Student Athlete or Program Recognition

"Tri-Honor Athlete"
(Timothy Brown, CMAA, Athletic Director, Mt. Anthony Union High School, Bennington, Vermont)
When I began as athletic dir-ector, two problems stood out in our school that needed solutions. First, was the escalating concern over sport specialization, and second, was the myth that athletics and academics are not intertwined.
I developed and implemented a program that addresses both issues. It is called the “Tri-Honor Athlete Award.” Over the years, it has become the most prestigious athletic award presented at our Underclassman and Senior Awards Night each June.
The first step is to begin a database program that charts the academic records of athletes. Through a school-aide program, students record scores in the database. When we post our school’s honor roll in the main lobby each quarter, I post an athletic honor roll in our cafeteria. By giving athletes their own honor roll board, it stresses the importance of academics and reinforces the belief of the athletic department that education comes first. With these numbers, you can develop a series of statistical arguments that support the fact that participating in extracurricular activities enhances self-discipline, good citizenship and time-management skills. I also share the results with parents in our fall meetings and spring wrap-up. We have also begun to post team honor rolls and it has created a contest to see which team can score the highest or beat last year’s average.
From this success, we were able to begin the Tri-Honor Athlete Award program. To be in the running for this award, an athlete must participate in the fall, winter and spring seasons, as well as make the honor roll in each quarter of the year. Athletes who meet the preceding criteria receive a certificate and a special pin on their varsity letter. We award these at a year-end awards banquet and engrave their name on a plaque that we hang in the cafeteria next to the athletic honor roll.
This program has been so encouraging that we have gone from presenting pins to 12 athletes to 42 last year. Rather than dissuade athletes from specializing, we use a positive approach to encourage and reward students for being well-rounded athletically and top achievers in the classroom.

"Leadership Council"
(Rebecca Freeman, CAA, Director of Student Activities, East Noble High School, Kendallville, Indiana) - The Athletic Leadership Council is a group of student athletes (one or two from each team as chosen by their coach) that I have breakfast with once a month. These student athletes serve as the student voice to the athletic department. It is a time for listening to their concerns, opinions and thoughts regarding our athletic program. There are only two rules: (1) this is not a time to evaluate coaches; and (2) this is not a time to talk about individual student athletes.

"Girls and Women in Sports Luncheon"
(Jean Kinn Ashen, CAA, Athletic Director, North Salinas High School, Salinas, Kansas) - One of our goals is to encourage female athletes to stay involved in athletics through officiating, coaching, training or administration. Annually in February, we host a "National Girls and Women in Sports" luncheon for every senior female student athlete in our school. Distinguished school and community persons are invited guests. Emphasis is placed on celebrating the success of Title IX and honoring Flo Hyman. A keynote speaker shares with the student athletes the benefits of athletic participation. The underclass athletes are involved in decorating the banquet room and helping prepare the luncheon food. Staff is given an opportunity to participate by financially sponsoring the lunch for one or more of the student athletes.

"Student of the Month Award"
(Ken Semelsberger, CMAA, Athletic Director, Port Huron High School, Port Huron, Michigan) - Our school selects a male and a female Student of the Month for three areas: Athlete, Academics and Activities. Each month the six selected students receive a T-shirt, lunch at a local McDonalds, their picture posted on the Wall of Fame and recognition in the local newspaper. Nominations and selections are done by the entire staff.

"Hawk of the Month"
(Francis Whitten III, Director of Athletics, Algonquin Regional High School, Northborough, Massachusetts) - Our program recognizes student athletes for outstanding performances on the field of play and in the classroom, community service performed or displays of good sportsmanship. We use the program to act as an incentive for our student athletes to excel.

"Breakfast of Champions"
(Lori Hyman, Athletic Director, Dexter High School, Dexter, Michigan) - To honor our student athletes and to involve our parents, we hold an annual Dexter Dreadnaught Breakfast of Champions. Breakfast is served in the school cafeteria. A senior student athlete is the keynote speaker. In addition to academic awards and athletic achievement awards, two special awards are presented. The "Dreadnaught Athlete of the Year Award" goes to one senior male and one senior female student athlete who have distinguished themselves as athletes during their high school careers. The "Touchstone of Excellence Award" is awarded to one male and one female senior athlete who have demonstrated excellent academic standing and an overall tremendous attitude while competing in high school athletics.

"MIAAA, Michigan, State Finals Girls Basketball Program"
Michigan’s professional organization of high school athletic directors, the Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (MIAAA), has initiated a new annual program to evaluate and recognize outstanding athletic programs that greatly serve students, families, communities and schools. This year six schools were honored with the award. Each school being considered for the award is required to go through a rigorous screening process which includes an application, written documentation of the program’s strengths, and an on-site two-day visit by an MIAAA evaluation team comprised of veteran athletic administrators.

"State-wide All Sports Championship"
(Larry Munksgaard, CAA, Athletic Director, Lincoln Southeast H. S., Lincoln, NE) - In an effort to reward schools who promote an all-sport emphasis, state associations could look in to rewarding an all-sport championship based on an accumulation of total points of all state associations by class. In individual sports, each school could be assigned points based on their final standings at State Tournaments. In team sports, the points could be assigned based on the final state poll of state sportswriters or a statewide vote of the coaches. In some states, a statewide newspaper may be interested in establishing such an award. This could also make for some excellent publicity for a state athletic directors organization if these awards were given at their annual meeting. This type of award could be used to promote multi-sports participation and decrease emphasis on specialization.

"Academic Athlete Awards"
(Joe Haines, Athletic Director, Konowa Hills High School, Grand Rapids, MI) - Starting in the fall of 1995 our athletic boosters and the athletic department combined to create a new award - Academic Athlete - that honors our student-athletes. This award is given to student-athletes on all levels who meet the following criteria: successfully completed the season; were not suspended during the season; received a grade point of at least 3.3 during the term. Student-athletes who meet the criteria receive an Academic Athlete T-shirt and certificate for their portfolios. All student-athletes who receive this award are listed in our district newsletter. Student-athletes may receive a T-shirt only once per school year, but may have their names listed as often as they qualify. The awards are presented at our end-of-season athletic banquets.

"Grand Fan Recognition"
(Judi Naylor, Retired, Piper High School, Kansas City, Kansas) - At Piper High School, we use “GRAND Fan” recognition to recognize our senior citizens, grandmothers, grandfathers and grand-others. We give a cushion with our mascot on it and a button pin that says “GRAND Fan.” This has been a big hit with our “GRAND Fans.”

"Congratulations Card"
(Ted D’Alessio, Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics, Millburn High School, Millburn, New Jersey) - We give a 3x5 printed card to players, fans or teachers for exceptional performance. On the face of the card we put the school logo, the word “Congratulations,” and other information such as the name of the person/department awarding the card. The card can be generated by using one of the many computer software programs available. The person giving the card can personalize it with a note on the back and a date.

"Staff Recognition"
(Doug Duval, Athletic Director, Mundelein High School, Mundelein, Illinois) - Each year during National High School Activities Week, our school recognizes both the athletic coaches and the student activity organization families. On Friday of Recognition Week, all coaches and activity sponsors are invited to a brunch, held from the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Food is purchased through the Booster Club and the athletic/allied activity accounts. Each person who attends also receives a gift that is purchased from funds in the athletic and activity accounts. One of the highlights is the group of boosters who come in early in the morning to prepare the site and the food for the coaches and activity sponsors. After all coaches and activity sponsors are finished, we invite all of the secretaries, custodians, library and non-certified staff to the reception.
Budgets can be adjusted to make purchases for this event and the Booster Club has been more than willing to help with funds and personnel. It is also possible to contact corporate sponsors for gifts and local bakeries and grocery stores for contributions. This is one of our best promotional and school community functions of the year.

"Scholar-Athlete Program"
(Thomas A. Mercer, Director of Athletics, Troy City Schools, Troy, Ohio) - At the end of each sports season we recognize those student-athletes who earn a 3.25 grade- point average or higher while participating in a sport. We award T-shirts for the first-time winners within a given school year, certificates for second-time winners, and chenille patches for winning this award for the third time within a given school year.

"Awards Check-off List"
(Sherry Unger, Athletic Director/Director of Student Activities, Bladensburg High School, Bladensburg, Maryland) - We produce an individual check-off list for each student. Because various information is needed for our “Awards Banquet,” we include an “Awards Won” section on the check-off list and other items that are needed such as grade-point average, honor roll information, etc. To streamline the planning process for athletic banquets, I also include invitations and program listing on the check-off sheet. Prior to using this system, I was using two or three different information sheets.

"Bear Blanket Award"
(John M. Kenney, Athletic Director, The Stony Brook School, Stony Brook, New York) - We award a woolen blanket with our school mascot (bear) to student-athletes who have achieved 12 varsity points. A varsity point is awarded upon earning a varsity letter. Additional points are earned for each post-season honor (all league/county/state). The award has caused many of our student-athletes to compete in different seasons rather than concentrate on a single sport.

"Recognizing and Honoring Present and Former Athletes"
(Rusty Dowling, Athletic Director, Texas City ISD, Texas City, Texas) - At Texas City High School we have two athletic banquets – one is in the fall for football and one is in the spring for all other sports. During each banquet we honor a team(s) from the past. We also bring back former athletes to present our awards to our current athletes. We host a reception for the members of our past teams and our award presenters. This is an excellent way to involve your alumni both inside and outside of your community. Our banquets are very successful and important events.

"Provincial Sportsmanship Awards"
(Wayne Erickson, Letheridge Collegiate Institute, Letheridge, Alberta, CANADA) - We recognize a team at all of our provincial championships for the sportsmanship they exhibit. It is a very prestigious award which includes a large banner. A member of our provincial executive office makes a special trip to the school and presents the award in front of the student body. This promotes team sportsmanship.

"Parental Recognition"
(Sherry Unger, Director of Student Activities, Bladensburg High School, Bladensburg, MD) - To increase parental support of all of our sports, we recognize parents of senior athletes who have provided extraordinary support to their child’s team over the years. Parents are recognized for such activities as development of a team’s booster club, volunteering extensive hours at the concession stand, planning team parties, assisting coaches with the coordination of team snacks, weekly team recognition for outstanding players and computation of stats. These parents are recognized at our annual athletic banquet with framed certificates. Head coaches are responsible for turning in the names of parents to be honored by their teams. Parents who are nominated by more than one team receive only one certificate; however, all of the teams that they supported are announced when they come forward with their child to be recognized. This inexpensive system has proven very successful in increasing parental support for all of our athletic teams.

"Kick-off Program"
(Chuck Van Hecke – Retired– Muscatine High School – Muscatine, IO) - In seeking ways to showcase our student-athletes, we center around our sports kick-offs. The kick-off program is a climax to the previous season and the kick-off for the start of the new sports season. It therefore serves as the springboard for the new season. Every program has each previous season head coach share the academic success of his/her teams. As academic award winners are announced, they join the other athletic and academic award winners already lined up on the gym floor.
Within an hour, each squad honors the all conference and all academic winners on the team. In order to qualify for the all-academic award, the student-athlete must maintain a 3.25 GPA and hold junior or senior standing. It is not unusual to have a kick-off with over 250 student-athletes together on the gym floor.
When faculty members comment on the success of the athletes, I remind them to ask the athletes to serve as tutors in the classroom for their classmates.

"Weekly Athletic Sportsmanship Recognition Program"
(Bill Andrew, Athletic Director, Mona Shores High School, Muskegon, MI) - Every Monday throughout the three sport seasons, I have my coaches on all levels (varsity, junior varsity and freshman) nominate one of their athletes who showed exceptional sportsmanship for the previous week. My secretary and I then choose one male athlete and one female athlete to win the award for the previous week. We then have the two athletes report to the athletic office where I present them with a certificate and a Mona Shores Sailor key chain. My secretary, Shelly Marine, then takes their picture with our digital camera and we post this picture outside of our athletic office. Shelly also makes a copy of this picture for both of the athletes. We also put the award winners on our school announcements the next day.
Our athletes look forward to winning this award and I think it has helped in promoting good sportsmanship throughout the entire school. Our student body absolutely loves this sportsmanship award.

"Honoring the Game Award"
(Larry Schwenke, CMAA, Retired, Coeur d’Alene High School, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho) - Football chain crews have a unique opportunity to witness firsthand the sideline behavior of visiting coaches, players, team support personnel and fans. This past season, our “Chain Gang” from Coeur d’Alene High School was so impressed with the sportsmanship and respect demonstrated by our opponents from Shadle Park High School in Spokane, Washington, that they approached me with a request to honor them. They asked to be allowed to purchase a trophy and award it annually to a visiting team. Thus was born the 1st Annual Coeur d’Alene High School Chain Crew Honoring the Game Award to be presented annually to the school whose football coaching staff and team distinguish themselves with the highest degree of sportsmanship. We believe that this is a very positive way to publicize and recognize positive behaviors in our opponents and encourage the same behaviors from our coaches, teams and fans.

"Female Athlete Luncheon"
(Jean Kinn Ashen, CAA – Athletic Director – North Salinas High School – Salinas, California) - One of our goals is to encourage our female athletes to stay involved in athletics through officiating, coaching, training or administration. So for the past seven years, North Salinas High School has hosted a “National Girls’ and Women in Sports” luncheon during the month of February. Every female senior athlete is invited from all ten sports on campus. We host a luncheon on a school day with an extended lunch period. We have keynote speakers who talk about the benefits of athletic participation. We also talk about why we have this event to honor Flo Hyman and to celebrate the success of Title IX. We invite board members, district officials and other distinguished guests. Each year we post the student athletes’ names in the main office and invite staff members to sponsor a girl for $7.00. Staff members fight over sponsoring girls since they all know what a wonderful event it is. We make the lunches of a Chicken Caesar salad, roll, fruit, drink and dessert with our freshman and sophomores female athletes in the morning. Many businesses contribute to the success of the luncheon with donations. Name tags are done in calligraphy by a local artist and our on-campus floristry department makes personalized favors for every student-athlete. The freshmen, sophomores and junior athletes decorate the gym the night before with old team pictures, balloons and centerpieces. It has become an event that our girls’ sports programs are quite proud of, and it has given our staff another opportunity to visit and enjoy the wonderful student-athletes we have.

"Athlete/Coach/Community Recognition Banquet"
(Terri McMahan, CAA, Athletic Director, Edmonds School District, Edmunds, Washington) - Each of our four high schools selects four athletes (two male/two female), two coaches (one with less than five years experience, the other more than five years) and a community contributor to be honored at an end of the year banquet designed to recognize contributors to the district athletic programs. In addition, the accomplishments of a student trainer are recognized (selected by the districts four athletic trainers) and a Director’s Award (selected by the district athletic director) is presented to recognize the accomplishments of those who have demonstrated significant long-term commitment and support. A corporate sponsor is secured that provides money for four scholarships, eight coaches stipends and half the dinner costs. Once the corporate sponsor is on board, numerous business and individual sponsors are added so that each student-athlete and the student trainer receive no less than a $500 scholarship. Coaches receive a professional development stipend that could be used for books, videos or conference attendance. A travel company donated gift certificates for the Director’s Award winners. A destination hotel donated overnight get-a-ways for the community contributors and a local restaurant provided a catered dinner at half price. A well known master of ceremonies is secured to keep the event professional and fast paced, and a local professional athlete delivers a short motivational talk.

Athlete of the Week Award
(Chris Fore, Director of Athletics, Capistrano Valley Christian School, San Juan Capistrano, California) - Students complete an athlete profile form and turn into my office. Each Monday we select one to post on the athletic department home page. This creates great interest in the athletic department home page and it is one of the most visited pages each month on the school web site.