Anaheim to Host National Athletic Directors Conference

About 1,500 high school athletic directors will be attending the 44th annual National Athletic Directors Conference December 13-17 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim.

The largest gathering of high school athletic directors in the country is co-sponsored by the Indianapolis-based National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA).

Although a few NIAAA committees meet on Friday, December 13, the conference officially gets underway on Saturday, December 14, with registration at 9 a.m. and the Opening General Session at 5:30 p.m.

Bill Walton, who was one of the greatest high school and college basketball players of all time, will be the keynote speaker at the opening session. Walton set numerous records at La Mesa (California) Helix High School and was three-time Player of the Year at UCLA. He was inducted into the NFHS’ National High School Hall of Fame in 1997 and was named one of the 50 Greatest NBA Players. Walton will speak on “Climbing Back to the Top of the Mountain – One More Time.”

Some of the key topics to be discussed at the 42 scheduled workshops include Title IX compliance, adapted sports, use of social media, evaluating coaches, corporate sponsorships, emergency planning, sports specialization, communicating with parents, non-faculty coaches and booster clubs.

Pat Haden, University of Southern California (USC) athletic director, will be interviewed by NFHS Executive Director Bob Gardner during the Closing General Session at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, December 17.

Haden set numerous records as a football player at LaPuente (California) Bishop Amat High School and then led USC to three Rose Bowls and two national championships. He is a 1995 inductee into the National High School Hall of Fame.

Awards will be presented to 25 athletic directors during the five-day conference. Eight administrators will receive NFHS Citations at 12 p.m. Monday, December 16, during the conference luncheon.

Athletic directors who will be presented NFHS Citations are Rich Bechard, CMAA, district athletic director, Blue Valley Schools, Overland Park, Kansas; Maurice “Bud” Campbell, CAA, retired athletic director, Murray (Utah) High School; Roger Dixon, CAA, retired athletic director, Socastee High School, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Mark Horak, CAA, athletic director, Lake Oswego (Oregon) High School; Fred Lilly, CAA, deputy superintendent, Camden (Arkansas) Fairview High School; Bruce Phelps, CMAA, retired coordinator of student activities, Virginia Beach (Virginia) Public Schools; Patrick Pizzarelli, CAA, assistant superintendent, Lawrence (New York) Public Schools; and Greg Smith, CMAA, retired district activities director, West De Pere (Wisconsin) School District.

The NIAAA will present Distinguished Service Awards to nine athletic directors during the conference banquet at 6 p.m. Tuesday. Athletic administrators receiving awards are Roger Brown, CMAA, retired athletic director, Unatego Central School, Otego, New York; Bill Bruno, CMAA, director of athletics, Brick (New Jersey) Memorial High School; Tom Doyle, CAA, retired athletic director, Seattle (Washington) Preparatory School; Larry Goins, CMAA, administrator/coach, Desert Oasis High School, Las Vegas, Nevada; Mike Jackson, CMAA, athletic administrator, Hanover (New Hampshire) High School; Mark Kryka, CAA, activities director, Verona (Wisconsin) High School; Paul Moses, CMAA, Strongsville (Ohio) City Schools; Todd Olson, CMAA, director of student activities, Fargo (North Dakota) Public Schools; and John Van Fleet, CMAA, retired athletic director, Crystal Lake, Illinois.

Other athletic directors to be honored at the banquet include Dr. David Hoch, CMAA, retired athletic director, Loch Raven High School, Towson, Maryland, NIAAA Frank Kovaleski Professional Development Award; Allen Huestis, CAA, retired athletic director, Ponaganset (Rhode Island) High School; NIAAA Thomas E. Frederick Award of Excellence; and Holly Farnese, CMAA, athletic director, Upper Darby High School, Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, NIAAA Award of Merit.

Highlighting the awards ceremony at the banquet will be the induction of five athletic directors to the NIAAA Hall of Fame. This year’s honorees include Don Bales, CMAA, retired athletic director, Lowell (Indiana) High School; Jane Bennett, CMAA, former athletic director, Huron High School; Ann Arbor, Michigan; John Carlisle, executive director, South Carolina Athletic Administrators Association;  Tim Flannery, CMAA, AIC, NFHS assistant director, former athletic director, North Olmsted (Ohio) High School; and Donna King, CMAA, former director of student activities, Fairfax (Virginia) County Public Schools.

Many of the athletic directors in attendance will be involved in NIAAA Leadership Training Institute classes. A total of 37 sessions of Leadership Training classes will be held providing numerous professional development opportunities.