STEVENS POINT, Wis. – Dean Sanders, district administrator at Lake Mills, presided over the first meeting of the 2013-14 Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Board of Control today.
Brad Ayer, district administrator at Clear Lake, and Steve Knecht, coordinator of Athletics, Physical Education and Recreation in the Kenosha school district were introduced as new Board members for Districts 1 and 7, respectively. In addition, Bill Yingst, the Board of Education president at Durand, attended his first meeting as the appointed representative of the Wisconsin Association of School Boards.
The Board also conducted its 2013-14 officer elections. Mike Beighley, the district administrator at Whitehall, was elected president-elect; and Corey Baumgartner, the principal at Kiel, will serve as treasurer.
The final consideration of a Board-modified conference realignment proposal involving the Coulee, Mississippi Valley and Southwest Wisconsin Conferences failed to receive approval. The modified proposal would have maintained the current conference structure with a mandate to schedule two football-only crossover games between the Coulee Conference and Southwest Wisconsin Conference by the 2014 season. The Board anticipates a presentation of another plan at its meeting in September.
The Spring Sports Spectacular reviewing the 2013 spring and summer State tournaments is scheduled to be broadcast Sunday, Aug. 25. The program will air at 1 p.m. on WAOW-TV (Wausau), WXOW-TV (La Crosse), WQOW-TV (Eau Claire), WKOW-TV (Madison) and WYOW-TV (Eagle River). It is scheduled to air at noon on KBJR-TV (Duluth/Superior) and WACY-TV (Appleton/Green Bay), and at 11 a.m. on WMLW-TV (Milwaukee).
The Board also approved new appointments to the 2013-14 Coaches Advisory Committees and approved the renewal of the Association’s membership in the National Federation of State High School Associations, as well as the WIAA’s agreement to join the NFHS Network. The Board also received staff reports on the New Athletic Directors Workshop, licensed officials background checks, the State Summer Baseball Tournament and a preview of the 2013-14 operational budget. In addition, Mike Thompson. liaison for the Department of Public Instruction, and Brian Smith of Waunakee, the liaison for the Wisconsin Athletic Directors Association, presented updates in their reports to the Board.
The membership of the WIAA oversees interscholastic athletic programs for 506 senior high schools and 64 junior high/middle level schools in its membership. It will sponsor 25 championship tournament series in 2013-14. For more information, please contact the WIAA office at (715) 344-8580.