The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Sportsmanship Summit. The WIAA, in cooperation with Rural Mutual Insurance Company, will conduct the Summit Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023, at the Holiday Inn & Convention Center in Stevens Point, Wis.
Registration will be open to all member schools. Each registered school team will consist of five members that can include students, coaches, administrators, booster clubs or members of the community. The deadline to register a team for the Summit is Wednesday, Nov. 15. Registrations will be processed in the order they are received, and registrations after capacity is reached or after the deadline will be placed on a waiting list.
Schools may register for more than one team, but priority will be given to schools registering one team if registration capacity is reached.
The Summit is scheduled to begin with registration at 8:30 a.m. with the first session starting at 8:55 a.m. The cost of the event is $150 per team, which includes Summit materials, a commemorative t-shirt and lunch.
The purpose of the Summit is to assist membership schools with their citizenship and sportsmanship efforts for students, student-athletes, adult fans, advisors, parents and booster clubs; developing plans to improve or maintain good sportsmanship locally; and assisting schools identify and implement a respectful environment for education-based athletics.
The Summit will feature a morning keynote address, an afternoon workshop and three time slots for four different break-out sessions, which focus on the ideals of sportsmanship/citizenship.
The keynote address will be presented by Craig Hillier, author of “Playing Beyond the Scoreboard.” The afternoon workshop will be moderated by Brian Yerke, principal at New London and member of the WIAA Sportsmanship Committee.
Participants will also attend three morning break-out sessions. The subjects for the four, 30-minute break-out presentations available during the three time slots are “Supporting and Instilling Exceptional Sportsmanship” by Bill Gosse, author of SCORE - A Guide to Supporting and Instilling Exception Sportsmanship;” “Coach & Participant Roles in Sportsmanship” by Mark Horbinski of WON80 and former member of the WIAA Sportsmanship Committee; “Sportsmanship: The Official’s Prospective” moderated by Dennis Kaczor, superintendent at Rosholt High School and member of the WIAA Sportsmanship Committee; “Super Fan Groups” by Waukesha West High School Athletic Director Kyle LeMieux and students; and “Sportsmanship Roundtable Discussions” moderated by Tyson Tlachac, athletic director at Racine St. Catherine’s High School and Cody Schultz, athletic director at Wayland Academy High School.
The link to the online registration form is on the Sportsmanship Summit page of the WIAA website and will be activated on Oct. 1.
Schools interested in registering for the 2023 Sportsmanship Summit should complete the online registration form by Wednesday, Nov. 15. Please contact the WIAA with any questions regarding the Summit by calling (715) 344-8580, or by emailing to tclark@wiaawi.org.
Schools wishing to reserve hotel rooms the night prior to the Summit should contact the Holiday Inn in Stevens Point directly at (715) 344-0200. The room rate for the Summit is $109 for a single or double.