New Member to join MHSAA Rep Council
October 15, 2012
Elections were completed recently to fill positions on the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s legislative body, its Representative Council, and one new member was among those selected.
Reese athletic director Dave Derocher will join the council to represent Class C and D schools in the northern section of the Lower Peninsula. He was elected to a two-year team, as were seven others who were re-elected and will begin terms during the council’s fall meeting.
Saginaw Heritage athletic director and assistant principal Peter Ryan will continue to represent Class A and B schools in the Lower Peninsula’s northern section, Buchanan athletic director Fredrick Smith will continue to represent Class A and B in the southwestern section, and Brighton athletic director John Thompson will continue to represent Class A and B in the southeastern section. Negaunee superintendent James Derocher will continue to represent Class C and D schools in the Upper Peninsula.
Grand Haven assistant superintendent Scott C. Grimes was re-elected to a statewide at-large position, and Clare Middle School principal Steve Newkirk was re-elected to represent junior high and middle schools. Vic Michaels, director of physical education and athletics for the Archdiocese of Detroit, will continue to represent private and parochial schools.
The Representative Council is the 19-member 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 Council meets three times annually, and five members of the Council convene monthly during the school year to form the MHSAA’s Executive Committee, which reviews appeals of Handbook regulations by member schools.
Additional elections took place to select representatives to the Upper Peninsula Athletic Committee. St. Ignace superintendent Donald Gustafson was chosen to represent Class D schools. Michael Berutti, who serves as principal, athletic director and football coach at Iron River West Iron County High School, was elected to represent athletic coaches.
Parade of Champions 2015-16
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
June 23, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Seven schools hoisted Michigan High School Athletic Association team championship trophies for the first time this school year, as 99 schools total won one or more of the 130 Finals championships awarded during 2015-16.
Teams earning the first MHSAA championship in any sport for their schools were Sterling Heights Parkway Christian in baseball, Detroit Henry Ford in boys basketball, Ypsilanti Arbor Prep in girls basketball, Tawas and Clarkston Everest Collegiate in boys golf, Burton Genesee Christian in boys soccer and Bloomfield Hills in boys tennis.
A total of 37 teams won their first MHSAA titles in their respective sports. A total of 50 champions were repeat winners from 2014-15 – and 25 of those won for at least the third straight season, up from 16 that accomplished the same feat a year ago. Still, championships were more spread out this school year; the 99 schools winning at least one title were nine more than in 2014-15.
The Birmingham Brother Rice boys lacrosse team has the longest title streak of 12 seasons, while the Ann Arbor Greenhills boys tennis team has won eight straight titles for the second-longest streak overall. The Gibraltar Carlson competitive cheer and Marquette girls track & field teams share the longest girls winning streaks with six straight championships apiece.
Marquette again claimed the most MHSAA team titles, six, winning in Division 1 boys skiing and Division 1 girls skiing, Upper Peninsula Division 1 girls cross country, Upper Peninsula boys swimming & diving, and Upper Peninsula Division 1 boys track & field and girls track & field. Ishpeming won five titles, and four more schools won at least three titles – Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central, Ithaca, Negaunee and Rockford (including the championship won by the combined Rockford/Sparta girls gymnastics team.)
Sixteen of the MHSAA's 28 championship tournaments are unified, involving teams from the Upper and Lower Peninsulas, while separate competition to determine titlists in both Peninsulas is conducted in remaining sports.
For a sport-by-sport listing of MHSAA champions for 2015-16 - Click Here (PDF)
PHOTO: Detroit Henry Ford boys basketball coach Kenneth Flowers hoists his team's Class B championship trophy this winter.