The following are articles written by the GHSA Executive Director
Just a few days ago, state association Executive Directors were notified through the National Federation of High School Associations of a second high school football program being shut down this season amid allegations of hazing and bullying.
Unfortunately, as each new school year dawns, issues and concerns related to sportsmanship reappear. Printed below are excerpts from an Items of Interest newsletter penned in 2011. The values expressed are unchanged for all of us at the GHSA. The sentiments could not be better stated today:
The winds of change have come to the Georgia High School Association. Subtle changes in long-term tenure began with the retirement of Joyce Kay. Mrs. Kay had been a primary fixture in the GHSA for more than 35 years.
Joyce’s retirement was followed, shortly, by the retirement of Associate Director Dennis Payne, an 11-year administrator in football and baseball.
Twenty-two years: seems like a lifetime; seems like just a moment. This will be the last article I write for the GHSA newsletter before I retire, and there is so much I would like to say. It has been my good fortune to serve in the chain of Executive Directors starting with Sam Burke and going through Bill Fordham and Tommy Guillebeau. I certainly appreciate the fact that the GHSA Executive Committee was willing to hire a relatively unknown person to the staff in 1992, and I really am grateful that they allowed me to serve as Executive Director for the past 12 years.
It is pleasing when you hear someone who is a recognized authority on a subject communicate messages that you have been communicating.
Gary Phillips and I experienced such a situation at the recent Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Speaker Series. This event was entitled, “Making Play Safe for Kids,” and a panel of recognized experts spent several hours discussing topics that were relevant to the work of the GHSA.
Many years ago in Accounting 101, I remember hearing the phrase “the cost of doing business.” The context at that time referred to fixed expenses that accumulate when operating a business. The “cost of doing business” is also a relevant issue in the area of education-based athletics and competitive activities. That concept does involve financial matters, but it goes into other areas as well.
During the days when NASA space flights were covered heavily on television, I was always intrigued when the astronauts had to perform “mid-course adjustments.” With all the computerized guidance that NASA had at its disposal, they still needed to adjust things in the middle of the project. I guess that frame of reference is comforting when I write this article about what I consider to be “mid-course adjustments” for this school year.
GEORGIA CONCUSSION LAW & GHSA BY-LAW 2.68
I trust that you are aware that the GHSA web site (www.ghsa.net) has been greatly enhanced in the past few weeks. There are more resources available than ever before. It is the responsibility of administrators and coaches of member schools to know the GHSA rules and procedures that affect their students and their competitive programs. That information is found on the GHSA web site.
