2017 Scholar-Athlete Finalists Announced
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 20, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The 120 finalists for the Michigan High School Athletic Association's Scholar-Athlete Awards for the 2016-17 school year, presented by Farm Bureau Insurance, have been announced.
The program, celebrating its 28th anniversary, has recognized student-athletes since the 1989-90 school year and again this winter will honor 32 individuals from MHSAA member schools who participate in at least one sport in which the Association sponsors a postseason tournament.
Farm Bureau Insurance underwrites the Scholar-Athlete Awards and will present a $1,000 scholarship to each recipient. Since the beginning of the program, 704 scholarships have been awarded.
Scholarships will be presented proportionately by school classification, with 12 scholarships to be awarded to Class A student-athletes, six female and six male; eight scholarships will be awarded to Class B student-athletes, four female and four male; six scholarships will be awarded to Class C student-athletes, three female and three male; and four scholarships will be awarded to Class D student-athletes, two female and two male. In addition, two scholarships will be awarded at-large to minority recipients, regardless of school size.
Every MHSAA member high school could submit as many applications as there are scholarships available in its classification, and could have more than one finalist. New Boston Huron has three finalists this year. Seventeen schools each have two finalists: Blissfield, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, Coldwater, Dearborn Divine Child, Detroit Catholic Central, Edwardsburg, Gladwin, Greenville, Ishpeming, Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep, Midland Dow, Pewamo-Westphalia, Saline, Sault Ste. Marie, Sturgis, Watervliet and Yale.
Multiple-sport participation remains the norm among applicants. The average sport participation rate of the finalists is 2.63, while the average of the application pool was 2.18. There are 72 three-plus sport participants in the finalists field, and all but one of the 28 sports in which the MHSAA sponsors postseason tournaments are represented.
Of 409 schools which submitted applicants, 52 submitted the maximum allowed. This year, 1,515 applications were received. All applicants will be presented with certificates commemorating their achievement. Additional Scholar-Athlete information, including a complete list of scholarship nominees, can be found on the Scholar-Athlete page of the MHSAA Website.
The applications were judged by a 70-member committee of school coaches, counselors, faculty members, administrators and board members from MHSAA member schools. Selection of the 32 scholarship recipients will take place in early February. Class C and D scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 7, Class B scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 14 and Class A scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 21. All announcements will be made on the MHSAA Website.
To honor the 32 Scholar-Athlete Award recipients, a ceremony will take place during halftime of the Class C Boys Basketball Final, March 25, at the Breslin Student Events Center in East Lansing.
To be eligible for the award, students must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.50 (on a 4.0 scale) and previously have won a varsity letter in at least one sport in which the MHSAA sponsors a postseason tournament. Students also were asked to respond to a series of short essay questions, submit two letters of recommendation and a 500-word essay on the importance of sportsmanship in educational athletics.
Farm Bureau Insurance of Michigan was founded in 1949 by Michigan farmers who wanted an insurance company that worked as hard as they did. Those values still guide the company today and are a big reason why it is known as Michigan’s Insurance Company, dedicated to protecting the farms, families, and businesses of this great state. Farm Bureau Insurance agents across Michigan provide a full range of insurance services—life, home, auto, farm, business, retirement, Lake Estate®, and more—protecting nearly 500,000 Michigan policyholders.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,400 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 more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
2016-17 Scholar-Athlete Award Finalists
BOYS CLASS A
Trevor Roznowski, Alpena
Jordan George-Nwogu, Ann Arbor Pioneer
Nathan Jones, Battle Creek Lakeview
Jonah Kamoo, Birmingham Groves
Ben Williams, Birmingham Seaholm
Andrew R Twiford, Byron Center
Eric Bach, Coldwater
Kameron Miller, Coldwater
CJ Baird, Detroit Catholic Central
Jackson Ross, Detroit Catholic Central
Justin Beemer, Fenton
Steven Stine, Fraser
Dominic LaJoie, Gaylord
Drew VanAndel, Grand Haven
Michael Gumbko, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern
Connor K Fischer, Grandville
Michael Visscher, Holland
Tyler Opdycke, Livonia Churchill
Varun R Shanker, Midland Dow
Gary R O'Brien III, Riverview
Aidan Carichner, Saline
Connor Bryant Meehan, Saline
Matthew J Polzin, Sturgis
Andrew Long, White Lake Lakeland
GIRLS CLASS A
Kaitlyn Coons, Cedar Springs
Lindsay Duca, East Grand Rapids
Sarah Kurpiers, Farmington Hills Mercy
Jocelyn Prinz, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central
Paige Hallock, Greenville
Landon Kemp, Greenville
Amber Nicole Manitowabi-Huebner, Marquette
Alex Wilkinson, Middleville Thornapple Kellogg
Caroline Szabo, Midland Dow
Jordan Walker, Muskegon Mona Shores
Emma Streveler, New Baltimore Anchor Bay
Alexa Scroggie, New Boston Huron
Elizabeth Stockert, New Boston Huron
Allissa Wight, New Boston Huron
Katelyn Jones, Owosso
Jalynn Byers, Petoskey
Mackenzie Carano, Pinckney
Sydney Asuncion, Rochester
Allyson Faulkner, Rockford
Harmony Groves, Sturgis
Maggie Dutmers, Traverse City Central
Hunter Kehoe, Traverse City West
Nikki Sorgi, Utica Ford
Aubrey Fetzer, Warren Cousino
BOYS CLASS B
Brayden Huddleston, Benzie Central
Tait Morrissey, Big Rapids
Michael Bian, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
Michael J Gussert, Cadillac
Christopher A Roush, Chelsea
Collin Lieber, Croswell-Lexington
Evan Latham, Dearborn Divine Child
Adam Kozinski, Edwardsburg
Patrick Johns, Marine City
Richard Dominick Reo III, Paw Paw
Brendan Gered Fraser, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Ryley Alaspa, Sault Ste. Marie
Ryan Sanderson, Sault Ste. Marie
Josef Hissom, Spring Lake
Andrew D Marten, Tecumseh
Cade Smeznik, Yale
GIRLS CLASS B
Emma Nowak, Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard
Michel Faliski, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
Jasmine Harper, Clare
Madeline Filiatraut, Dearborn Divine Child
Sasha Hartje, Detroit Country Day
Noelle Kraus, Edwardsburg
Peyton Rellinger, Gladwin
Lindsey Shearer, Gladwin
Erika Freyhof, Hamilton
Morgan Colling, Houghton
Haley Heldt, Midland Bullock Creek
Megan Aalberts, Otsego
Raechel K McKiernan, Richmond
Kylie Hutchinson, Shepherd
Kim Anh Nguyen, Wyoming Kelloggsville
Gabrielle Smith, Yale
BOYS CLASS C
Clark Brady, Bad Axe
Spencer Fisher, Blissfield
Jonathan Lutchka, Grass Lake
Sam Bailey, Harbor Springs
Ashok Ravindran, Ishpeming
Joe Rigling, Leroy Pine River
Alexander Dixon, Madison Heights Bishop Foley Catholic
Jacob Shoop, Mason County Central
Bryce J Thelen, Pewamo-Westphalia
Nicholas Hammond, Riverview Gabriel Richard
Tyler Brant, Watervliet
Cameron Rendo, Watervliet
GIRLS CLASS C
Kelsey Wyman, Blissfield
Madeline Wu, Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett
Khora Swanson, Ishpeming
Hope Baldwin, Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep
Quinn Epkey, Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep
Keilene Renae Elmer, Lincoln Alcona
Bailey Downs, Munising
Maysa Sitar, Newberry
Mary Hoopes, North Muskegon
Brenna Wirth, Pewamo-Westphalia
Sidney Linck, Ravenna
Madison Bryce, St. Charles
BOYS CLASS D
Jacob Single, Adrian Lenawee Christian
Jacob Martin, Athens
Richard Steffan, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian
Elijah Newton, Central Lake
Jace Feldpausch, Fowler
Brian A Price, Mio
Nicholas Morgenstern, Muskegon Catholic Central
Seth Polfus, Powers North Central
GIRLS CLASS D
Rachel Hiveley, Au Gres-Sims
Allyson Richards, Fruitport Calvary Christian
Alexa Destrampe, Lake Linden-Hubbell
Jade Sibley, Marcellus
Mary Leighton, Mendon
Alexis McConnell, Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart
Grace Alvesteffer, Pentwater
Rhiley Hubert, Rapid River
MHSAA Remembers Late Director Norris
February 12, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Jack Roberts always was astonished at the amount of detail his predecessor Vern Norris could recall about the people he’d met over many years contributing to high school athletics at the state and national levels.
When the Michigan High School Athletic Association executive director last spoke with his predecessor, Norris had been in contact with past counterparts from Kansas, Iowa and the National Federation – although Norris had retired from the MHSAA more than three decades ago.
“He was genuinely interested in people and their backgrounds and their families,” Roberts said. “He had good friends. He was good at being a friend, and colleague. I think he genuinely cared about relationships between people.”
And he built many over 23 years at the MHSAA office.
Norris, who led the MHSAA from the fall of 1978 through the summer of 1986, died early Monday morning in Lansing. He was 89.
Norris joined the MHSAA staff on July 15, 1963, as Assistant State Director of Athletics under longtime Executive Director Charles E. Forsythe and then-Associate Director Allen W. Bush. Norris was promoted to Associate Director when Bush was appointed Executive Director in 1968, then took over as Executive Director upon Bush’s retirement in 1978. Forsythe, Bush, Norris and Roberts are the only full-time executive directors to serve during the MHSAA’s 94-year history.
Norris brought to the MHSAA a wealth of experience having coached at Traverse City, Rockford and Hillsdale high schools. He served as Assistant Director of Placement at Western Michigan University for the five years prior to joining the MHSAA staff, and during that time Norris built a reputation as a highly-regarded game official in the Kalamazoo area – and worked as a referee during the 1963 MHSAA Class A Boys Basketball Final.
Norris served on a number of national rules-making bodies during his 23-year tenure with the MHSAA, and as president of the Executive Board of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) during the 1983-84 school year. But he was best known for his work with Michigan’s coaches and especially officials. An award bearing Norris’ name is presented by the MHSAA each spring to a veteran official who has been active in a local officials association, has mentored other officials, and has been involved in officials’ education. The award has been given since 1992 at the annual Officials’ Awards & Alumni Banquet, which was begun during Norris’ tenure in 1980.
“Vern was respected and admired widely by contest officials, and it was because of that that I asked the Representative Council to approve an award for leaders who were especially involved in mentoring and training officials,” said Roberts, who succeeded Norris in 1986. “A total of 26 officials have received the Norris Award, and more than 10,000 officials have been honored at our annual banquet recognizing a group of contributors especially close to his heart.”
Norris shepherded a number of key advances during his tenures both as associate and executive director. The early 1970s saw the addition of MHSAA tournament events in girls sports, and football playoffs were added in 1975. Membership also grew during his time with the association; the MHSAA had 682 member high schools at the start of 1963-64, and 713 when Norris stepped down.
During his time at the MHSAA, Norris also served as a member of the NFHS Basketball Rules Committee from 1978-82, on the NFHS Constitution Revision Committee in 1979 and as a member of the editorial staff of the NFHS Rules Committee from 1980-82.
He served on the NFHS Executive Board representing Michigan’s section of five Midwestern states during a four-year term that concluded with his year as president, and he also served as chairperson of the NFHS Telecommunications Committee in 1972.
After leaving the MHSAA, Norris served as Commissioner of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference from fall of 1987 through the close of the 1991-92 school year.
In retirement, Norris kept in touch with MHSAA staff. He and Roberts spoke every few months throughout the years. And, “he could not have been more gracious when he retired and I was hired. He gave me total support and just the right amount of advice,” Roberts added.
When Norris announced he was leaving the MHSAA early in 1986, then-Lansing State Journal Prep Editor Bob Gross wrote “his integrity is beyond question. He has never shown favoritism to a school, and he has never bent the rules. It’s always been strictly business, exactly what it should be. … That’s why I liked Vern Norris so much. He has always been fair.”
A graduate of Grand Rapids Godwin Heights High School, Norris earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education from Western Michigan University and a master’s in school administration from the University of Michigan.
In addition to his MHSAA and NFHS work, Norris served as a football or basketball rules clinician in various states and multiple provinces of Canada, and served on amateur basketball’s rules-making body at the time – the National Basketball Committee of the United States and Canada – from 1972-76. He contributed during the late 1960s and 1970s on the National Alliance Basketball Advisory and National Alliance Football Rules committees. Norris also served on the United States Olympic Committee’s House of Delegates in 1985.
A Service of Coronation will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lansing, with family receiving friends from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. Thursday at Estes-Leadley Greater Lansing Chapel and at 10 a.m. Friday at the church.
PHOTOS: (Top) Then-Associate Director Vern Norris and Executive Director Al Bush hold up trophies to be awarded at the 1974 Boys Basketball Finals. (Middle) Bush, Charles E. Forsythe and Norris. (Below) Bush, current Executive Director Jack Roberts and Norris in 1988.