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New Member Among 8 Elected to Council
October 15, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Elections were completed recently to fill positions on the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s legislative body, its Representative Council, and one new member was among those selected.
Calumet athletic director Sean Jacques will join the Council to represent Class C and D schools in the Upper Peninsula. He was elected to a two-year team, as were seven others who were re-elected and will begin terms during the Council’s fall meeting.
Saginaw Heritage athletic director Peter Ryan will continue to represent Class A and B schools in the northern section of the Lower Peninsula, and Reese athletic director Dave Derocher will continue to represent the Class C and D schools from their section. Buchanan athletic director Fredrick Smith will continue to represent Class A and B schools from the southwestern section of the Lower Peninsula, and Brighton athletic director John Thompson was re-elected to represent the Class A and B schools from the southeastern section.
Steve Newkirk, principal at Clare Middle School, was re-elected as one of two representatives of junior high and middle schools. Scott Grimes, assistant superintendent for Grand Haven Area Public Schools, will continue as one of two at-large statewide representatives. Vic Michaels, director of physical education and athletics for the Archdiocese of Detroit, will continue to represent private and parochial high schools.
The Representative Council is the 19-member legislative body of the MHSAA. All but five members 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 Council meets three times annually, and five members of the Council convene monthly during the school year to form the MHSAA’s Executive Committee, which reviews appeals of Handbook regulations by member schools.
Additional elections took place to select representatives to the Upper Peninsula Athletic Committee. Michael Berutti, who serves as principal, athletic director and football coach at Iron River West Iron County High School, was re-elected to represent athletic coaches. Baraga athletic director Jeff Markham was chosen to represent Class D schools.
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.
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Council Approves Winter Finals Update
January 14, 2021
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The MHSAA’s Representative Council today approved a plan for adjusting schedules for the five Winter “contact” sports which may begin non-contact activities Jan. 16 but not full practice and competition until Feb. 1 per the recent update to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) epidemic plan.
The updated schedule for girls and boys basketball, competitive cheer, ice hockey and wrestling pushes Finals for those sports into late March or early April. The Council approved the following dates:
Girls Basketball
First non-contact practice: Jan. 16
First contact practice: Feb. 1
First contest: Feb. 4
Districts: March 22, 24, 26
Regionals: March 29, 31
Quarterfinals: April 5
Semifinals: April 7
Finals: April 9
Boys Basketball
First non-contact practice: Jan. 16
First contact practice: Feb. 1
First contest: Feb. 4
Districts: March 23, 25, 27
Regionals: March 30, April 1
Quarterfinals: April 6
Semifinals: April 8
Finals: April 10
Competitive Cheer
First non-contact practice: Jan. 16
First contact practice: Feb. 1
First contest: Feb. 8
Districts: March 15-20
Regionals: March 22-24
Finals: March 26-27
Ice Hockey
First non-contact practice: Jan. 16
First contact practice: Feb. 1
First contest: Feb. 1
Regionals: March 15-20
Quarterfinals: March 23
Semifinals: March 25-26
Finals: March 27
Wrestling
First non-contact practice: Jan. 16
First contact practice: Feb. 1
First contest: Feb. 8
Districts: March 15-20
Regionals: March 22-28
Team Finals: March 31
Individual Finals: April 2-3
Spring sports will continue with their traditional dates, with first practices March 15. With this updated schedule, the majority of Winter athletes will have completed their seasons by the end of March. The updated schedule does carry on through schools’ spring breaks – MHSAA research found that 63 percent of member schools have spring break the week of March 29-April 4, with the other 37 percent on break from April 5-11.