NFHS Awards Citations to Eight Athletic Directors

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Bruce Howard

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (November 10, 2008) - The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) will award NFHS Citations to eight high school athletic directors December 16 in San Diego, California, at the 39th annual National Conference of High School Directors of Athletics.

NFHS Citations are presented annually to outstanding athletic directors in recognition of contributions to interscholastic athletics at the local, state and national levels. State associations nominate athletic directors for NFHS Citations, and the NFHS Board of Directors approves recipients.

This year's award winners are Jeffrey M. Benson, CMAA, athletic director, Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School, South Paris, Maine; William Bowers, CMAA, executive director of the Oregon Athletic Directors Association; John Carlson, CMAA, director of athletics, Chandler (Arizona) Unified School District; Darren Paulson, CAA, activities director, Rapid City (South Dakota) Central High School; George Phelan III, CAA, athletic director, Miami (Florida) Sunset Senior High School; Carol M. Satterwhite, CAA, former athletic director, Wilde Lake High School, Columbia, Maryland; Gary Segrest, CAA, athletic director, Mineral Springs (Arkansas) Public Schools; and Doug Smith, CMAA, athletic administrator, Naperville (Illinois) North High School.

Citations will be presented at the conference banquet at 6:30 p.m. December 16.

Following are biographical sketches on this year's NFHS Citation recipients:

Jeffrey M. Benson, CMAA, has established himself as one of the true leaders of his profession during his 28-year education career in Maine school systems.

During the past nine years, Benson has served as an athletic administrator at Gray-New Gloucestor 3, as well as Edward Little High School in Auburn and Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School in South Paris. Prior to that, he served as a special education teacher, social studies teacher and athletic director during his 19 years at Lisbon High School in Lisbon Falls, Maine.

Benson also has been active in coaching. During his time at Lisbon High School, he was varsity baseball coach, varsity soccer coach and junior varsity basketball coach. From 1987 to 1990, he was an assistant baseball coach of St. Joseph's College in Standish, Maine.

Among his many recognitions, Benson was named both Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Athletic Administrator of the Year and the Robert Lahey Athletic Administrator of the Year for the state of Maine, and he received both an MIAAA Special Achievement Award and a Lisbon Staff Appreciation Award.

As a coach, Benson led Lisbon High School to Mountain Valley Conference baseball championships every year from 1983 to 1987. Lisbon High School was Western Maine Class B baseball runners-up in 1985 and 1986 and Benson was named Mountain Valley Conference baseball coach of the year in 1987.

Benson has also been active in the community and in officiating. Among his many activities, he served as Auburn Suburban League president for three years, and on the Board of Directors for the Jamie Benson Sports Scholarship Foundation, has been a Western Maine No. 21 basketball official for 25 years, has been a member of the Central Maine Board of Approved Umpires for 18 years, has been a Sunrise/North Atlantic Athletic Conference basketball official for 21 years and has been a member of the Collegiate Baseball Umpires Association of Maine for 14 years.

Bill Bowers, CMAA, devoted 31 years of stout service as an educator in Springfield (Oregon) Public Schools before becoming executive director of the Oregon Athletic Directors Association (OADA).

Bowers served as a mathematics instructor and the football, wrestling and baseball coach at Hamlin Junior High School from 1972 to 1979, a mathematics instructor, head baseball coach and assistant football coach at Springfield High School from 1979 to 2003, and was athletics and activities director at Springfield High School from 1995 to 2003.

Within the NIAAA, Bowers was state liaison to the NIAAA for six years and a state certification chair for two years, and he has presented more than 30 leadership training courses at state conferences and the national conference. At the state level, Bowers was ticket manager for the Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) state championship events for five years, was the Class 3A state wrestling championship meet director for three years and was the Class 1A state volleyball championship meet director for three years. Bowers, who was a member of the OADA executive board for 11 years, also served as the organization's president.

Throughout his career, Bowers has received considerable recognition. He was named Midwestern League Baseball coach of the year in both 1983 and 1988, the Midwestern League athletic director of the year, the OADA AAAA athletic director of the year and the OADA state athletic director of the year. At the national level, he was an NIAAA State Award of Merit recipient in 2003 and an NIAAA Distinguished Service Award recipient in 2005. In addition, he earned the CAA designation in 1998 and in 2002, became the first athletic director in Oregon to attain the CMAA designation.

Bowers has also been a key asset to the community as he was the executive secretary and treasurer of the Oregon Junior Baseball Association, president of the Springfield Baseball Commission and president of Midwestern League Athletic Directors. Currently, he is on the Emerald Kidsports Board of Directors, is the ticket chairman for OSAA state championship events and is the scoreboard operator for the University of Oregon's football and men's basketball teams.

John Carlson, CMAA, has devoted 34 outstanding years to the Chandler (Arizona) Unified School District, including the past 20 as district athletic director.

Prior to assuming Chandler's director of athletics position, Carlson was a teacher and coach at Chandler High School. During that time, he taught Arizona history, world history, safety education, study skills and physical education, and was a driver's education instructor, assistant football coach and head wrestling and track coach. Carlson, who spent his entire educational and coaching career in Arizona, began at Sacaton Public Schools and Central Arizona College.

Carlson, who is a lifetime NIAAA member, has been with the Arizona Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (AIAAA) for 20 years, including 18 as an executive board member and a term as president in 2006. He also has been a member of the Arizona Coaches Association for 37 years, the Arizona Education Association for 33 years and the National Education Association for 34 years. Carlson has been involved with USA Wrestling since 1981, serving on its junior division executive board since 1998.

Carlson has received a wide range of recognitions throughout his professional career. Among those, he was Chandler Young Educator of the Year and the State of Arizona Young Educator of the Year in 1979, the 3A Wrestling Coach of the Year in 1989, and the 5A Wrestling Coach of the Year in 1990.

Carlson was inducted into the Arizona Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1990 and into the Arizona Coaches Association High School Coaches Hall of Fame in 1995. At the national level, he received the NIAAA State Award of Merit 2000 and the NIAAA Distinguished Service Award in 2004.

Carlson, who was Chandler High School head wrestling coach from 1974 to 1991, fielded a nationally ranked program from 1987 to 1990, and led the team to state championships in 1989 and 1990. He also was an 11-year head track coach at Chandler High School and is a gold level certified coach with USA Wrestling.

It takes a special type of person to handle the position of activities director at the largest high school in South Dakota, but Darren Paulson, CAA, has been more than up to the task. For the past five years, he has excelled in that capacity at Rapid City Central (enrollment 2,300) and has been an athletic administrator for 15 years overall.

Before assuming his position at Rapid City, Paulson was both a teacher and a coach at Mission (South Dakota) Todd County and Lead-Deadwood (South Dakota) High Schools, where he coached football, basketball, track and wrestling. He was activities director during his final 10 years at Lead-Deadwood.

Paulson's service at the local, state and national levels has been quite extensive. Nationally, he was a member of the NIAAA Membership and Service Committee from 2000 to 2001; he obtained his CAA designation in 1998 and has been an attendee of seven national conferences, serving as a delegate in 2000, 2003 and 2004.

At the state level, Paulson has been a member of the South Dakota Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association Board of Directors since 1998, serving as president, vice president and second vice president, and he currently is state assistant leadership training coordinator. Within the South Dakota High School Activities Association, Paulson has been chairman of both the ad-hoc calendar committee and the out-of-season rules committee, and he has been a member of the State Football Advisory Committee since 2002. He has been state event/tournament manager for 11 different sports, including track, boys and girls basketball, and wrestling.

Among his many recognitions, Paulson was named Regional Activities Director of the Year in 2001, South Dakota Assistant Football Coach of the Year in 2001 and South Dakota Assistant Principal of the Year in 2003.

George Phelan III, CAA, has been an outstanding athletic director at Miami (Florida) Sunset Senior High since 1984, but his exemplary service at the school actually goes back to when he was hired as a member of the original staff in 1978.

Phelan was a guidance counselor during his first five years at the school, a position he continues to hold today along with being athletic director. Prior to his time at Miami Sunset, Phelan was a teacher and coach from 1971 to 1978 at Henry H. Filer Junior High, Hialeah High School and Miami Killian High Schools in Florida. Prior to becoming an athletic director, he coached cross country, badminton and wrestling for 13 years.

An NIAAA member since 1984, Phelan has attended all but one national conference during that time, was a member of the Florida Host Committee at three national conferences, was on the Awards Committee, and has been Florida's delegate to the NIAAA Delegate Assembly on two separate occasions. In recognition of his service to the organization, he received both an NIAAA State Award of Merit in 1995 and a Distinguished Service Award in 2005.

At the state level, Phelan has been an active member of the Florida Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (FIAAA) since 1984. Among his leadership positions, he has served as FIAAA president, FIAAA Board of Directors District 16 director and FIAAA Higher Education Committee chairman. In addition, he has been an FIAAA state conference presenter, panelist, discussion leader, moderator and audio visual coordinator. He has also served the Florida High School Athletic Association as a member of the Representative Assembly, the Athletic Directors' Advisory Board and the inaugural Public Liaison Advisory Committee.

Phelan has received numerous recognitions during his tenure at Miami Sunset. Among those, he was named 1984 "Wrestling Coach of the Year" by The Miami News, was chosen Dade County Counseling Association High School Counselor of the Year in 1998 and the FIAAA State of Florida Athletic Administrator of the Year in 2007.

Carol M. Satterwhite, CAA, who devoted her career to teaching, coaching and athletic administration at Columbia (Maryland) Wilde Lake High School, has continued that active involvement well into her retirement.

Satterwhite was a physical education teacher at Wilde Lake during her entire tenure at the school from 1971 to 2002. She was the physical education chairperson from 1972 to 1977, as well as the school's athletic director from 1972 to 2001. After retiring from Wilde Lake in 2002, she has served in various acting athletic administration positions at two high schools and as the athletic coordinator for the Howard County Public Schools in Maryland.

Satterwhite's career included a wide range of coaching stints at Wilde Lake. She was the girls varsity basketball coach (led them to a state semifinals appearance in 1976), the varsity softball and field hockey coach, the junior varsity field hockey coach, the girls outdoor track and field coach, and the golf coach.

During the past decade, Satterwhite has found time to become highly involved with the NIAAA. She has been a member of the National Executive Directors Council since 2004 and has been national emergency network coordinator for Section 2. Earlier this year, Satterwhite gave a presentation at the National Executive Directors Council's summer meeting on "Athletics Equity for Students with Disabilities in Maryland's Public Schools." In addition, she has been a Maryland state delegate to the NIAAA's Section 2 since 2002, a Maryland state liaison to the NIAAA since 2000, and has presided for the "How to Successfully Resolve Parent Conflicts" workshop at the 1998 national conference in Las Vegas.

Among the many honors Satterwhite has received are the American Red Cross Certificate of Appreciation (twice), the Maryland Jaycees Certificate of Appreciation (also twice), the Howard County Coaches Association Girls Basketball Coach of the Year, the NIAAA 30-year Service Award, the Maryland State Athletic Directors Association District V Athletic Director of the Year Award, the NIAAA 20-year Service Award and the Howard Community College Educational Foundation and Howard County Board of Education Teaching Excellence Award.

Gary Segrest, CAA, has had a remarkable run over the past 37 years as both a coach and an athletic director. Segrest has been an athletic director at every school he has worked at – Nashville (Arkansas) High School from 1978 to 1992, Hot Springs (Arkansas) Lakeside High School from 1992 to 2004, and Mineral Springs (Arkansas) High School since 2004.

Segrest has also been the head football coach at each school he has been, leading Nashville to eight conference championships and 10 playoff appearances. He coached Lakeside to its best football record in 20 years and to four state playoff appearances, and helped it become the first high school team to play in Europe in 1997. Before taking over as athletic director at Nashville, Segrest was a track and tennis coach, leading the track team to state championships in 1982 and 1983.

Segrest has been active both nationally and statewide in his endeavors. Within the NIAAA, he was a member of the NIAAA Board of Directors from 2002 to 2004. At the state level, Segrest served as the president of the Arkansas High School Athletic Administrators Association (AHSAAA), was the Arkansas state track meet director from 2005 to 2007, and organized several Arkansas coaches clinics.

As a result of his extensive coaching background and his involvement on both the national and state levels, Segrest has been frequently honored during his professional career. Among his many recognitions, he received both a Distinguished Service Award and a State Award of Merit from the AHSAAA and was named Arkansas Athletic Director of the Year in 1994 and 1995.

Although Doug Smith, CMAA, has been the athletic administrator at Naperville (Illinois) North High School since only 2003, he has spent the past 26 years filling that role at three other Illinois high schools.

Smith previously worked at Woodstock High School, Monmouth High School and East Peoria Community High School, putting together a very impressive career in the process.

At the national level, Smith has been an NIAAA member since 1984, was a member of the NIAAA Board of Directors, was a member and chairman of the Credentials Committee, was a liaison for Illinois, and was an NIAAA delegate seven times. He has written numerous articles on leadership, fundraising and office management for national magazines, and earned his CAA in 1996 and his CMAA in 2008.

Smith has also been very active at the state level, as he served as president of the Illinois Athletic Directors Association (IADA), was director of the IADA Mentoring Program, co-created the IADA Hall of Fame and served on the Illinois High School Association Strategic Planning Committee for the 2001-02 school year. He has started "Hoops for Healing" basketball tournaments that have raised more than $70,000 for cancer research in the past five years.

Smith has received substantial recognition for his work as he was an NIAAA Distinguished Service Award recipient in 2001, was named IADA Outstanding Athletic Director of the Year in 1994-95, and was chosen IADA Class AA Outstanding Athletic Director of the Year in 1993-94. He has also overseen tremendous athletic success at Naperville North (30 conference championships, 27 regional titles, 15 sectional titles and three state championships) and at Woodstock (28 conference championships, 12 regional titles, four sectional titles and one state championship).