Rep Council Wrap-Up: Fall 2017
December 7, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A change in format for the Michigan High School Athletic Association Baseball Tournament was among notable actions taken by the Representative Council during its annual Fall Meeting, Dec. 1 in East Lansing, in addition to MHSAA basketball schedule changes for 2018-19 announced in a previous release Dec. 4.
Beginning with the 2019 tournament, baseball will move from its current one-day Saturday Regional and Quarterfinal the following Tuesday to a two-day “Super Regional” format. The Super Regional will begin with a Regional Semifinal on the Wednesday following District Finals, followed by two Regional Finals at the same site on Saturday. The winners of those two Regional Finals will then meet that same Saturday in a Super Regional championship game, with Super Regional winners then moving on directly to MHSAA Semifinals the following Thursday and Friday.
Both Regional champions will continue to receive trophies. No trophy will be awarded for the Super Regional champion. The MHSAA Softball Tournament, which runs concurrently with baseball’s event, will continue with the traditional schedule of Saturday Regionals followed by Tuesday Quarterfinals and then Semifinals and Finals the final weekend of the season.
The change for baseball is intended to provide teams more opportunities to use their top pitchers in the most meaningful games of the season, and was proposed by the MHSAA Baseball Committee prior to the Representative Council’s May 2017 meeting. However, the proposal was tabled at that time to give MHSAA staff an opportunity to observe how a new pitch-count rule – mandated to begin with the 2017 season by the National Federation of State High School Associations – might figure into possible changes to the tournament schedule.
The Council also took action in 8-player football, following up its decisions at earlier 2017 meetings to add a second division of playoffs and play this past season’s Finals at the Superior Dome in Marquette.
The Council’s latest actions dealt with schools’ eligibility to compete in the postseason. The Council voted to continue using the maximum enrollment for a Class D school as the limit to participate in the MHSAA 8-Player Football Playoffs. However, the Council also approved an allowance for schools that sponsored 8-player with a Class D enrollment one year to remain eligible for the 8-Player Playoffs the next year even if the school’s enrollment rises above the Class D limit. That allowance lasts only one year; the school’s enrollment must fall back below the Class D limit after for it to remain eligible for the 8-player postseason.
Generally, the Council takes only a few actions during its Fall Meeting, with topics often introduced for additional consideration and actions during its meetings in winter and spring.
The Council began conversation on a possible MHSAA role providing assistance to schools for scheduling regular-season football games, a task often cited as among the most difficult for administrators and especially those whose programs are among the most successful. The Council considered approaches used in other states and two options of what could be done to assist MHSAA member schools. A trial run paper study will be conducted for scheduling 8-player football for the 2018 season, distributed to Class D 8-player schools in April. The study will consider an option where schools would be split into two equal divisions, then four regions per division, from which each school would then schedule seven of its nine games for the upcoming season while leaving the other two dates open to play schools from other regions, the other division or other states.
Following up its request of staff at the May meeting to conduct a review of the MHSAA transfer rule, the Council discussed possible revisions to the rule that would make it sport-specific. The changes would allow for immediate eligibility for a transfer student in sports he or she had not participated in at the high school level prior to the transfer – which is more lenient than the current rule – but also stipulate a one-year period of ineligibility in those sports the transfer student had played in at the high school level during the school year prior to transferring, which is a longer period of ineligibility than currently required. The possibility of a sport-specific transfer rule has been discussed at league meetings and athletic director in-service and MHSAA UPDATE meetings over the last six months and will continue to be discussed at multiple venues this winter including the League Leadership meeting and Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association conference, with a possible Council vote at its 2018 March or May meetings.
The Council as well continued its recent work on junior high/middle school athletics, examining survey results and other discussion on the possibility of allowing athletes in any sport except football to participate in a maximum of two non-school events during the school season in that sport, after tabling in May a Junior High/Middle School Committee recommendation to approve that proposal. The Council also discussed increasing the number of contests allowed each season and adding more MHSAA sponsored events at the junior high/middle school level, with action on all three topics possible in March or May.
In addition, the Council discussed the potential for beginning volleyball season two days earlier and also ending it seven days earlier, supported by 90 percent of athletic directors who responded to a survey on the topic but opposed by the Michigan Interscholastic Volleyball Coaches Association; and continued an ongoing discussion of options for potentially seeding basketball at the District level. The Council also began discourse on the process for identifying potential athletic programs and additional student populations the MHSAA could serve during the decade ahead.
The Fall Meeting saw the addition of Justin Jennings, superintendent for Muskegon Public Schools, to the 19-person Council. He was appointed to a two-year term. Jennings fills the position formerly held by Cheri Meier, assistant superintendent for Okemos Public Schools, whose term ended. Also, Courtney Hawkins, athletic director at Flint Beecher High School, was re-appointed for a second two-year term.
The Council re-elected Scott Grimes, assistant superintendent of human services for Grand Haven Area Public Schools, as its president; and Vic Michaels, director of physical education and athletics for the Archdiocese of Detroit, as secretary-treasurer. Saginaw Heritage athletic director Pete Ryan was elected as vice president.
The Representative Council is the 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 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.
Detroit PSL’s McEvans, Comstock’s Ansel & KLAA’s Masi Named 2024 Bush Award Recipients
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
July 23, 2024
Detroit Public School League assistant director Anika McEvans, Comstock Public Schools athletic director Justin Ansel and Kensington Lakes Activities Association commissioner Bryan Masi all have served educational athletics for multiple decades in high-profile positions – but as is common in those roles, with much of their difference-making work taking place behind the scenes.
To recognize their efforts and celebrate those vast contributions to school sports, they have been named the 2024 recipients of the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s Allen W. Bush Award.
Al Bush served as executive director of the MHSAA for 10 years. The award honors individuals for past and continuing service to school athletics as a coach, administrator, official, trainer, doctor or member of the media. The award was developed to bring recognition to people who are giving and serving locally, regionally or statewide without a lot of attention. This is the 33rd year of the award.
McEvans finished her fifth school year this spring serving in the Office of Athletics for the Detroit Public Schools Community District, which administers programs for the Detroit PSL. She is responsible for planning and implementation of the PSL’s sports offerings for 72 elementary and middle schools in addition to her several responsibilities supporting the league’s 20 high schools.
The 1994 Detroit Renaissance graduate, and three-sport athlete there, came to the PSL from Southfield Public Schools, where she served as athletic director from 2012-15 for the former Southfield High School and then as district athletic director through 2017-18. As district director, she supervised more than 100 coaches, staff and volunteers and assisted in the merger of Southfield High and Southfield-Lathrup into Southfield Arts & Technology High School for the start of the 2016-17 school year. She previously served as well in several roles at Detroit Academy of Arts & Sciences from 2006-12, and also as director of business operations and then general manager for the Detroit Demolition/Detroit Danger women’s professional football franchise from 2002-06 and as assistant general manager for the Motor City Mechanics minor league hockey team from 2004-06.
McEvans has provided valuable input on a variety of MHSAA committees over the last decade, including athletic equity, junior high/middle school, scholar-athlete and as part of multiple officials and site selection committees and as a key voice on the MHSAA Multi-Sport Task Force during the last half of the last decade. The mother of three – with two current college athletes and a college freshman-to-be – also served as head girls basketball coach at Academy of Arts & Sciences, assistant girls basketball coach at Southfield and assistant boys basketball coach and assistant softball coach at Renaissance. She has a bachelor’s degree in sports management & communication from University of Michigan and a master’s in business administration from University of Detroit Mercy.
“Anika McEvans has provided a valuable voice in a variety of subjects of statewide importance, but especially on topics impacting students as they transition from middle school to high school – relying not only on her experiences as an administrator, but also as a parent helping her children navigate their paths in athletics,” MHSAA Executive Director Mark Uyl said. “Her work on the Junior High/Middle School Committee and Multi-Sport Task Force directly led to the creation of more opportunities for our younger athletes, but with a continuing focus on providing them with a well-rounded athletic experience.”
Ansel has served the last 17 years as athletic director for Comstock Public Schools, and during his time in the district also has coached varsity girls basketball and boys soccer and middle school girls and boys basketball, soccer and cross country. Both of his Colts varsity programs won multiple league championships under his guidance. Ansel came to Comstock after a decade at Onaway, where he taught and coached all 10 years and also served as athletic director over the final five.
His vast experiences on the sidelines and in the athletic office have made Ansel a valuable contributor on several MHSAA committees as well, including most recently the Junior High/Middle School Committee, and he’s also served as Southwest 10 Conference president and in multiple leadership roles with the Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (MIAAA). Locally, Ansel has raised from than $60,000 for various projects at Comstock, several highlighting the school’s athletic history.
A Monroe High graduate, Ansel earned a bachelor’s degree from Spring Arbor University in 1997, master’s degrees in education from Marygrove College in 2003 and educational leadership from Grand Valley State University in 2005, and he completed GVSU’s educational specialist in leadership program in 2018. He also has earned his certified master athletic administrator designation from the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA) and completed the master elite level of the MHSAA Coaches Advancement Program (CAP). Ansel was nominated by the MIAAA for the NIAAA’s Jim Teff Professional Development Achievement Award in 2019, and he was named the MIAAA’s Region 4 Athletic Director of the Year in 2023.
“Justin Ansel is known in his community, league and by those who have served with him across the state for his hands-on approach to providing enriching experiences for the communities he serves,” Uyl said. “His style as an administrator reflects what he’s provided as a coach – he’s known as an insightful team builder always working to move his programs forward.”
Masi just completed his fourth year as commissioner of the Kensington Lakes Activities Association, which is made up of 16 of the largest suburban schools in Metro Detroit, with his responsibilities including serving as liaison for the league locally and at the state level. He also previously served as the KLAA’s football commissioner from the league’s start in 2008.
He previously served as athletic director at Northville for 17 years, where he created the Northville Athletic Community Service Initiative that has raised thousands of dollars and provided goods and services for needy individuals and community service groups. He also started Northville’s unified sports program and hosted one of the MHSAA’s first junior high/middle school cross country Regional meets during the pilot stage of that program. Northville also hosted several MHSAA postseason events and sessions of the Coaches Advancement Program under his leadership.
A teacher previously and longtime coach as well, Masi was named Michigan Secondary Teacher of the Year in 1997 by the Michigan Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (MAPHERD) and selected to coach in the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association East/West All-Star Game in 1998. He was named MIAAA Region 11 Athletic Director of the Year in 2013 and MIAAA Middle School Athletic Director of the Year in 2019, and inducted into the Northville Athletic Hall of Fame in 2021. Masi also has served on several MHSAA committees including for football, gymnastics and junior high/middle school sports.
Masi graduated from Dearborn Edsel Ford, then earned his bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University, his master’s from Wayne State University and his certified athletic administrator (CAA) designation.
“Bryan Masi has brought the leadership, perspective and ingenuity he employed to build Northville’s success to the KLAA, and those qualities continue to show as he leads one of the state’s most high-profile leagues,” Uyl said. “Bryan is admired and respected by his counterparts, locally and across the state, not only for how he leads but the values he promotes in doing so.”