by asingle goal.

Dave’s parents and some of his players were very upset at hisgesture, but frankly, that’s as noble an act as you will see from acoach who told me before the game that he really felt pressuredto get a victory. He’s never started 0-3 before in his years ofcoaching. He could have walked off the field and kept quiet, buthe did what he felt was right. Even though I wasn’t involved inthis game at all, I thought you should hear about it and maybecheck with one of the participants to get confirmation.

I don’t know if the League has an award for a sporting act, oreven if there is some way to mention this in the magazine youguys send out. Obviously there are bigger incidents (like thatschool that saved the basketball referee’s life with the AED twoyears ago), but I just don’t think amazing acts of sportsmanshipthat place what’s right ahead of getting a win should gounrecognized.

Doug Marshak, D.V.M.Duluth


Officials

The Minnesota State High School Leaguehas recognized scores of officials for theircontinued work on behalf of the student-athletes of the state. Awards are presented tothem according to their length of service.

The service award recipients for the 2011-2012 school year were:

50 YearsAllen Colligan, Dent; Larry Gallagher,

Crystal; John G. Lieser, St. Cloud.

40 YearsScott Forbes, Edina; Lyle Gillen, Jasper;

Micheal Hamilton, Elgin; Keith Johnson,West Saint Paul; Terry Knauf, Cold Spring; EdRoepke, Gonvick; Kathleen Callaghan, St.Anthony; Ronald Hamann, Apple Valley;Donald Nolander, Albert Lea; ElaineTaggatz, Eden Prairie; James Zgonc,Virginia.

30 YearsCharles Behrens, Hayfield; Brian Bond,

West Fargo; James Carlson, Coon Rapids;Rick DeGardner, Vadnais Heights; MikeDrury, Thief River Falls; Jeanne Ekegren,Crystal; David Gratz, Fairmont; DonaldHanson, Taconite; Duane Hoecherl,Bloomington; Paul Hoehn, Milaca; DickIrish, Preston; Katherine King, Minneapolis;Susan Lohse, Elbow Lake; JamesNorthenscold, Mankato; William J.Peterson, Cook; Kevin Pfingsten, Fairmont;James Repke, Clearwater; Jim Sailer,Brooklyn Park; Mark Schleisman, Slayton;Brent Stahlecker, Crookston; Tom Steve,Sartell; Bruce Tilton, Wyoming; Doug Veith,Inver Grove Heights; Steve Walker, St. James;Roger Willhaus, Minneapolis.

20 YearsEthan Anderson, North Mankato; Brian

Bakke, East Grand Forks; Dave Bell,Greenwald; Jerry Berg, Kasson; CurtisBeyer, Minnesota Lake; Thomas Bolduc,Princeton; Douglas Boyer, St. Peter; JamesBudin, Shakopee; Patrick Carey,Farmington; Bernard Carlson, Rochester;Kenneth Cooper, Shoreview; Brett Corrigan,Cottage Grove; Myron Damberger,Annandale; Steve Dengerud, Grove City;Ralford Dixon, Minnetonka; Patti Duellman,Winona; Tom Eaton, Albert Lea; Mary LouErickson, Alexandria; Doris Ferguson, St.Paul; Jac Fleming, Virginia; Chris Friese, StFrancis; William Gahler, St. Paul; SherrieRae Gayken, Owatonna; Andres Gomez,Finland; Susan Hall, Duluth; TammyHandevidt, Jackson; Darin Haugland, InverGrove Hts; Thomas Holmes, Edina; GeraldIde, Lester Prairie; Connie Kiedrowski,Oakdale; Jake Kloeckner, Owatonna; RussellKoch, Brook Park; Jeff Kuyava, Duluth;Kenneth LaChance, Eagan; Richard Lahn,Zimmerman; Katy Leppa, Glenwood; TimMackey, St. Cloud; Kelvin Matteen, Carlton;Mike Mattson, Cohasset; Craig Maurer,

Northfield; Tim McGowan, Woodbury; JodiMiller, Bloomington; Kirk Misialek, E GrandForks; Kenneth Nielsen, Apple Valley; DarylOja, Grey Eagle; Lee Overmoen, Mankato;Jeff Pasco, Hutchinson; Raymond Peterson,St. Michael; Valerie Pitzen, Stacyville; BradPlaman, Bloomington; James Powers, SouthSt. Paul; Richard Prince, New Hope; KerrylQuaintance, Winona; David Rech, BrooklynPark; Lee Reiersgord, Edina; BradleyRekstad, Cottage Grove; Peter Renneberg,Eagan; Mark Ricker, Clear Lake; Scott Ryan,Hutchinson; Philip Schenck, New Ulm;Gregory Schley, Brainerd; RonnieSchneider, Roseville; Steven Schneider,Woodbury; Andy Schultz, Lakeville; GarySipe, Rockford; Gary Slarks, Owatonna; JoelSolie, Redwood Falls; Bernie Staelgraeve,Winona; Traci Swenson, Oakdale; JamesTate, Marshall; Peter Thaldorf, Eagan; PaulWackler, Howard Lake; Corey Wagner,Hayfield; Gary Wendorf, Rush City; SteveWolvin, Coon Rapids; Michael Yager,Waconia; Anthony Zuk, Roseville.

10 YearsDavid Addy, Brooklyn Park; Daniel

Adkins, St. Paul; Steve Ahlvers, Lakeville;Gary Albrecht, Mahtomedi; Dawn Alexander,New Hope; Michael Allinder, Minneapolis;Jesse Anderson, Farmington; MattAnderson, Minneapolis; Michael Andreas,Starbuck; Todd Andrix, Owatonna; TariqAouche, Minneapolis; Karen Ashley,Parkville; Waheed Ayinde, St. Paul; JeffBaker, Becker; Tim Bass, Slayton; RonnieBaumann, Lester Prairie; John Beard,Excelsior; Stephen Beilby, Rochester; JeromeBenson, Lake City; Patrick Bergquist,Duluth; Trace Birno, Chaska; BrianBistodeau, Zimmerman; FranklinBowstring, Deer River; Odell Braaten, LakePark; Raymond Brown, Hugo; Gene Brudno,Maple Grove; Peter Budner, Golden Valley;Ross Burau, Becker; Marc Carrier, Waconia;Ahmed Charai, Maplewood; ErikChristensen, Northfield; BrianChristopherson, St Bonifacius; MathewCoequyt, Minneota; Robert Coleman,Minneapolis; Tammie Coleman, Belle Plaine;Wallace Connaker, Pine City; Aaron Cook,Monticello; Mark Cooper, Roseau; KristineDahnke, Hammond; Dean Dalen, Waconia;James Delich, Anoka; Dan Delmonico,Oakdale; Robert Determan, Circle Pines;Dave Donahue, Rochester; Jeremy Donais,Fargo; Steve Dostal, Roseau; BrandonDrescher, Austin; Richard DuBois, Hudson;Larry Ebert, Winona; Gregory Elijah,Rochert; Timothy Evan, Byron; AntonFehrenbach, St. Paul; Anthony Feigum,Glenwood; Dan Feigum, Elk River; RichardFleming, Mankato; Gene (Wayne) Folkers,Crookston; William Foot, Red Wing; DaleFoster, Woodbury; Mike Foster, Cass Lake;Kathleen Furniss, Burnsville; DavidGarshelis, Cohasset; Nikki Gaulrapp,Minneapolis; Bou Gazley, Rochester; Dave

Gervais, Minneapolis; Mark Gibeau,Coleraine; Ron Giles, Rochester; HeatherGoldade, Roseville; Dan Gormley, Richfield;Marshall Graham, Bemidji; DanielGueningsman, Lester Prairie; RyanGunderson, Blaine; Derek Gustafson, GrandForks; Jason Haase, Savage; Todd Haider, StLouis Park; Cory Hainy, Fairmont; AmyHajek, Austin; Donald Hamann, Laporte;Philip Hansen, Detroit Lakes; DennisHarris, Eagan; Jeff Haubrich, Luverne; TomHeidrick, Eagan; Matt Hibbison, ColdSpring; Peter Hinrichs, St. Paul; Glen Hinz,Rosemount; Bradley Holcomb, OverlandPark; Manami Holmes, Blooming Prairie;Dennis Holsman, Jr., Hill City; James Holt,Richfield; Kevin Horst, Stillwater; DavidHovde, Coon Rapids; Dennis Hughes,Brooklyn Park; Gretchen Hyink, GrandRapids; Brian Ingram, Woodbury; PatrickIrlbeck, Sanborn; Eric Johnson, SaukRapids; Michael Johnson, Andover; MichaelJohnson, Two Harbors; Mark Jorgenson,Newfolden; Christina Katke, Blaine; BrianKelly, Rochester; Patrick Kenney,Minneapolis; Mark Kill, Saint Paul; JoeKilloran, Buffalo; Mike Klima, New Germany;Brenda Knick, Big Lake; KielKreidermacher, Duluth; Mathew Kukar, St.Louis Park; Jason Kurtzbein, Montevideo;Kevin Kuznia, Stephen; Scott LaBine,Argyle; Jason Lagergren, Duluth; RonLaituri, Bemidji; Davis Lamppa, Virginia;John Lamprecht, Burnsville; TimothyLange, Caledonia; Gary Larson, Duluth;Jeffrey Larson, Inver Grove Heights; PeteLarson, Bagley; Steve LeBoutillier,Westbrook; Elizabeth Lee, Ironton; ChuckLister, Grand Rapids; James MacGillis,North Oaks; Mitch Madland, Winona; DavidMaher, Crystal; Patrick Mahoney,Hutchinson; Scott Malluege, Apple Valley;Stephanie Malone, Minneapolis; MichaelMalterud, Bagley; Paul Marchetti, GrandRapids; Monte McBride, Rochester; FrankMcKay, Apple Valley; James McLaughlin,Red Lake Falls; Ronald Mead, Rogers; RoryMerlino, Maplewood; Jeremiah Miller,Wayzata; Doug Moberg, Hibbing; LorenMolenaar, Raymond; Mike Monita, WestSaint Paul; Sharon Monson, Adams; StephenMuscanto, Roseville; Chad Nelson, Ramsey;Jeff Nessler, Mankato; Katherine Nieters,Maplewood; Cliff Okerlund, Apple Valley;Robby Ott, Bowstring; John Paisley, FalconHeights; Randy Palmer, North Mankato;Nathan Panning, Woodbury; JohnParenteau, Hibbing; Erik Pederson,Minneapolis; Kevin Perry, Anoka; JustinPeterson, Alexandria; David Przybyszewski,St. Cloud; Kevin Purinton, Maplewood;Patrick Rach, Plymouth; Charles Rasche,New Ulm; Amy Rath, Lakeville; PhilipRendina, Minneapolis; Bob Roers, Moorhead;Jim Runyan, Verndale; Kevin Ryks, Aurora;Mike Saari, Mora; Lucas Schaaf, Brooklyn

2011-2012 Service Awards presented

See AAAAAwardswardswardswardswards on Page 28


Officials

Kevin Merkle

By Kevin MerkleAssociate Director

As outlined in the Spring 2012 Bulletin and as included with theregistration information sent out to all officials, the new PromotionalLevel Program is now in its “pilot phase.” We appreciate the patienceand understanding on the part of all officials as we go through thistransition.

The primary purpose of the program is to implement more trainingfor officials and offer more incentives for officials to work towardimprovement, specifically focusing on newer and younger officials.Veteran officials are being grandfathered in at either Level 2 or Level 3and will have the opportunity to move up or maintain that rating level.Newer officials, those with five years or less experience, will need tomeet additional training and experience requirements in order toadvance to Level 2 or Level 3. The basic differences in the three levelsare listed below:

Level 1 – Qualified● Eligible for regular season varsity contests and first round of

section events.● Meet all initial requirements—register, pay, complete online rule

meeting, pass annual rules test, pass background check.● Complete League’s beginner-level sport specific training within

first three years. In some sports this requirement may be met throughother organizations.

● Remain at this level by completing training once every threeyears.

Level 2 – Certified● Eligible for regular season varsity contests and all levels of

section events.● Meet all requirements of Level 1.● Score 90 percent or better on annual rules test.● Attend League’s advanced clinic or equivalent once every three

years. Drop back to Level 1 if this requirement is not met.● At least 40 coaches ratings with an average score of 4.5 or

above (exceptions for some sports).● A score of 4.8 or above by a League-trained observer will count

as five ratings and raise the average by three-tenths of one point.Similarly, a rating of 5.5 or above will raise the average by one-half ofa point.

Level 3 – Approved● Eligible for regular season varsity contests and all levels of

section and state tournament events.● Meet all requirements of Level 2.● Score 95 percent or better on annual rules test.● Complete advanced training or equivalent once every three

years. Drop back to Level 2 if this requirement is not met.● At least 70 coaches ratings with an average score of 5.3 or

above (exceptions for some sports).● A score of 5.3 or above by a League-trained observer will count

as five ratings and raise the average by three-tenths of one point. Arating of 6.0 or above will raise the average by one-half of a point.

All officials should note that the program is being piloted this yearand is not in full effect until the 2013-14 school year. We know there

are details that still need to be worked out. As we receive questionsand discuss the program with officials we will continue to refine theprogram.

Recently, fall sport officials were notified of their initial placement.Those officials with five years of experience or less are at Level 1;those with six or more years of experience have been placed at Level2; and any official who has worked a state tournament within the pastthree years will start at Level 3. Officials were notified that appealswill be accepted and were given the specific information about how tofile an appeal.

Winter sport officials will be notified of their initial placement inDecember and the same will occur for spring sport officials in April2013.

Sometime after the first of the year the process and timeline forapplying to be reclassified will be released. Officials who want to moveup a level will have to take the initiative to file an application to makethat happen. The information filed will be reviewed and the change willbe made if the qualifications are met. We expect that a number of Level2 officials will quickly qualify to be placed at Level 3.

Officials should be aware of several key aspects to this program.First, in sports where training clinics have not yet been developed orhave only recently been developed, the training requirement will not bein effect (Swimming, Girls’ Dance Team, Hockey, Track and Field).Second, in some sports coaches ratings will not be required since theyare just not conducive (Track and Field), and in some sports thenumber of coaches ratings needed for advancement will be adjusted(Football, Lacrosse), where there are fewer events per season. Infootball where five-person crews work together, three of the five willhave to meet the requirements to work at a particular level, and thecoaches ratings will be based on the ratings given to the referee of thatcrew. Finally, at least for the time being, Adapted Sports andSynchronized Swimming officials will only have one level (Level 1) andall officials will continue to be eligible to work the state tournament.

Additional details are included in the pre-season mailing to allregistered officials. Officials who have any questions or concerns aboutthis program are respectfully requested to not call the office, butinstead to e-mail those questions or concerns to: [email protected].

Pilot phase of promotional level program under way

Since the mid-90s the League has had anOfficials Advisory Committee. The committeeis made up of a representative from eachsport for which there are officials, as well as arepresentative for female officials, arepresentative for minority officials, plus twoathletic directors.

The committee meets twice annually todiscuss, review and make recommendations

for changes in the officials program.Committee members serve three year terms.Officials who have questions, concerns orsuggestions in regard to the officials programare encouraged to share concerns orsuggestions with their representative on thecommittee. Also, officials who are interestedin serving on this committee are encouragedto contact the League office.

Members of the 2012-13 Officials AdvisoryCommittee and the areas they represent are:Name RepresentsTom Stephan, Jr. .................. Adapted AthleticsBrad O’Donnell ......... Class A Athletic DirectorGary Revenig ........... Class AA Athletic DirectorKen Sargent ........................................ Baseball

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Officials

Awards ............................................................................... continued from Page 25

Park; Chad Schroeder, Rochester; Travis Schuett, Welcome; SammiSchultz, Byron; Chris Schuver, Sauk Rapids; Ron Seibring, St.Cloud; Kevin Selfors, Sauk Centre; Kelly Shanahan, St. Louis Park;James Slinkard, New Prague; Jayme Smrstick, Rosemount; CraigSteffen, Faribault; Mathew Stephens, St. Cloud; Don Stob, Milaca;Steven Stoltz, Mahtomedi; Brady Storhaug, Golden Valley; ShaneSturges, Brooklyn Center; Mike Summerbell, Andover; MartinSveen, St. Charles; Eric Swenson, Pine Island; Sarah Tangen,Zumbrota; David Taus, Mountain Iron; Julie Teslow, Harmony;George Thomas, Winona; Robert Thomas, Coon Rapids; KristianThonvold, Minneapolis; Mark Thorsett, Staples; Kevin Thurston,Nicollet; Jeanne Tolzman, Waterville; Glen Trembath, Clearbrook;Rick Turner, Hawley; David Vigen, Thief River Falls; Paul Vlahutin,St. Paul; David Vonesh, East Grand Forks; Eric Walberg, Cold Spring;

Kathy Walker, St. Joseph; Steve Walker, Brooklyn Park; Tim Wangen,Winona; Amy Wardell, South Saint Paul; Geoffrey Warren, Rochester;Deborah Welch, Forest Lake; Robin Whinnery, Red Wing; KevinWhite, Duluth; Aaron Widboom, Eagan; Michael Wienen, Thief RiverFalls; Larry Wilson, Austin; Larry Winkelman, Morris; Brad Wright,Monticello; Don Zeyen, Prior Lake; Bradley Zimmel, Morris; ReyZimney, Pierz.

The League appreciates the dedication and work of all of itsregistered officials and urges each to recruit and mentor more.Congratulations to all of these officials who have earned years ofservice awards! Thanks for your service to the student-athletes of ourmember schools!

Committee ......................................................................... continued from Page 26

Jim Budin ......................................... BasketballKatie Ohlund ....................... Girls’ Dance TeamSteve Beckman .................................... FootballEllie Berg ............................. Girls’ GymnasticsDave Delmonico .................................... Hockey

Chris Jessen ...................................... LacrosseBrenda Holmgren Female Officials RecruitmentPat Rock ........... Minority Officials RecruitmentJim Engelking, Jr. .................................. SoccerLinda Edmison ........................... Girls’ Softball

Michael Bougie .................. Swimming & DivingTBD ................. Girls’ Synchronized SwimmingGreg Utecht ................................. Track & FieldDi Ette Marx ............................. Girls’ VolleyballBill Olson ........................................... Wrestling

Why charter officials associations?

For many years the League has had a charter program with thelocal officials associations throughout the state. The charterprogram is simply an agreement between the League and theassociations to work together toward the betterment of high schoolofficiating throughout the state. Charter associations agree to hostat least one membership meeting or training session per year andto abide by the rules and regulations of the League’s officialsprogram.

Charter associations are able to send representatives to pre-season meetings at the League office on a biannual basis, as well asother special meetings for officiating leaders. Another major benefitis that charter associations are able to recommend their topofficials for state tournament assignments.

Membership in the program is free and is accomplished througha simple application form. First, check to make sure that yourassociation is not already a charter association. If not, e-mail KatieVanderpoel ([email protected]) and she will e-mail the forms.Associations should note that it is necessary to renew the charteragreement on an annual basis.

Thanks to all of the local officials associations in Minnesota, andespecially to those association leaders.

Hosting officials: Show your appreciation

All member schools are reminded to do what they can to be agreat host for officials. Officials have a difficult job and they arecertainly not overpaid. There are simple things that schools can dothat help make the job of officials easier, while also helping them tofeel appreciated. Anyone performs more effectively when his/herefforts are appreciated.

A Guide to Hosting Officials will be sent to all schools as part ofthe all-school mailing in October. This guide outlines a number ofthings that schools can do, including having someone to greetofficials when they arrive, providing a clean, secured area to dressand keep their valuables, and providing simple refreshments suchas water. Perhaps the most simple and yet most important offeringwould be a simple “Thank you” after the event. This is especiallymeaningful when it comes from players and coaches.

Not every school can do everything that is recommended in theGuide to Hosting Officials, but if every school would just try to doone or two things that they are not currently doing the impact

would be great. We need to keep the officials we have, and theseare simple things that will be of great benefit in the retention ofofficials. Thanks for hosting officials in the best way possible andfinding ways to show your appreciation for the service that theyprovide.

Winter sport training clinics set

The League continues to provide training clinics for officialsthroughout the state. Additional information about these clinics isincluded in the pre-season mailing to all officials. All clinics arefree, but officials are reminded to pre-register for clinics. This canbe done online in the Official’s Corner. All clinic attendance is alsotracked in the Official’s Corner. Officials will be required to attend atraining clinic at least once every three years. The schedule:

Basketball (Registration at 5 p.m.; clinic begins at 5:30 and willend by 9 p.m.)

● Nov. 28 at Little Falls High School● Nov. 14 at Minneapolis Roosevelt High School● Nov. 15 at Mankato East High School● Nov. 8 (tentative) at Maple Grove High SchoolGymnastics (Registration at 5 p.m.; clinic begins at 5:30 and

will end by 9 p.m.)● Nov. 7 at Bloomington Kennedy High School● Nov. 12 at Rochester Mayo High School● Nov. 14 at Alexandria High SchoolHockeyRequired training for all hockey officials will be conducted at

local association pre-season meetings. Those unable to attendthose in-person meetings will be required to attend make-upsessions that will be provided online or via webinars.

Wrestling● Oct. 27 at Elk River High School in conjunction with the

Wrestling Coaches Clinic (Registration at 8:30 a.m.; clinic begins at9:00 and will end by noon)

● Nov. 14 at Rochester Century High School (Registration at 5p.m.; clinic begins at 5:30 and will end by 9 p.m.)


Officials

Official noted football player’s head injury, team’s class

The following note was sent to Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton Activities Director Joe O’Keefe, as well asshared with the League.

Hi Joe,I was the Referee (White Hat) for the game last night @ Perham. As the AD, I wanted to make

you aware that #21 was removed from the game due to signs of a head injury. He did not return tothe game.

In the continuing MSHSL efforts to deal with the concussion issue, I wanted to make sure thisstudent-athlete gets the proper clearance before returning to practice/game situations.

Having said that, I also want to commend the entire coaching staff and the players for the classthey showed throughout the game.

Kalan MalchowRegistered Football Official

Osseo player earns big-time fan in Staples

The following note was sent to Executive Director Dave Stead by Osseo Activities Director RayKirch.

Dave,A little lengthy but a good story about the impact of our high school sports and our high school

athletes on our youth.

Ray,Read this e-mail sent from a family in Staples-Motley after we won the state tournament. Very

heartwarming. We gave him Ian’s jerseys and then see the photo of him wearing the jersey.Thought you might like this.

Tim Theisen, Head Boys’ Basketball Coach

Dear Coach,We are a family in Staples that is very active in our basketball program, however, I wanted to share a story with you about how

your boys have won the heart of our own little guy.Eli is 5, our only boy and the youngest of four and has grown up watching his sisters play ball and being in the gym so it didn’t

surprise me that he sat down to watch the Osseo vs. Hopkins game. I was making supper and the next thing I know he hollers, “Ohyeah, man that was sweet! Mom he was tripping going in for a layup and still made the basket!”

It was at this time my husband had to tell him who the players were and where Osseo was located, etc. Later on he says, “Mom,No. 45, his name is Theisen and he is my favorite.” Needless to say he was glued to the couch thru the game and cheered just asloud as he does for his own sisters, every time you guys made a basket. We joked that I bet we were the only parents in Staples witha kindergartener that was begging to stay up past bedtime to watch the end of the game, which 3 overtimes later was WAY past hisnormal bedtime.

He was so excited and was jumping up and down hollering when you won the game. It was very sweet and he went to bed avery happy boy — end of story, well not quite. The next day he had to know when you played again and on Saturday convinced hisdad that if he took a nap he could stay up and watch since you played the late game. Well, as soon as he woke up from his napSaturday afternoon it was every 20 minutes, “How much longer, how much longer, don’t let me miss the beginning mom.”

When game time came he was just as he was the other night. All cheering and “Aw Yeah’s” and “Theisen just made 2 3threesmom to put them in front.” Seriously, you would have thought we knew someone on the team! Unfortunately the game went too lateand he fell asleep during halftime. However, five in the morning he comes racing into the bedroom, “Why did you let me fall asleep?Did Osseo win?” As soon as I told him yes he was off to bed again.

What touched my heart though was after he woke up that day he asked his dad to show him exactly how the last play of thegame was and later that day I went outside to see what he was up to and this is what I saw. He was running towards the basketsaying. “and Tusler dribbles down the court, gets caught in the middle, throws the ball to Theisen.” He picks up the ball and runs tothe side a little and then continues the play-by-play. “He shoots and scores,” jumping up and down. (Of course the basket is loweredso he can put them in, lol) Then he tells me, “If I had a Theisen jersey I would wear it everywhere!”

I know in working with our own program that I don’t think that the varsity players always realize the impact they have on theyounger generation of ball players, so I hope you will share this with Ian. I have never seen our little guy get so excited before whenhe wasn’t watching his sisters, and our family watches a lot of basketball. My son will always be his fan and my husband hasalready promised Eli if you make it to state again next year he will take him down there.

So I just wanted to let you know that your team has reached a little guy 3 hours away with a big heart who will always be a“Cardinal” fan but now is also an “Orioles” fan as well, and probably always will be. Thank you for this wonderful state basketballmemory!

Congratulations on the state championship and good luck next year!

Heidi Smith, Mom of Eli SmithStaples-Motley Basketball Booster Coordinator


Summary of the Minutes of the April 5, 2012, Board of Directors MeetingReflection, Pledge of Allegiance

The Board of Directors viewed avideo highlight of Perham HighSchool seniors Joe Alfs and EmilyPeterson singing the NationalAnthem during the Boys’ StateBasketball Tournament.

Amy Doherty introduced Andoverjunior Josh Ripley who wasselected as the 2012 Section 5recipient of the “National HighSchool Spirit of Sport Award” bythe National Federation of StateHigh School Associations. Ripleywas nominated for theprestigious award by MSHSL stafffor his selfless actions during across country meet in Septemberof 2011. Early in the race, Ripleystopped running when he heardthe screams of a competitor whohad been accidentally “spiked” inthe achilles heel by anotherrunner’s shoe. Ripley picked upthe injured competitor andcarried him more than a quarterof a mile to the safety of hiscoach. The injured athlete waswhisked away to the hospitalwhere he received 25 stitches.MSHSL staff believes that Joshexemplifies the ideals of the spiritof sport that represent the coremission of education.

Board Actions1. Approved the Agenda.2. Approved Minutes of the

February 2, 2012 Board ofDirectors meeting.

3. Paul Twenge, MN BaseballCoaches Association, spokein support of doubleelimination format for finaleight teams for statebaseball tournamentcompetition

4. Stacey Sheetz, SoftballAdvisory Committee, spokein support of doubleelimination format for finaleight teams for state softballtournament competition.

5. Mike MacMillian, MN HockeyCoaches Association, spokein support of changing thescrimmage rule.

6. Tom Critchley, Boy’sBasketball Association,spoke in support of seedingClass AAAA boys’ and girls’tournaments geographically.

7. Received lobbyist’s reportincluding an update on theStadium Bill; and the statuteregarding 180 day good faitheffort for finding a

conference has beenchanged to 90 days.

8. Received legal counsel’sreport including an updateon current legal cases.

9. Received Executive Directorsreport including:Staff spoke regarding wintertournaments;Amy Doherty gave a roboticsupdate and Board Membersviewed a video clip from theregional robotics tournamentheld on March 30-21;Mindy Sparby was elected 2nd

Vice President for the MNInterscholastic AthleticAdministrators Association;Representative Assemblymeeting will be held Monday,May 14, 2012 at EdinburghUSA in Brooklyn Park;The Gender Equity manual isbeing updated in partnershipwith the Department ofEducation;The NFHS summer meetingwill be held July 7-11, 2012in Nashville, TN.

10. Received ExecutiveCommittees report including:

· Approved the followingpolicies to be forwarded tothe full Board for a firstreading:

· Announcements atTournament Games(Appendix A)

· Videotaping Another SchoolGame (Appendix B)

· Approved a request from St.James High School to allowone student from Butterfield-Odin High School to be apart of a football co-op forone year without changingthe classification;

· Athlete who competed in astate tournamentrelinquished his medal.There is no precedent tofollow and President Sparbyrequested action be taken bythe Board.Approved accepting theparticipant’s relinquishingthe medal. Each medalwinner will return theirmedal and each placestanding will be movedforward one place. Thestudent who returned themedal will be listed as DQ inthe rankings. The Leagueoffice will redistributemedals to the appropriatewinner.

11. Tabled the BasketballAdvisory Committee’s

recommendation to seed allteams. Due to regionconsistency, if thisrecommendation is approvedby the Board, all activitieswill be affected. League staffwill survey the regions andaffected sports to see if theywould support seeding teams1-4 or seeding teams 1-5.

12. Defeated the BasketballAdvisory Committee’srecommendation that inClass AAAA basketball only,eight section sites areidentified by RegionSecretaries and an appointedbasketball committee wouldassign and seed teams toeach site based ongeographic and competitivebalance as a two-year pilot.

13. Defeated the HockeyAdvisory Committee’srecommendation thatscrimmages be allowedduring the first two weeks,determined by schooladministration, andcompleted by the thirdMonday. After the thirdMonday, scrimmages will belimited to two scrimmagedates following the thirdMonday of the season. If thisrecommendation is approvedby the Board, all activitieswill be affected.

14. Approved the Softball andBaseball AdvisoryCommittee’srecommendation to have allsection tournaments insoftball and baseball as asingle elimination until eight(8) teams remain. In allsections, the final eight (8)teams will play an eight (8)team double eliminationtournament with gamesbeing held on a Saturdayand/or Memorial Day.

15. Approved the Girls’ andBoys’ Swimming and DivingAdvisory Committee’sRecommendation that thenumber of sections in ClassA Boys’ Swimming andDiving be expanded fromfour (4) sections to six (6)sections and that theexpansion go into effect forthe 2013-2014 school year.In addition, it wasrecommended the number ofstate qualifiers be reducedfrom four (4) to three (3)qualifiers per event fromeach section.

16. Approved the Cross CountryRunning AdvisoryCommittee’srecommendation to changethe individual advancementfrom section to state asfollows: in each sectionmeet, the top eight (8)individual finishers not on ateam qualifying for the statemeet shall qualify for thestate meet. If five (5) ormore members on the sameteam qualify for the statemeet as individuals, they willcompete at the state meet asindividuals, not as a team.The motion passed byunanimous voice vote.

17. Approved future meetingdates as presented.

18. Approved the futuretournament dates aspresented

19. Approved forwardingproposed clarifying languagein Bylaw 205.2 and Bylaw304.0 regarding the use of anineligible player to theRepresentative Assembly forconsideration at their May14, 2012 meeting.

20. Approved Game TerminationPolicy for State Baseball andsoftball. The first reading ofthe proposed Policy was heldat the February 2, 2012Board of Directors meeting.

21. Approved the EligibilityCommittee minutes aspresented.

22. Approved the January 2012and February 2012 financialstatements as presented.

23. Approved the Coaches’Continuing EducationRequirements Policy aspresented.

Discussion ItemsA. First reading of a proposed

policy regarding lower levelgames (Appendix M). Thiswill be an action item at theJune Board of Directorsmeeting.

B. update on the ClassificationCommittee meeting that washeld on March 28, 2012. Thecurrent policy has been inplace for four years. TheCommittee is currentlyhaving discussions regardingcounting enrollment forcooperative sponsorshipsand reviewing if there maybe a different way to placecooperatively sponsored

See April 5 April 5 April 5 April 5 April 5 on Page 31

Board of Directors Meeting Minutes


April 5 ................................................................................. continued from Page 30

Sportsmanship, respectevident despite loss

The following note was sentto Lake City baseball coachPerry Iberg and ActivitiesDirector Doug Vaith, as well asshared with the League.

Perry, I know you suffered atough loss to LaCrescent lastevening, but I want to tell youthat your team is first class inevery way. Your kids played their hearts out and achieved a lotof respect from anyone watching them. Most important,however, is how they act and carry themselves and that is areflection of you as a coach.

I felt good about being able to work several of your gamesthis season and your team sportsmanship is outstanding. I wantto especially compliment your catcher Reid Lundell. Not only ishe a very good catcher, but his competitive spirit is verynoticeable along with his great respect and he’s a very goodcommunicator. As a plate umpire I had the opportunity to chatwith him briefly on several occasions and he portrays a verymature demeanor. I watched him as that last LaCrescent hit leftthe bat and he just walked away knowing it was over. He kepthis composure and just was disappointed as I am sure all of youwere.

Your team has nothing to be ashamed of; you gave it your alland achieved the most important ingredients—teamwork andsportsmanship. Best wishes to you and your team.

Jon SpringerRegistered Official

Volleyball officialnoted positiveatmosphere

The following note was sentto Girls’ Volleyball StateOfficials Coordinator HenryGerth and StewartvilleActivities Director SharonMorlock, as well as shared withthe League.

Last night I worked theStewartville vs. Kingsland volleyball match hosted byStewartville. We had such a great work crew and positiveatmosphere worthy of sharing with the League. Sitemanagement was there to greet us, setting such a positive tone.From the lines people to score bench personnel to concessionworkers—everyone knew how to do their jobs and wasenthusiastic to be on hand.

I commend the administration, coaches, athletes, parents andfans—the night was about the athletes from both teams andsupporting them to perform their best. It was a class act and anexample for others to emulate! I’m proud to have been a part ofthis successful launch to the 2012 season.

April Sutor, RochesterRegistered Volleyball Official

teams into competitivesections. The Committee willmeet on May 14, 2012 andan update will be provided tothe Board at the Junemeeting.

C. A survey was provided to allschools regarding fall golf.There was not enoughinterest in fall golf toproceed.

D. Sportsmanship and studentbehavior at games wasdiscussed to see if there wasinterest in bringing back asportsmanship award orrecognition. This may be an

item for discussion as theAugust Workshop.

The complete, official Minutesmay be obtained from the Leagueoffice by the designated schoolrepresentative of member schools.

Summary of the Minutes of the June 11, 2012, Board of Directors MeetingReflection, Pledge of Allegiance

President Sparby welcomed andintroduced the new Boardmembers: Tom Conzemius, SaukRapids-Rice, Region 7-8AA; BobGrey, Montevideo, Region 3-4A;Shelly Hotzler, Jackson CountryCentral, Girls’ Sports; and ErichMartens, Sauk Rapids-Rice,MASSP. Chris McDonald, Eagan,CTAM was attending the NationalSpeech and Debate Tournamentin Indianapolis. The PublicRepresentative has not yet beenappointed by the Governor’soffice.

Board Actions1. Approved the Agenda.2. Approved Minutes of the

April 5, 2012 Board ofDirectors meeting.

3. Received lobbyist’s reportincluding an update on theStadium Bill. The StadiumBill includes the followinglanguage regarding theMinnesota State High SchoolLeague: High School League.The lessee of the stadiummust make the facilities ofthe stadium available for useby the Minnesota State HighSchool League for at leastseven days each year for highschool soccer and footballtournaments. The lessee ofthe stadium must provide,and may not charge theleague a fee for, this use,including security, ticket

takers, custodial or cleaningservices, or other similarservices in connection withthis use.

4. Received legal counsel’sreport including working oncontracts and minoreligibility issues.

5. Received Executive Directorsreport including:● Staff spoke regardingspring tournaments;● Venue for Adapted Bowlingmay change from theBrunswick Zone in EdenPrairie to the BrunswickZone in Brooklyn Center. TheBrooklyn Center facility hasmore lanes to accommodatethe bowlers;● Pat Kelly and Dave Stead

attended the Legal Seminarin Indianapolis in April;Roger was to attend butstayed back to work on theStadium Bill. Daveacknowledged Mike Rusinko,Roz Peterson, Laurie Esau,Mindy Sparby and Roger fortheir work on the Bill;● Welcomed new BoardMembers;● Area Meetings were wellattended;● Thanks to all BoardMembers for their help andsupport during the 2011-2012 school year.

6. Received ExecutiveCommittee’s Report

See June 11 June 11 June 11 June 11 June 11 on Page 32

Board of Directors Meeting Minutes


June 11............................................................................... continued from Page 31

including:● Approved date changes ofthe Activity AdvisoryCommittee Process to giveRegion Secretaries moretimely information from theActivity AdvisoryCommittees meeting dates.● Approved a wrestling co-op between Chaska/Chanhassen for the regularseason, but will separate forpost season play.● Approved annual LaCrescent school request toparticipate with the WIAAForensic League.● Approved the wheelchairtrack and field resolution andsettlement agreement.● Approved Cleveland HighSchool’s continuation of ahockey co-op with Le Center/Le Sueur-Henderson/Montgomery-Lonsdale/St.Peter hockey co-op allowingtwo Cleveland students toparticipate without changingthe classification from ClassA to Class AA.

7. Approved the additionaloffice and conference spacein the lower level of theMSHSL office:A. Authorize the MSHSLLegal Counsel, Board

President and ExecutiveDirector to review the bidsfor the project;B. Authorize a project laboragreement pursuant to MS123B.52;C. Contact the currentExecutive Committeemembers for their review ofthe bids; andD. Approve the finaladoption of the project asdetermined by the ExecutiveCommittee acting on behalfof the MSHSL Board ofDirectors.

8. Approved request fromDistrict 196 allowing homeschool students toparticipate outside theirschool district attendancearea; the District requestedthat those home schoolstudents be grandfatheredand allowed to continue toparticipate where theycurrently are. Any futurehome school students willneed to follow MSHSLBylaws regarding schooldistrict attendance areas.

9. Approved moving the April 4,2013 Board meeting to April11, 2013 due to conflict withthe Athletic Directors’Conference.

10. Approved ExecutiveDirector’s evaluation andthree year contract.

11. Approved the complimentaryticket list as presented.

12. Approved the 2012-2013Speech Season Book andTopic as presented.

13. Approved the 2012-2013budget as presented.

14. Approved the VideotapePolicy The first reading of thepolicy was held at the April5, 2012 Board of Directorsmeeting.

15. Approved the AnnouncementPolicy. The first reading ofthe policy was held at theApril 5, 2012 Board ofDirectors meeting.

16. Approved the Lower LevelGame Rules Policy. Thispolicy addresses riskminimization. The firstreading of the policy washeld at the April 5, 2012Board of Directors meeting.

17. Approved a change in policyto seed teams 1 through 5.

18. Approved a request toconduct a NFHS football ruleexperiment involving theonside kick was approved.Staff is requesting tocontinue the experiment foranother year; the NFHS

allows rules experiments tobe conducted for three years.

19. Approved an NFHS HockeyRule Experiment aspresented.

20. Approved an NFHS Track andField Experiment –Exemption from Rule 4.3.3regarding jewelry.

21. Approved the June 11, 2012Eligibility Committeeminutes as presented.

22. Approved the March 2012and April 2012 financialstatements as presented.

23. Approved the MSHSLCharitable OrganizationAnnual Report.

24. Approved the InsurancePremium Summary for YE2012-2013 as presented.

25. Approved the Audit/FinanceCommittee’srecommendation to grantRegion 4A $20,000 tosupplement its operatingbudget.

Discussion ItemFirst reading of a proposedpolicy regardingCommemorative andMemorial Patches.

The complete, official Minutesmay be obtained from the Leagueoffice by the designated schoolrepresentative of member schools.

Fall 2012 Calendar of State EventsOct. 22 ...................................................... Opening date for girls’ competitive dance teamOct. 23-26 ........................................................ STATE GIRLS’ TENNIS TOURNAMENT –

Class AA @ Baseline Tennis Center, U of M; Class A @ Reed-Sweatt Family Tennis Center, Minneapolis

Oct. 24-26, 29-30 Nov. 1 ............................................. STATE SOCCER TOURNAMENT – Quarterfinals @ various sites (24-26); Class A & Class AA Boys’ semifinals (29);

Class AA Girls’ semifinals, Class A third-place, Class AA Boys’ third-place (30);Class AA Girls’ third-place, Class A & Class AA finals (1);

All third-place & championship games will be played @ MetrodomeOct. 29 ................................................................................. Opening date for girls’ hockeyNov. 3 ......................................................... STATE CROSS COUNTRY RUNNING MEET –

St. Olaf College, NorthfieldNov. 6 .......................................................... General Election: No school activities 6-8 p.mNov. 8-10 ................................................ STATE GIRLS’ VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT –

Xcel Energy Center, RiverCentre, St. Paul

Fall 2012 Calendar of MeetingsOct. 16 .......................................... Gymnastics Charter Clinicians, League Office, 10 a.m.Oct. 20 ............. Speech, One Act Play Judges Clinic, Fairmont High School, 9 a.m.-noonOct. 24 .............................................. Wrestling Charter Clinicians, League Office, 10 a.m.Oct. 25 .......................... Speech, One Act Play Judges Clinic, Park High School, 4-6 p.m.Oct. 27 ..................................................... ACT National Test Date, (www.actstudent.org)Oct. 29 ...................................... One Act Play Advisory Committee, League Office, 9 a.m.Oct. 30 ............................................................... Region Secretaries, League Office, 9 a.m.Oct. 31 .. Alpine Skiing Coaches Rules Meeting, Robbinsdale Cooper High School, 7 p.m.Oct. 31 Nordic Ski Racing Coaches Rules Meeting, Robbinsdale Cooper High School,

7 p.m.Oct. 31 ........ Nordic Ski Racing Coaches Rules Meeting, Marshall School, Duluth, 7 p.m.

Nov. 3 ...................................................... SAT National Test Date (www.collegeboard.org)Nov. 5 .................. Alpine Skiing Coaches Rules Meeting, Marshall School, Duluth, 7 p.m.Nov. 16 ................................................. Music Advisory Committee, League Office, 9 a.m.Nov. 28 .......................... Minnesota Adapted Athletics Meeting, League Office, 3:30 p.m.Dec. 1 ...................................................... SAT National Test Date (www.collegeboard.org)Dec. 5 ................................................. Softball Advisory Committee, League Office, 9 a.m.Dec. 5 ......................................... Dance Team Advisory Committee, League Office, 9 a.m.Dec. 5 Minnesota Adapted Athletics Association Board Meeting, League Office,

3:30 p.m.Dec. 6 .............................................. Board of Directors Meeting, League Office, 9:30 a.m.Dec. 8 ........................................................ ACT National Test Date, (www.actstudent.org)Dec. 10 ........................................ Basketball Advisory Committee, League Office, 9 a.m.

Nov. 8-10 .................................................................... STATE FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS - Various sites

Nov. 12 .................................................. Opening date for Alpine skiing, Nordic ski racing,girls’ gymnastics, boys’ hockey & girls’ basketball

Nov. 15-17 .............................................. STATE GIRLS’ SWIMMING & DIVING MEET – U of M Aquatic Center, Minneapolis

Nov. 16-17 ................................................. STATE ADAPTED SOCCER TOURNAMENT – Stillwater Area Senior High School

Nov. 15-17 ........................................ STATE FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT SEMIFINALS –Metrodome, Minneapolis

Nov. 19 ................... Opening date for wrestling, adapted floor hockey & boys’ basketballNov. 23-24 .................................................. STATE FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT FINALS /

PREP BOWL - Metrodome, Minneapolis;9-Man, Class AA, Class AAAA & Class AAAAAA (23);

Class A, Class AAA & Class AAAAA (24)Nov. 26 ............................................................. Opening date for boys’ swimming & diving

Calendars

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Minnesota State High School League2100 Freeway Boulevard Brooklyn Center MN 55430-1735 PHONE: 763/560-2262 FAX: 763/569-0499World Wide Web: www.MSHSL.org

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Nonprofit Org.U.S. POSTAGE

P A I DMINNEAPOLIS MNPermit No. 31890

Mission StatementThe Minnesota State High School League provides educational opportunities

for students through interscholastic athletic and fine arts programs and provides leadership and support for member schools.

Beliefs◆ Participation in school activity programs is a

privilege and not a right.◆ Sportsmanship needs to have a constant presence

in all school-based activity programs.◆ Students should have an equal opportunity to

participate in all activities offered by their school.◆ Ethical behavior, dignity and respect are non-

negotiable.◆ Student participants who choose to be chemically

free must be supported.◆ Collaborative relationships with parents enhance a

school’s opportunity to positively impact studentsuccess.

◆ Academic priorities must come before participationin athletic or fine arts activities.

◆ Positive role models and an active involvement in astudent’s life by parents and others are critical tostudent success.

◆ High school activity programs are designed forstudent participants, and adults must serve in asupportive role.

◆ The success of the team is more important thanindividual honors.

◆ Compliance with school, community and Leaguerules is essential for all activity participants.

◆ Participation in school-sponsored activities must beinclusive, not exclusive.

◆ Ethical behavior, fairness, and embracing diversitybest serve students and school communities.

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