Board of Directors Meeting – Agenda Item
Site: / Robert W. Hughes FHSAA Building / Date: / September 23-24, 2007
Check One: / Action: / X / Discussion/Information:
Topic (brief descriptive statement):
Recommendations of Athletic Directors Advisory Committee.Detailed Information (background, observations, etc.):
The Athletic Directors Advisory Committee met Sept. 5, 2007, at the FHSAA Office in Gainesville. The committee has forwarded no recommendations for consideration by the Board of Directors. Minutes of the meeting are provided for your information.Recommendations(s):
Rationale:
Alternative(s) to Recommendation(s):
Data Source:
Boys Weightlifting Advisory CommitteeImpact (to be completed by FHSAA staff):
Jamie Rohrer, Assoc. Director of Athletics
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Name of Individual Submitting ItemSignature
Athletic Directors Advisory Committee Minutes
September 5, 2007 – 10:00 a.m.
Robert W. Hughes FHSAA Building
Gainesville, Florida
Andy Chiles, standing chairperson, called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. The following committee members were in attendance: Andy Chiles, Varela High School (Miami); Mark Feely, Leon High School (Tallahassee); Ken Seybold, Matanzas High School (Palm Coast); Maria Siegfriedt, Coral Reef High School, Tim Sparkman, Astronaut High School; Buddy Tomaini, Wakulla High School; Russell Wambles, Apopka High School/FIAAA Rep.; Ed McPadden, Vanguard High School (Ocala)/FACA Rep.; Robert Repp, Lake Weir High School; and Jerry Welch, All Saint’s Academy (Winter Haven). FHSAA staff members present were Dr. John Stewart, Commissioner; Denarvise Thornton, Senior Director of Athletics and Officials; Jamie Rohrer, Associate Director of Athletics; Paul McLaughlin, Director of Athletics; Gary Pigott, Associate Director of Athletics; Shanell Young, Associate Director of Athletics; Tamara Forrester, Associate Director of Athletics; Sedeirdra Smith, Assistant Director of Eligibility; Robert Elkins, Comptroller; Shaterra Reed, FHSAA Intern; and Kyle Gerberding, FHSAA Intern.
1. Mr. Chiles and Mr. Thornton welcomed the committee members to the Robert W. Hughes FHSAA Building. Mr. Thornton briefly explained the procedures for the meeting and filling out the expense vouchers.
2. Mr. Thornton gave a brief statement regarding the purpose of the meeting and those in attendance introduce themselves.
3. The committee reviewed the meeting minutes from March 14, 2007. The minutes were approved 10-0. [Motion: Sparkman, Second: Welch]
4. Spring sports, Officials and Sports Medicine advisory committee minutes and recommendations were reviewed and the following action were taken:
Baseball - McLaughlin
Modify the penalty for NFHS Rule 3-1-1.
“For discovery of an illegal player (2-36-3) on offense by an umpire or either team, that player shall be called out and shall be ejectedrestricted to the bench/dugout for the duration of the game. An illegal player discovered on defense shall be ejectedrestricted to the bench/dugout for the duration of the game…” Note: This is the existing NFHS penalty.
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: McPadden, Second: Siegfriedt]
Modify the NFHS Bat Rule for Middle Schools Only.
NFHS Rule 1-3-2 and 1-3-4 shall be modified to permit bats with a differential greater than –3 to be used in Middle School baseball games. Note: A student in eighth grade or below playing on a high school team cannot benefit from this rule change.
The recommendation was not endorsed 10-0 due to the specific challenges that may be faced by directly changing an NFHS rule. Additionally, safety is a concern due to the various ages and physical development of all the student-athletes that would be affected. [Motion: Feely, Second: McPadden]
Lacrosse - McLaughlin
A brief update was given regarding the sport being recognized with an invitational state championship series by the FHSAA once the FHSAA Board of Directors approves it. If approved, there will be a state series in the spring of 2008. Challenges noted by FHSAA Staff would be sanctioning and registering Officials Associations and Officials.
The committee was informed that at this time, the FHSAA has 63 schools that wish to participate in Boys Lacrosse and 61 schools that wish to participate in Girls Lacrosse. If approved, the sport would consist of 16 districts and the state series would have two play-in games.
Softball - Rohrer
Accept the NFHS Rule Change to allow Metal Cleats.
Rule 3-2-11 has been added to the NFHS Rule Book. This rule states, “Players permitted to wear metal cleats and metal toe plates.”
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Sparkman, Second: McPadden]
43’ Pitching Distance/NFHS Experiment
Apply for a third NFHS Experiment for the pitching distance in softball to remain at 43’.
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Sparkman, Second, Siegfriedt]
Condense the FHSAA Softball State Finals to a 3-day event.
Move the Softball State Finals to a 3-day event instead of the 6-day event, which is currently in place. Moving to a Thursday, Friday and Saturday format would offer athletes, families and the student body the chance to attend while missing less time from work and school. Softball is a sport that works well in a tournament format and with this proposed format, schools would still have the chance to play in the stadium setting.
The recommendation was not endorsed 10-0 due to the challenges that would be caused from rain, smoke, lightning delays/cancellations, etc. that could exist, as has been in the past. This format would also take away from the overall “State Championship Experience” in the stadium setting for all teams involved. [Motion: Sparkman, Second: Welch]
Tennis - Pigott
Extend the Tennis Season
Begin the tennis season 2 weeks earlier. This would mean that Tennis would begin the same week as baseball and end during the regularly scheduled Tennis end date.
This recommendation was not endorsed 7-3 due to the impact on other individual sport seasons and the length of the seasons with regard to overlap. [Motion: Seybold, Second: McPadden]
Advance District Runners-Up
Add the district runner-up to the tennis playoff system. Another regional dual match will be added to accomplish the recommendation. Runners-up advance in most other sports.
This recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Tomaini, Second: Welch]
USTA Officials Fees
Have schools who participate in the team portion of the FHSAA Tennis Finals supplement the difference in the FHSAA budget to accommodate the fees requested from the local USTA officials. This would help to resolve possible disputes that may arise in the presence of the competitive matches at the FHSAA Tennis Finals.
The recommendation was not endorsed 10-0 due to the committees belief that an endorsement may inhibit the negotiation process. [Motion: Wambles, Second: Repp]
Track & Field - Young
Uniform Numbers
Remove the requirement to have numbers on the back of all uniforms. This would cut down on the expense on uniforms, due to the wear and tear on the numbers. There are also other ways to identify athletes, i.e. hip numbers and lane assignments.
This recommendation was not endorsed 10-0 due to the committees feeling that numbers are a safeguard to help identify student-athletes. [Motion: Sparkman, Second: McPadden]
Regional Advancement
Current rule for Regional Meets: Top four (4) from each heat advance from prelims to finals. The recommendation is to advance the top three (3) from each heat and then the next two (2) fastest times. This would help to properly place athletes in the correct lanes when hand times are used in district competition.
This recommendation was amended to state, “Current rule for Regional Meets: Top four (4) from each heat advance from prelims to finals. The recommendation is to advance the top three (3) from each heat and then the next two (2) overall fastest times.” The amendment was approved 10-0. [Motion: Sparkman, Second: Welch]
The amended recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Sparkman, Second: Welch]
Weightlifting - Young
Record Breaking Platform
All lifts shall be completed on the same platform once competition has begun, unless there is an emergency. Creating this policy for regular season ensures this practice is continued at the State Finals.
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Welch, Second: Seybold]
Spotters
Allow coaches and/or student-athletes who are already on the competition floor to spot other athletes. Establishing this policy will allow this practice at the state finals, which currently remains at the discretion of the administration and host. This is regular season practice, because most coaches are unable to safely spot their heavier weights during the season. Each athlete practices with the same spotter throughout the regular season and has to change once they get to the state finals.
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Wambles, Second: Welch]
Meet Regulations/Coaches Passes
Recommendation from 2005 amended to read: “Each school that qualifies three (3) or more athletes will receive two coaches passes, with a maximum of two coaches/floor passes.” This will allow a maximum number of coaches into the competition area for the purpose of spotting athletes during their lifts, but allow for better “crowd control” on the floor.
The recommendation was not endorsed 9-1. The purpose for non-endorsement was to allow the FHSAA Staff to continue to use the sliding scale based on the host venue and the local situation. The FHSAA is fortunate to have large venues where the current State Finals are hosted for boys and girls, but that may not always be the case. [Motion: Welch, Second: Repp]
Mandatory Structured Qualifying Format
Require all sections to use the structured format for qualifying. This recommendation would add consistency to how athletes advance.
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Seybold, Second: Welch]
Extend the Weightlifting Sport Season
Begin the season during Week 29, first competition Week 32, Sectional Meets, Week 39-40 and State Finals Week 42. This would allow for the proper amount of training as is consistent with other sports and would also allow for more flexibility in scheduling sectional qualifying meets.
The recommendation was not endorsed 10-0. The committee felt that the rationale did not suit the recommendation and weightlifters already participate in “weightlifting classes” throughout the school year and “work-out” year round as it is. [Motion: McPadden, Second: Feely]
Create a Weightlifting Officials Association
Establish a weightlifting officials association to properly train State Final Judges. This would bring consistency to the judging of State Final contests within the sport.
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Wambles, Second: Siegfriedt]
Awards for Sectional Team Champions
Remove Rule 204.3 (2) J. Allow the awarding of Sectional Team Champions. Since Weightlifting is an individual sport that has a team aspect, by awarding a team champion, it would push athletes to succeed and offer weightlifting athletes the same team awards as is done in other individual FHSAA sports. The recommendation would remove 204.3 (2) J. and be worded as is in Golf 210.01 (1).
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Siegfriedt, Second: Seybold]
Sports Medicine - Smith
Ms. Smith briefly reviewed the minutes of the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee. Primary topics of conversation were concussions among student athletes and adding more appropriate questions to the Preparticipation Physical Evaluation forms to better detect existing head injuries. Additionally, the Sports Medicine Committee discussed better education of coaches, officials and school administration on what to look for if an injury were to occur. Ms. Smith also briefed the committee on where the FHSAA was with Steroid Testing and offered to answer any questions that the committee members had.
Officials Advisory Committee - Forrester
Add one official spot for a 25 second clock operator
Each Football Association brings their own 25-second clock operator to playoff games that require such. The individual must be registered and capable of running the 25-second clock. This recommendation would exclude the State Championship game.
The recommendation was not endorsed 10-0 due to facility challenges and having very few schools who actually have a 25-second clock. [Motion: Sparkman, Second: Siegfriedt]
Length of Halves for JV Soccer
Change “may” to “will” in the FHSAA Soccer Manual. The Soccer Manual currently states the length of halves for JV Soccer “may” be 30 minutes. The recommendation would also require a change in 7-1-1 in the FHSAA Officials Guidebook. These changes will eliminate any debate or confusion regarding the length of halves. Halves for JV games should be shorter than halves for varsity games.
The recommendation was not supported 8-2 as the committee felt it would be best for the decision to be left up to each local school system. [Motion: Sparkman, Second: Feely]
Football Crews using 2 vehicles
Authorize the use of 2 cars for officials travel during regular season play. Generally, football crews are 6-7 individuals who do not fit into one vehicle. Additionally, the going rate for mileage from the IRS is 44.5 cents both ways and officials are only authorized to charge .60 cents, which is only .30 cents per mile both ways. The price of gas has increased and this change would make it a little more worth the time and effort most officials put forth.
The recommendation was not endorsed. A motion to endorse failed 7-3. [Motion: Wambles, Second: Welch] The majority of the committee felt that this should be left up to the schools/officials associations to negotiate in their own individual contracts.
Payment of Fees for State Series Contests
Add a policy that states, “Crews who travel to a regional assignment and then after their arrival the game is cancelled, should be paid a full game fee.” Currently, due to weather delays, etc. the crew is only paid for their travel, which is not sufficient when considering the travel time, time away from work, home, etc.
The recommendation was not endorsed 10-0. The committee feels that in these types of situations, the problems are beyond their control and everyone takes a financial risk, including the schools. [Motion: McPadden, Second: Feely]
5. General Recommendations:
Restructuring of the Athletic Directors Advisory Committee
Restructure the Athletic Directors Advisory Committee (ADAC) by increasing the number of representatives on the committee to include additional representatives of the FIAAA as members of the FHSAA ADAC.
The recommendation was endorsed 10-0. [Motion: Seybold, Second: Welch]
District Planning Meetings
Change Individual Sports District Planning Meetings to at least a two-week window. Currently, the one-day policy restricts A.D.’s from attending meetings and interferes with the scheduling of matches and meets. Allowing this procedure would bring consistency among all sports.
No motion or action was made. The committee chose to leave this up to FHSAA staff for they have the administrative authority to make that change. The staff noted the concerns and will take them into consideration when planning the schedule for the 2008-2009 school year.
Officials Guidebook 1003.01
In 1003.01 remove the words, “when it is practical. However”. By deleting the aforementioned words, the intent of the regulation is not affected, three-man crews just would become a recommendation.
No motion or action was made.
6. Open Agenda (Discussion Only):
District Assignments and Structure of Planning Meeting
In some instances a given school/county may feel that another school/county is gaining an unfair advantage at the district planning meeting due to the number of schools from a given area, outnumbering the schools from another area and vice versa. This subject has been the topic of conversation at many advisory committee meetings and all concerns have been taken into consideration.
Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be one sure answer that would resolve the issues on a district-by-district basis. The committee was addressed by FHSAA Staff and asked to take this into consideration when hosting and/or attending district planning meetings to insure fairness and an equal opportunity for all schools involved.
Certified Athletic Trainers
The committee reviewed a letter from an Athletic Trainer who felt it was necessary to allow all Certified Athletic Trainers of participating schools free admission to State Series Contests. Under the current policy, each school is allowed a certain number of passes to distribute as they so choose. The committee chose to make no changes, as the current policy seems to be working well.
Athletic Directors Rules Presentation
The Committee discussed the addition of an Athletic Directors Rules Presentation, similar to what is mandatory for Coaches and Officials. The Committee felt that the presentation was a good idea on an informational basis, as long as it was not required. Currently, the FHSAA hosts an annual Compliance Seminar, which is required for school administration every three years, and the rules presentation was an idea to keep schools informed on changes that happen for the schools who are in their “off years”.