Jun 26, 2009
NFHS Generic Graphic
INDIANAPOLIS — The 90th annual National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Summer Meeting will be held June 27-July 1 at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile. The NFHS is the national leadership organization for high school athletic and fine arts activities.
About 800 individuals are expected to attend the Summer Meeting, during which more than 40 workshops, forums and general sessions will be held, featuring distinguished speakers from around the United States. The annual induction of the NFHS National High School Hall of Fame class will close out the Summer Meeting. Attendees will be comprised of board members and staff from the 51 NFHS member state high school associations.
Some of the topics for discussion at the five-day meeting are public/private school issues, video streaming, cyber-bullying, injury surveillance, tobacco prevention, participation fees and interscholastic vs. club sports.
The keynote speaker at the opening session on June 28 will be Jody Conradt, former women's basketball coach and athletic director at the University of Texas. Upon her retirement from coaching in 2007, Conradt had the second-most career victories for an NCAA Division I basketball coach. She has been inducted into seven halls of fame and has been designated National Coach of the Year six times.
The second general session on June 29 will feature NFHS President Jim Tenopir, NFHS Executive Director Bob Kanaby and various NFHS staff members. They will provide reports on several NFHS initiatives and programs.
Pat Williams, senior vice president of the National Basketball Association's Orlando Magic, will speak at the closing general session on Wednesday, July 1. In addition to his work with the Magic, Williams has authored 54 books and works as a motivational speaker, having previously addressed the executives of Coca-Cola, Nike, American Express and Disney among others.
The Summer Meeting Luncheon will be held at noon Tuesday, June 30, and will feature the presentation of NFHS Citations to 11 individuals. State association honorees include Larry LaBrie of Maine, Larry Boucher of Kentucky, Carolyn Shannonhouse of North Carolina, Theresia Wynns of Indiana, Rick Bowden of Kansas, Jimmy Coats of Arkansas, Sue Kamiyama of California and Cindy Adsit of Washington.
Other Citation recipients are Dan McShannock (NFHS Coaches Association), Philip Heery (NFHS Officials Association) and Dr. Myron Welch (NFHS Music Association). Dr. Vito Perriello, former pediatric physician who chaired the NFHS Sports Medicine Advisory Committee for five years, will posthumously receive the NFHS Award of Merit, the highest honor an individual can receive from the NFHS outside of the NFHS National High School Hall of Fame. In addition, Dakota Dana of Star Valley High School in Afton, Wyoming, will be presented the NFHS National High School Spirit of Sport Award.
The NFHS Summer Meeting will conclude at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 1 with the induction of the 12-member 2009 class into the National High School Hall of Fame.
Athlete inductees this year include the late Billy Bye, David Clyde and Dana Miroballi. Bye was considered to be one of the most prolific and versatile high school athletes in Minnesota, earning an amazing 21 letters in six sports. He continued his football career at the University of Minnesota. Clyde, who was a record-setting pitcher at Houston (Texas) Westchester High School, went on to pitch for the Texas Rangers and Cleveland Indians. Miroballi dominated high school cross country in Illinois with four consecutive state championship victories at Wheeling High School and set records at several distances on the track, including her four consecutive 3,200-meter titles.
Five coaches will also be inducted into the Hall of Fame:
Harry Breland, whose coaching career spanned 37 years, started the baseball program at Hattiesburg (Mississippi) High School, eventually leading his boys to nine state championships.
At the age of 78, Guy Anderson continues to coach baseball at Cordova (California) High School and has racked up more than 800 victories and 15 league championships in 40 years along the way.
Dick Dullaghan, who retired from coaching in 2003, led three Indianapolis-area football teams to six undefeated seasons, eight state championships and 313 victories, averaging fewer than two losses a season for his entire 31-year career.
Bob Hurley, the only basketball coach in the National High School Sports Record Book to win 90 percent of his games, boasts 23 state championships and five undefeated seasons over the course of his 36-year career with Jersey City (New Jersey) St. Anthony High School, where he continues to coach.
Catherine Lempesis of South Carolina, who has coached girls track and cross country for 24 years and has 15 state championships under her belt, came out of retirement in 2005 and has had tremendous success at four South Carolina schools.
A contest official, two administrators and a fine arts educator were also chosen for this year's class. George Ford, who is still going strong at the age of 80, is in his 42nd season as a swimming and diving official. This founding father of the Connecticut Swimming and Diving Officials Association has officiated more than 30,000 meets.
Ruth Rehn served as the assistant executive director of the South Dakota High School Activities Association for 34 years, championing the cause of equal opportunity for girls in sports throughout the state and nation.
Clair Muscaro, who has held various leadership positions within the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA), served as an educator, coach and administrator in Ohio for 48 years, retiring in 2004 after nearly 15 years as commissioner of the OHSAA.
One of the nation's founders of modern instrumental music education, Himie Voxman, has spent the past 75 years instructing, adjudicating, composing and arranging, and has received the highest honors from virtually every instrumental music organization in the state of Iowa and the nation.
Summer Meeting attendees can also participate in a golf tournament on June 28, the seventh annual Bowling Tournament at 3 p.m. on June 29 and the 14th annual five-kilometer NFHS Fun Run/Walk at 6 a.m. on June 30. All of these events benefit the NFHS Foundation.
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