Rep Council Wrap-Up: Winter 2015
April 1, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The selection of a new venue for its Team Wrestling Finals highlighted actions taken by the Representative Council of the Michigan High School Athletic Association during its annual Winter Meeting on March 27 in East Lansing.
The Team Wrestling Finals will be hosted by McGuirk Arena at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant for two years beginning with the 2016 tournament. The Team Wrestling Finals previously had been hosted by Kellogg Arena in Battle Creek since their inception in 1988.
McGuirk, formerly Rose Arena, is part of the CMU Events Center and reopened in 2010 after the facility underwent $22.5 million in renovations. McGuirk seats 4,867 fans for wrestling competitions, and the building also features adjacent practice areas that will be utilized by teams competing at the MHSAA Finals.
Rose Arena formerly served as host of the MHSAA Girls Basketball Finals from 1997-2003.
“We are grateful to the athletic directors, staff and volunteers whose time and energy factored heavily into creating and growing the Team Wrestling Finals at Kellogg Arena,” MHSAA Executive Director John E. “Jack” Roberts said. “The decision to move from Battle Creek was not an easy one. However, we believe Central Michigan University offers us a fantastic opportunity to continue growing one of our most popular championship events.”
The Representative Council also continued discussions on three issues which may require action at meetings later this calendar year.
Continuing its examination of athletics at the junior high/middle school level, the Council discussed recommendations submitted by the MHSAA’s Junior High/Middle School Committee, including one which may come up for vote at the Council’s May meeting. It is a request for a membership vote to amend the MHSAA Constitution to allow for school membership beginning at the 6th grade. If the Council approves, the amendment vote likely would occur in late October after another round of membership meetings.
The Council also continued its discussion of potential changes to out-of-season coaching rules and considered results of surveys taken during the MHSAA’s Update Meetings in the fall and by athletic directors and leaders of leagues and conferences during the late fall and winter. The major changes in rules that were proposed for discussion last summer have not gained traction with the MHSAA membership, but three modifications intended to give school coaches longer and more flexible contact with their student-athletes out of season during the school year will receive Council action in May.
Continuing its work regarding the eligibility of international students, the Council also approved that MHSAA staff continue reviewing school-operated international student programs for the purpose of granting students athletic eligibility at MHSAA schools. A proposal first approved at the March 2014 meeting granted the MHSAA authority to grant athletic eligibility to students placed through an Approved International Student Program that had not been accepted for listing by the Council on Standards for International Educational Travel (CSIET), so long as that Approved International Student Program is not eligible for CSIET consideration and listing. CSIET will only review existing programs, but the MHSAA’s supplemental process will allow programs too new for the CSIET process to gain approval for 2015-16.
Those international students placed through an Approved International Student Program are eligible for a maximum of the first two consecutive semesters or three consecutive trimesters at any secondary school in the United States, after which the student is ineligible for interscholastic athletic competition at any MHSAA member school for the next academic year. International students who do not meet one of the residency exceptions recognized by the MHSAA or are not enrolled through an Approved International Student Program or CSIET-listed program may become eligible after one semester to participate at the subvarsity level only.
The Representative Council is the legislative body of the MHSAA. All but five members are elected by member schools. Four members are appointed by the Council to facilitate representation of females and minorities, and the 19th position is occupied by the Superintendent of Public Instruction or designee.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,400 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
2022 Scholar-Athlete Finalists Announced
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 19, 2022
The 120 finalists for the Michigan High School Athletic Association's Scholar-Athlete Awards for the 2021-22 school year, presented by Farm Bureau Insurance, have been announced.
The program, in its 33rd year, has recognized student-athletes since the 1989-90 school year and again this winter will honor 32 individuals from MHSAA member schools who participate in at least one sport in which the Association sponsors a postseason tournament.
Farm Bureau Insurance underwrites the Scholar-Athlete Awards and will present a $2,000 scholarship to each recipient. Since the beginning of the program, 864 scholarships have been awarded.
Scholarships will be presented proportionately by school classification, with 12 scholarships to be awarded to Class A student-athletes, six female and six male; eight scholarships awarded to Class B student-athletes, four female and four male; six scholarships awarded to Class C student-athletes, three female and three male; and four scholarships awarded to Class D student-athletes, two female and two male. In addition, two scholarships will be awarded at-large to minority recipients, regardless of school size.
Every MHSAA member high school could submit as many applications as there are scholarships available in its classification, and could have more than one finalist. Brownstown Woodhaven, Freeland and St. Johns have three finalists this year. Nineteen schools have two finalists: Ann Arbor Pioneer, Detroit Catholic Central, Fenton, Fowler, Frankenmuth, Hillsdale Academy, Holland, Holland West Ottawa, Kingsford, Livonia Churchill, Livonia Franklin, McBain Northern Michigan Christian, Montague, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, Ortonville Brandon, Rochester Hills Stoney Creek, Saline, Traverse City West and White Lake Lakeland.
Multiple-sport participation remains the norm among applicants. The average sport participation rate of the finalists is 2.91. There are 81 three-plus sport participants in the finalists field, and all but two of the 28 sports in which the MHSAA sponsors postseason tournaments are represented.
Of 407 schools which submitted applicants, 26 submitted the maximum allowed. This year, 1,434 applications were received. All applicants will be presented with certificates commemorating their achievement. Additional Scholar-Athlete information, including a complete list of scholarship nominees, can be found on the MHSAA Website.
The applications were judged by a 58-member committee of school coaches, counselors, faculty members, administrators and board members from MHSAA member schools. Selection of the 32 scholarship recipients will take place in early February. Class C and D scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 8, Class B scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 15 and Class A scholarship recipients will be announced Feb. 22. All announcements will be made on the MHSAA Website.
To be eligible for the award, students must have a cumulative grade-point average of 3.50 (on a 4.0 scale) and previously have won a varsity letter in at least one sport in which the MHSAA sponsors a postseason tournament. Students also were asked to respond to a series of short essay questions, submit two letters of recommendation and a 500-word essay on the importance of sportsmanship in educational athletics.
Farm Bureau Insurance of Michigan was founded in 1949 by Michigan farmers who wanted an insurance company that worked as hard as they did. Those values still guide the company today and are a big reason why it is known as Michigan’s Insurance Company, dedicated to protecting the farms, families, and businesses of this great state. Farm Bureau Insurance agents across Michigan provide a full range of insurance services – life, home, auto, farm, business, retirement, Lake Estate®, and more – protecting nearly 500,000 Michigan policyholders.
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.
2021-22 Scholar-Athlete Award Finalists
GIRLS CLASS A
Cookie Estelleh Baugh, Ann Arbor Pioneer
Amelia Weyhing, Ann Arbor Pioneer
Piper Barnhart, Brownstown Woodhaven
Sophia Lustig, Brownstown Woodhaven
Madison Hissong, Fraser
Brooke Myers, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern
Ana Todesco, Grosse Pointe North
Sonya Konon, Harrison Township L'Anse Creuse
Greta VanZetten, Holland
Elzien Zomer, Holland
Natalie Blake, Holland West Ottawa
Ella Spooner, Holland West Ottawa
Abigail Lueck, Livonia Churchill
Samantha Provenzano, Livonia Franklin
Erica Molnar, Livonia Stevenson
Laura Leiti, Midland Dow
Alexandria Stacy French, Richland Gull Lake
Ella DeGraw, Rochester Hills Stoney Creek
Kiera Hall, Rochester Hills Stoney Creek
Kate Meinecke, Royal Oak
Alexis Maloney, St. Johns
Sara Schermerhorn, Traverse City West
Hannah DiGiovanni, Troy Athens
Maeve Spicer, White Lake Lakeland
BOYS CLASS A
Nathan Pawlowicz, Battle Creek Lakeview
Brady Wright, Birmingham Seaholm
Nathan Jerore, Brownstown Woodhaven
Colin Pearson, Caledonia
Joseph Marano, Dearborn Edsel Ford
Conner Bell, Detroit Catholic Central
Neil Zhu, Detroit Catholic Central
Chase Gibson, Fenton
Nick Temple, Fenton
Ben Taylor, Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central
Ross VanBlois, Grandville
Owen Swisher, Livonia Churchill
James Oberman, Livonia Franklin
Colin Koot, Mason
Klay Grant, Muskegon Reeths-Puffer
John Bungart, Orchard Lake St Mary's
Thomas Randall, Orchard Lake St Mary's
William Goelz, Petoskey
Blake Coy, Saline
Amod Talekar, Saline
Kaden Keller, St. Johns
Jake Lasceski, St. Johns
Ethan Tennant, Temperance Bedford
Michael T. Schermerhorn, Traverse City West
Caiden Carlson, White Lake Lakeland
GIRLS CLASS B
Elise Rose Johnson, Benzie Central
Sydni Mudge, Birch Run
Claire Thomson, Clawson
Faith Breinager, Frankenmuth
Emma Kerkau, Frankenmuth
Sophia Argyle, Freeland
Whitney Farrell, Freeland
Haley Zerlaut, Fremont
Maggie Duba, Grand Rapids West Catholic
Magdalaina Menghini, Kingsford
Claire Meacham, Montague
Mallory Moore, Ortonville Brandon
Paige Thwing, Ortonville Brandon
Alina Stanczak, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Ashley Bower, Portland
Rylee Tolson, Stockbridge
BOYS CLASS B
Zachary Elmouchi, Ada Forest Hills Eastern
Thomas Hamann, Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard
Jeff Ren, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
Jace DeRosia, Chelsea
Jared Hanson, Escanaba
Liam Anderson, Essexville Garber
Alex Duley, Freeland
Jack Rellinger, Grand Rapids Catholic Central
Curtis Knapp, Jonesville
Michael A. Meneguzzo, Kingsford
Seth Thompson, Manistee
Jerome Korten, Marshall
Cale Coppess, Montague
Bennett Blase Hitzelberger, Richmond
Joseph Hayes, Shelby
Derek Distelrath, St. Clair
GIRLS CLASS C
Haley Anne Newland, Bad Axe
Karly Smith, Beal City
Isabel Contreras-Spencer, Grass Lake
Gillian Kuehnle, Hartford
Gabrielle Carey, Iron Mountain
Jillian Koski, Ishpeming Westwood
Jordan Fox, Lake City
Isabel Henige, New Lothrop
Trinity Kolka, Sanford Meridian
Anna McPherson, Saranac
Ryann Locke, Springport
Korah Honig, St. Louis
BOYS CLASS C
Mert Oral, Ann Arbor Greenhills
Dylan David Reisig, Bridgman
Cole Garrison Stone, Carson City-Crystal
Samuel Peterson, Charlevoix
Ryan Doty, Clinton
Jack Davis, Holland Black River
Jack Hollebeek, Grandville Calvin Christian
Isaac Backman, Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep
Ty Ruddy, Ottawa Lake Whiteford
Joshua M. Fairbanks, Roscommon
Jonah Cerone, Royal Oak Shrine Catholic
Alex Tanner, Whitmore Lake
GIRLS CLASS D
Ashton Hord, Felch North Dickinson
Mia Riley, Fowler
Tara Townsend, Frankfort
Alaina Roush, Harbor Springs Harbor Light Christian
Anna Roberts, Hillsdale Academy
Meredith VanDerWeide, Hillsdale Academy
Skylar Wiesen, Leland
Megan Bennett, McBain Northern Michigan Christian
BOYS CLASS D
Cole Robinson, Bellaire
Jack Matrella, Bessemer
Brayden M. Steenwyk, Ellsworth
Jacob Rademacher, Fowler
Eli Shoup, Mason County Eastern
Jonas P. Lanser, McBain Northern Michigan Christian
Samuel Paga, Petoskey St. Michael Academy
Ashton McNabb, Three Oaks River Valley