Michigan High School Athletic Association - Promoting Educational Athletics
Michigan High School Athletic Association - Promoting Educational Athletics |
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Aug. 9 , 2007 Video On Football Head & Neck Safety Distributed To MHSAA Member Schools EAST LANSING, Mich. – Aug. 9 – Continuing its work to minimize health and safety risks for its member schools, the Michigan High School Athletic Association has distributed a new video addressing the need for proper blocking and tackling techniques in football. “Heads Up” is a 15-minute message produced by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association designed to help coaches, players and fans understand the importance of safe play and the sometimes catastrophic consequences of not doing so. The video was distributed to schools earlier this month in time to be used in pre-season meetings with teams and parents. Among the individuals featured on the video is former Jackson Parkside High School quarterback Tony Dungy, now head coach of the Indianapolis Colts. The video was distributed to colleges a year ago, and with the support of The Andrews Institute, copies were made available to high school athletic associations for their members. “Head and neck safety continues to be a point of emphasis in the rules of the game, and educating all parties on this topic is an ongoing process,” said John E. “Jack” Roberts, executive director of the MHSAA. “Everyone cheers at football games when a big hit is delivered, but there’s a right way to deliver those big hits, and we’ll continue to help our schools with resources in that regard.” The video is available to view online from the Football page of the MHSAA web site. This is the latest of many similar projects project the MHSAA has been involved in. During 2000, the Association teamed up with the Brain Injury Association of Michigan to distribute 20,000 sports concussion cards to member schools; and assisted in the development and distribution of the brochure “Heads Up, Eyes Forward” printed by the Michigan Department of Community Health for use by parents in preventing football injuries. In 2002, the video “See What You Hit” was provided to schools in cooperation with the Spine in Sports Foundation. There have been other efforts directed toward football safety as well as many initiatives to promote head and neck safety in other sports served by the MHSAA. The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by over 1,600 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract approximately 1.6 million spectators each year. -0- RL08-001 AT&T, Farm Bureau Insurance Henry Ford Health Systems and MEEMIC Insurance
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