![](/sites/default/files/imported/NewsSig2H.jpg)
Advisory Council Names Class Of '22
May 11, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Eight student-athletes who will be juniors at their schools during the 2020-21 academic year have been selected to serve two-year terms on the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s Student Advisory Council.
The Student Advisory Council is a 16-member group which provides feedback on issues impacting educational athletics from a student’s perspective, and also is involved in the operation of Association championship events and other programming. Members of the Student Advisory Council serve for two years, beginning as juniors. Eight new members are selected annually to serve on the SAC, with nominations made by MHSAA member schools. The incoming juniors will join the group of eight seniors-to-be appointed a year ago.
Selected to begin serving on the Student Advisory Council in 2020-21 are: Brinlee Barry, Caledonia; Faith Breinager, Frankenmuth; Amina Ferris, Dearborn; Nicolas Johnson, Britton Deerfield; Brenna Kosal, Peck; Ashton McNabb, Three Oaks River Valley; Brock Porter, Orchard Lake St. Mary's; and Melik Williams, Ypsilanti Lincoln.
Those eight new members were selected from a record-high 179 applicants, twice as many as generally apply for SAC positions every year.
The first Student Advisory Council was formed for the 2006-07 school year. With the addition of this class beginning this summer, members will have represented 117 schools from 45 leagues plus independent schools that do not play in a league. Combined, the new appointees have participated in nine MHSAA sports, and seven will be the first SAC members from their respective schools.
The Student Advisory Council meets seven times each school year, and once more for a 24-hour leadership camp. In addition to assisting in the promotion of the educational value of interscholastic athletics, the Council discusses issues dealing with the 4 S’s of educational athletics: scholarship, sportsmanship, safety (including health and nutrition) and the sensible scope of athletic programs. There also is a fifth S discussed by the group – student leadership.
This school year, the Council selected the 2019-20 “Battle of the Fans IX” champion and presented Sportsmanship Summits in front of more than 1,000 students from across the state, handed out championship trophies at Finals events and provided feedback to the MHSAA Representative Council on proposed rule changes. The Student Advisory Council also provided a student point of view as the MHSAA considered how to progress after sports were halted in March because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The new additions to the SAC will join the Class of 2021 members who were selected a year ago: Pierre Brooks II, Detroit Douglass; Macy Brown, Cadillac; Lydia Davenport, Ithaca; Freddy Kopplow, Traverse City St Francis; Colin McAuliffe, Salem; Avery Peters, Mason; Abigail Pheiffer, Novi; and Landen Thompson, Stevensville Lakeshore.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 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.
![Ann Arbor Greenhills' Mia Melendez putts this fall.](/sites/default/files/2022-10/221013_Melendez_2H.jpg)
Performance of the Week: Ann Arbor Greenhills' Mia Melendez
October 13, 2022
Mia Melendez ♦ Ann Arbor Greenhills
Golf ♦ Sophomore
Melendez is following up on a stunning high school debut in 2021 with another championship pursuit as she heads into this weekend’s MHSAA Finals coming off a Lower Peninsula Division 4 Regional title last week. She shot an even-par 72 to earn the medalist honor by 15 strokes at Washtenaw Golf Club in Ypsilanti, and in doing so led Greenhills to a team score of 380 and an eight-stroke win ahead of runner-up Royal Oak Shrine Catholic. Her 72 was the lowest at any LPD4 Regional.
This weekend’s LPD4 Final will be played Friday and Saturday at The Meadows at Grand Valley State University. Melendez is the reigning champion after shooting an LPD4 Finals 36-hole record 143 a year ago at Michigan State’s Forest Akers East to clinch the title by a stroke ahead of Michigan Center’s Kamryn Shannon. Melendez’ first-round 72 and second-round 71 that weekend also rank tied for third and second all-time in LPD4, respectively. Melendez also plays soccer and runs track for Greenhills.
@mhsaasports ⛳️POW: Mia Melendez #performanceoftheweek #golf #greenhills #par #regionalchampion #champions #finalsbound #goodluck #gryphons #MHSAA #highschoolsports #tiktalk #interview #TikTok #mistudentaid #fyp ♬ Beat Automotivo Tan Tan Tan Viral - WZ Beat
Follow the MHSAA on TikTok.
Second Half’s "Performance of the Week" features are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
2022-23 Honorees
Oct. 6: Shawn Foster, Grand Ledge football - Report
Sept. 30: Hannah Smith, Temperance Bedford swimming - Report
Sept. 22: Helen Sachs, Holland West Ottawa cross country - Report
Sept. 15: Nina Horning, Lake Orion volleyball - Report
Sept 8: Arturo Romero, Muskegon Oakridge soccer - Report
Sept. 1: Austin King, Midland Dow tennis - Report
Aug. 25: Olivia Hemmila, Troy Athens golf - Report
(Photos courtesy of the Ann Arbor Greenhills girls golf program.)