'Mentor' to Receive Forsythe Award
March 14, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Long before he became superintendent for multiple Oakland County school districts, George Heitsch was a young athletic director first at Westland Huron Valley and then West Bloomfield High School.
And thankfully, there were veterans like Auburn Hills Avondale’s Chuck Nurek to show him the ropes.
“Chuck was a gracious mentor taking the time to encourage, support and, at times, direct a ‘newbie,’” wrote Heitsch in recommending Nurek for the MHSAA’s Charles E. Forsythe Award. “Chuck has a passion and dedication for the Avondale interscholastic athletic program and high school sports in general. … Chuck had dedicated his life service to not only the students in Avondale but to bettering the student-athlete experience for everyone in Michigan.”
That career of service, and especially dedication to the training and educating of athletic directors and coaches throughout Michigan, has earned Nurek this year’s MHSAA annual honor for outstanding contributions to the interscholastic athletics community.
The Charles E. Forsythe Award is in its 40th year and named after the MHSAA’s first full-time and longest-serving chief executive. Forsythe Award recipients are selected each year by the MHSAA Representative Council. Nurek will receive his honor during the break after the first quarter of the MHSAA Class A Boys Basketball Final on March 25 at the Breslin Student Events Center in East Lansing.
Nurek served as athletic director at Auburn Hills Avondale High School from 1978-1999 after previously serving as assistant athletic administrator beginning in 1968. In addition to his leadership at that school – Avondale named its fieldhouse after him in 2012 – Nurek also was active in county and league leadership and statewide as part of the Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (MIAAA).
In all three roles, Nurek helped to provide tools, training and mentoring for those charged with directing high school sports programs and teams. One of his far-reaching impacts came as a longtime member and chairperson of the MIAAA Convention Program Committee, growing and planning an event that regularly draws more than 500 athletic directors, secretaries and assistants. Nurek also served as an early steering committee member of the MHSAA coaches education program that has evolved to educate and certify thousands over the last 30 years.
“Chuck Nurek has dedicated decades to educational athletics and particularly to the training of those who in turn lead our programs in their daily pursuits,” MHSAA Executive Director John E. “Jack” Roberts said. “He has impacted multiple generations of school leaders in our state, both through his assistance in building up our coaches education and then his work in making the MIAAA conference one of the most valuable teaching tools of its kind. We’re pleased to present Chuck Nurek with the Charles E. Forsythe Award.”
Nurek coached varsity basketball, cross country and subvarsity football at points during his Avondale tenure, and also taught physical education for all but the final few years of his time as an athletic administrator.
It was during his time as athletic director that Nurek saw the need for education, both to combat heavy turnover among school athletic directors and also to provide framework for an influx of coaches who did not work fulltime in schools.
He first began in coaches education as part of a small group of athletic directors building a program for Oakland County. That group merged with another, and in 1987 Nurek contributed in the creation of what became known as the MHSAA’s Program of Athletic Coaches Education (PACE), the predecessor of the current Coaches Advancement Program (CAP).
A frequent past speaker at MHSAA athletic director in-service programs, Nurek also served as part of an MHSAA mentoring program that paired veteran or retired athletic directors with new administrators. And he played a significant role in designing the MIAAA convention, which includes various training sessions for high school and middle school athletic directors, their assistants and secretaries while also serving as a significant source for networking and professional development.
“Just being able to work with all the great people over the years that I worked with, whether it be the leaders in Oakland County or leaders at the MIAAA,” Nurek said of his favorite memories over four decades, “and especially just the outstanding people on the conference committee, putting together one of the best conferences in the country.”
Nurek also served as part of the MIAAA’s State Sportsmanship Committee and Exemplary Athletic Programs Committee and as a representative to the 5 State Exchange Committee, chairing that group for a year.
At Avondale, Nurek co-sponsored a successful Substance Abuse Awareness Conference and organized a group of students to develop standards for sportsmanship both for the student body and the school’s parent group as well. At the league level, Nurek served as North Oakland Activities Conference president in 1980 and Metro Conference president from 1986-87, and later as president and secretary of the Macomb-Oakland Activities Conference. He also created a program to recognize academic excellence both for his league and all of Oakland County.
Nurek was named “Athletic Director of the Year” by the MIAAA for 1998-99 and his region’s award winner in 1991, and received the MIAAA’s George Lovich State Award of Merit in 2004. He also was named “Athletic Director of the Year” by the Oakland County Athletic Directors Association in 1996 and served as that body’s treasurer from 1983-99.
Nurek has been a member of the MIAAA since 1980 and National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA) since 1985. He also has been a member of the Michigan Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (MAHPERD) and American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD).
He graduated from Avondale in 1958 and then earned his bachelor’s degree in education from Northwest Missouri State University in 1966. He also earned a master’s in education from Eastern Michigan University in 1971 and received Certified Athletic Administrator certification from the NIAAA in 1994. Nurek maintained a strong presence in the Avondale community, speaking at the district’s annual parent fairs and serving as a board member of Auburn Hills’ Boys Club for a decade. Nurek also was involved with the local Little League program for a number of years and worked as part of the Avondale football scholarship golf outing committee.
Past recipients of the Charles E. Forsythe Award
1978 - Brick Fowler, Port Huron; Paul Smarks, Warren
1979 - Earl Messner, Reed City; Howard Beatty, Saginaw
1980 - Max Carey, Freesoil
1981 - Steven Sluka, Grand Haven; Samuel Madden, Detroit
1982 - Ernest Buckholz, Mt. Clemens; T. Arthur Treloar, Petoskey
1983 - Leroy Dues, Detroit; Richard Maher, Sturgis
1984 - William Hart, Marquette; Donald Stamats, Caro
1985 - John Cotton, Farmington; Robert James, Warren
1986 - William Robinson, Detroit; Irving Soderland, Norway
1987 - Jack Streidl, Plainwell; Wayne Hellenga, Decatur
1988 - Jack Johnson, Dearborn; Alan Williams, North Adams
1989 - Walter Bazylewicz, Berkley; Dennis Kiley, Jackson
1990 - Webster Morrison, Pickford; Herbert Quade, Benton Harbor
1991 - Clifford Buckmaster, Petoskey; Donald Domke, Northville
1992 - William Maskill, Kalamazoo; Thomas G. McShannock, Muskegon
1993 - Roy A. Allen Jr., Detroit; John Duncan, Cedarville
1994 - Kermit Ambrose, Royal Oak
1995 - Bob Perry, Lowell
1996 - Charles H. Jones, Royal Oak
1997 - Michael A. Foster, Richland; Robert G. Grimes, Battle Creek
1998 - Lofton C. Greene, River Rouge; Joseph J. Todey, Essexville
1999 - Bernie Larson, Battle Creek
2000 - Blake Hagman, Kalamazoo; Jerry Cvengros, Escanaba
2001 - Norm Johnson, Bangor; George Lovich, Canton
2002 - John Fundukian, Novi
2003 - Ken Semelsberger, Port Huron
2004 - Marco Marcet, Frankenmuth
2005 - Jim Feldkamp, Troy
2006 - Dan McShannock, Midland; Dail Prucka, Monroe
2007 - Keith Eldred, Williamston; Tom Hickman, Spring Lake
2008 - Jamie Gent, Haslett; William Newkirk, Sanford-Meridian
2009 - Paul Ellinger, Cheboygan
2010 - Rudy Godefroidt, Hemlock; Mike Boyd, Waterford
2011 - Eric C. Federico, Trenton
2012 - Bill Mick, Midland
2013 - Jim Gilmore, Tecumseh; Dave Hutton, Grandville
2014 - Dan Flynn, Escanaba
2015 - Hugh Matson, Saginaw
2016 - Gary Hice, Petoskey; Gina Mazzolini, Lansing
PHOTOS: (Top) A sign over the doors at Auburn Hills Avondale's gym announces the former athletic director for which it is named. (Middle) Chuck Nurek stands for a photo inside the building named after him. (Photos courtesy of Avondale High School.)
Rep Council Wrap-Up: Spring 2021
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
May 6, 2021
The addition of a girls division to the Individual Wrestling Tournament series and approval of a common start date for all Fall sports highlighted actions taken by the Representative Council of the Michigan High School Athletic Association during its annual Spring Meeting on May 3.
The Spring Meeting of the 19-member legislative body of the Association’s more than 1,500 member schools is generally the busiest of its sessions each year. The Council considered 19 committee proposals and dealt with a variety of eligibility rule, postseason tournament and operational issues.
Beginning with the 2021-22 school year, a championship division for female competitors who participate on MHSAA member school teams will be added to the Individual Wrestling Tournament series. There will be 14 champions awarded, based on weight classes established by the National Federation of State High School Associations. Qualifiers will be determined via a sectional format, and girls will continue to compete on boys teams during regular-season and team tournament competition; girls also may choose to compete in the boys individual tournament instead of the girls bracket. A total of 401 girls competed in wrestling for MHSAA member schools during the 2019-20 school year, up from 250 in 2017-18 and then 327 in 2018-19. The girls division proposal had been put forth by the MHSAA Wrestling Committee.
The Council also voted to move the start of all Fall sports practices to the same day. Those sports now may begin on the 16th Monday before Thanksgiving. Previously, football started on a Monday and all other sports began Wednesday. For the upcoming school year, the Fall sports start date is Aug. 9, 2021.
As it has during most meetings over the 2020-21 school year, the Council continued to discuss possible adjustments because of the COVID-19 pandemic and disruption it has caused to Michigan high school athletics. Notably, the Council approved an extension of the waiver of the previous academic record regulation for sports played in Fall 2021. This is the third extension of the waiver. The previous academic record regulation requires participants to have received credit for at least 66 percent of a full credit load during the previous semester. As COVID-19 has resulted in various academic scheduling adjustments, schools will continue to determine if athletes have met the credit level necessary to be eligible for athletics this fall.
The Council also made permanent the allowance for cooperative programs in nine sports among schools of the same public school district regardless of the 3,500-student enrollment maximum. Those co-op programs were first allowed as part of a two-year experiment beginning with the 2016-17 school year to increase possibilities for participation in those sports – baseball, bowling, girls competitive cheer, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, tennis and wrestling. Schools taking part in these co-op programs must continue to show a demonstrated history of inadequate numbers of participants and apply for renewal every two years.
Here is a summary of other notable actions taken by the Representative Council at the Spring Meeting, which will take effect during the 2021-22 school year:
Athletic Equity
• The Council approved an Athletic Equity Committee recommendation to publish the following statement to suggest to local schools that they review nicknames and school logos that are considered offensive or hurtful to minority groups or demonstrate an insensitive bias:
“The MHSAA recognizes the importance of equity in high school sports. Schools and mascots are rich in tradition and unique to each community. Although we understand the tradition of those individual communities, we also wish to support and foster an environment of inclusion. It is in this spirit that the MHSAA encourages member schools and communities to evaluate and reconsider names and mascots that may be offensive to groups of individuals.”
Officials
• The Council approved an Officials Review Committee recommendation to adjust the officials rating system with the hope of encouraging more ratings and providing a more specific understanding of an official’s overall body of work. Instead of the current overall 1-5 rating system, officials will receive specific feedback in four categories: judgment, presence and demeanor, attitude and effort, and administration and communication.
Sport Matters
• In bowling, the Council approved a Bowling Committee recommendation to adopt the Phantom oil pattern for the 2021-22 season.
• In competitive cheer, the Council approved a Girls Competitive Cheer Committee recommendation to study a new choreography chart that will award points based on a variety of skills while also awarding a range of points to benefit both small and large teams which have various skill levels.
• Also in cheer, the Council approved a pair of Committee technical recommendations; the first allows for a connected tumbling skill to be considered a new variety point for Round 3, and the second allows four difficulty points for a one-leg flair at the elevator level for middle school competition.
• In golf, the Council approved the Golf Committee recommendation to require the use of the iWanamaker scoring program and app during the regular season, beginning in Fall 2021. The program and app became required during Regional and Finals play during the Fall 2020 season.
• In softball, the Council approved a Girls Softball Committee recommendation to add a suspended game policy to MHSAA playing rule adoptions in the MHSAA Handbook. This policy – which mirrors that approved for baseball in 2020 – provides a game will be suspended any time it is called before it reaches regulation, or if called any time when the score is tied.
• In tennis, the Council approved a Tennis Committee recommendation regarding instances when a seeded player withdraws from Regional or Finals competition before the first match is played. In those instances, the players seeded lower in that flight than the player who withdrew will move up one seed and be placed on the previously-determined lines for those seeds within the flight bracket. However, non-seeded players already drawn into the bracket will not be moved.
• Also in wrestling, the Council approved a late-arrival skin check on days – especially during weekends – when teams may be competing in multiple regular-season duals. An athlete who misses the scheduled morning skin check may, with coach’s notification to the official beforehand, receive a skin check upon later arrival to the event but prior to the start of the dual in which the wrestler may compete. This will allow an individual the opportunity to participate if that wrestler missed the scheduled morning inspection due to educational reasons or unforeseen circumstances.
The Council also discussed possible topics for presentation during this fall’s Update Meeting statewide tour, and took action to clarify Handbook language regarding a variety of topics. The Association’s $11.5 million budget for the 2021-22 school year also was approved.
The Representative Council is the 19-member legislative body of the MHSAA. All but five are elected by member schools. Four members are appointed by the Council to facilitate representation of females and minorities, and the 19th position is occupied by the Superintendent of Public Instruction or designee.
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.