The Best Coach Ever
February 5, 2013
In the fall of 2004, another of the inductees with my father to the first-ever Hall of Fame Class of Stevens Point (WI) Area Senior High School was Rick Reichardt, arguably the best male athlete the community ever produced. Rick played four sports in high school, both football and baseball at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, and on two Major League Baseball teams.
In his own acceptance speech that evening in 2004, Rick said that my dad was the best coach he ever had. Well, Dad was merely Rick’s Little League baseball coach.
That’s remarkable in and of itself. What’s more remarkable is that Dad never played organized baseball. He never developed the skills of the game. Yet Rick said Dad was his best coach ever.
Eventually, I’ve figured out Dad’s “secret of success.” Dad didn’t coach a sport. He coached people.
Our just-published winter issue of benchmarks is devoted to coaches like this and to the coaching profession. Read it here.
Ann Arbor Greenhills Athletics Recognized as 'Exemplary' by NIAAA
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
July 29, 2022
Ann Arbor Greenhills’ athletic department has been selected for a Quality Program Award from the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA), becoming the first Michigan school to receive the exemplary-level honor since the QPA was introduced in 2009.
Programs were considered by the NIAAA based on 10 assessment categories that aspire to “encourage measurement, planning and goal setting aimed at continuous improvement of local school athletic programs.” Greenhills will be recognized for the achievement during December’s NIAAA/NFHS National Athletic Directors Conference in Nashville, Tenn.
Greenhills sponsors 21 sports, and 247 of the school’s 355 students during the 2021-22 school year participated on at least one team.
"At Greenhills, we have always prided ourselves on continuous improvement, and aim to provide an exemplary experience for all of our student-athletes,” athletic director Meg Seng said. “The NIAAA Quality Program assessment guided us through a comprehensive examination of our entire athletic program. This exercise affirmed many of our strengths and also highlighted areas in which we can continue to improve.
“We remain motivated to measure, innovate and improve our program to benefit the student experience. While we are extremely grateful and proud for the recognition, the true value came while engaging in a thorough audit and working alongside dedicated colleagues during the process."
Greenhills previously received an Exemplary Athletic Program Award in 2017 from the Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (MIAAA).
PHOTO The Ann Arbor Greenhills girls tennis team celebrates its Lower Peninsula Division 4 championship won last month. (Click for more from High School Sports Scene.)