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One Community at a Time
July 24, 2012
In the northwest corner of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula there is a group of volunteers who are focusing on the character-building potential of youth and high school sports. They are teaching the principles and recognizing the people that make character education happen frequently and by design, rather than only rarely and by accident.
The group is known as Beyond The Scoreboard. It draws on resources from Character Counts, Positive Coaching Alliance and others; and it delivers character education through inexpensive workshops for athletes, coaches, officials, sports leaders and spectators.
Beyond The Scoreboard also conducts a Champions of Character Awards Dinner, the 8th Annual held June 11, 2012 in Petoskey. I’ve attended most and was the speaker in 2011. This year’s speaker was my counterpart with the Arizona Interscholastic Association, Commissioner Harold Slemmer.
At an event like this there are many moments that uplift the best of youth and school sports. Here are two from this year’s banquet:
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When East Jordan High School runner Luke Hawley was thanking those who helped him be the kind of person who would be honored as the high school male athlete, he thanked many people, including the maintenance person who prepared the high school track. I had never before heard a high school student-athlete include a groundskeeper in his support group. And it told me a lot about this young man. He’s likely to be a good employee, spouse and parent someday.
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When a member of the Petoskey High School football team was introducing his coach, Kerry VanOrman, who was being honored as the high school coach, he said the first thing Coach VanOrman would say to every player he greeted was a question about something other than sports; and he would be the same way to every player, no matter how skilled. He’s coaching more than a sport; he’s coaching kids. Helping them become better people.
After a single banquet, an attentive person could develop a game plan for character building for an entire season. Imagine all that’s been shared to improve youth and school sports after eight years! Congratulations to founder Jack Taylor, Executive Director Ron Goodman and all board members and volunteers.
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Engagement
October 31, 2017
In addition to daily calls, texts, emails and old-fashioned mail delivery, Michigan High School Athletic Association staff engaged face to face with its core constituents in these ways from August of 2016 through July of 2017:
- More than 350 local school visits, including:
- Approximately 120 to attend regular season local contests to evaluate officials for MHSAA tournament readiness.
- More than 60 to support or evaluate MHSAA pre-Final tournament events.
- More than 60 to speak at or support MHSAA CAP sessions (plus 25 CAP sessions at the MHSAA building).
- 12 for MHSAA.TV, NFHS Network or School Broadcast Program.
- 6 for Second Half website features.
- 6 for new school orientation.
- 5 for Battle of the Fans (each involving 3 MHSAA staff).
- 5 for officiating classes.
- 2 for Reaching Higher (each involving 4 or more staff).
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More than 60 local officials association visits, including:
- 45 for rules meetings/presentations.
Plus 8 visits to officials camps,
5 presentations to college officiating classes, and
9 officiating recruitment events.
- More than 50 coaches association meetings.
- 24 for MHSAA rules meetings/presentations.
- 6 for CAP programs.
Plus the Coaches Association Presidents dinner at the MHSAA office involving 9 MHSAA staff.
- More than 50 league meetings, including:
- 8 to conduct student leadership or sportsmanship events or for team captains clinics (usually involving multiple MHSAA staff).
- 8 to provide event marketing assistance.
- 7 to provide MHSAA information/updates.
- 6 to provide MHSAA rules meetings/presentations.
- 3 for ArbiterGame training (usually involving 2 or more MHSAA staff).
Plus the League Leadership Meeting at the MHSAA office involving most MHSAA staff.
- More than 15 MIAAA meetings.
- 10 MHSAA staff at the March conference.
- 2 MHSAA staff at the summer workshop.
- 2 to 4 MHSAA staff at most board meetings.
- At least 1 staff at multiple committee meetings, strategic planning, etc.
- More than 50 standing committees, task forces and ad hoc study groups convened at the MHSAA office, and several did so multiple times.
What is abundantly clear here is that the MHSAA staff does not operate from an ivory tower or information vacuum.