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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE --November 10, 1999
Contact: John Johnson or Andy Frushour-- 517.332.5046

Click here for an application for the CHAMPS clinic.

EAST LANSING, Mich. - Nov. 10 - To enhance the atmosphere of selected tournament finals, the Michigan High School Athletic Association begins its second year of youth clinics, with the first to take place at the Girls Basketball Finals in Mt. Pleasant on December 4.

CHAMPS (Cooperation, Hard Work, Attitude, Motivation, Participation, Sportsmanship) Clinics target local female junior high/middle school-aged students and their parents in a morning-long workshop designed to provide game skills and life skills information. The CHAMPS Clinics are free, and are underwritten by Farm Bureau Insurance and the United Dairy Industry of Michigan.

Enrollment in CHAMPS Clinics are limited to the first 100 girls and their parents - parental attendance is a requirement. The clinic will take place from 8:30 to 11 a.m. in the Indoor Athletic Complex on the campus of Central Michigan University in Mt. Pleasant, located just south of Rose Arena, where the four MHSAA Girls Basketball Finals will take place.

Applications have been sent to MHSAA member schools in the Mt. Pleasant area. An application may also be downloaded from the MHSAA Web Site - www.mhsaa.com.

"The concept behind the CHAMPS Clinics is to provide young people, who have had a taste of a sport, additional training in fundamental skills in that activity, and the realization that game skills are really a small portion of what's needed for life," said John E. "Jack" Roberts, executive director of the MHSAA. "The fact that the young people involved, and their parents, will hear information about academics, sportsmanship, teamwork, and what may lie ahead after playing a sport in high school, will make this a truly educational experience for all involved."

The Detroit Shock of the WNBA will provide the basketball clinicians for the CHAMPS Clinic, featuring forward Wendy Palmer, who averaged 10 points and 6 rebounds per game last year. Clinicians for the parent's portion of the program will be provided by the physical education department at Central Michigan University.

All youngsters participating in the CHAMPS Clinic will receive a t-shirt, and lunch will be provided for all players and parents. CHAMPS Clinic participants and their parents will also be guests of the MHSAA for the Class D-A session of the Girls Basketball Finals that day, and the participating youngsters will be recognized at halftime of the Class D championship game.

The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by over 1,300 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 conducted in 12 sports for girls and 12 sports for boys which attract approximately 1.3 million spectators each year.