FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 21, 2001
Coaches who commit acts of unsportsmanlike conduct to receive same suspensions as student-athletes; Hester elected president
GAINESVILLE – What's good for the student-athlete is good for the coach. That's the opinion of the Florida High School Activities Association Board of Directors which, on June 15, adopted a revision to the Association's "Policy on Unsportsmanlike Conduct" that calls for coaches who are disqualified from contests for unsportsmanlike acts to receive the same multiple-game suspensions as their student-athletes.
The Board of Directors also elected Sonny Hester, athletic director of Jesuit High School in Tampa, to serve as president of the Board of Directors for the 2001-02 school year.
Hester is both the first athletic director and the first private school representative to hold the office of president in the Association's 81-year history. Hester served as vice president this past school year.
Student-athletes who are ejected for regular acts of unsportsmanlike conduct receive a suspension from competition of seven days and a minimum of two contests – one game in football. For acts of gross unsportsmanlike conduct, they receive a suspension of up to six weeks.
Coaches, on the other hand, have been suspended only from coaching the next contest, regardless of the severity of the unsportsmanlike act, until now. "This policy revision is long overdue," said Commissioner Robert W. Hughes. "Coaches are expected to set the examples for their student-athletes to follow. They are supposed to be positive role models. And, to their credit, the overwhelming majority of our coaches are. The Association and its member schools are fortunate in that regard.
"But for those few coaches who, from time to time, do lose self-control in the heat of the moment, this revision hopefully will encourage them to try a bit harder."
The policy revision takes effect July 1 and will be enforced during the upcoming 2001-02 school year.
In other action, the Board of Directors:
• Gave preliminary approval to the 2001-02 fiscal year budgets for both the FHSAA and the Florida High School Athletic Association Land Corporation.
• Adopted a revision to the "Policy on the Eligibility of Foreign Exchange and Other International Students," which requires schools to submit the foreign student's original, untranslated transcript as well as the translation to the FHSAA Office.
• Approved a revision to the "Policy on Summer Athletic Participation," which changes the first day of the deregulated summer season from a fixed date of June 1 to the day after the last day of classes or spring athletic activities for each member school, with one exception. Schools that do not end classes until after May 31, may continue to begin summer athletic participation on June 1.
• Extended recognition status to the sports of girls flag football and boys volleyball effective with the 2001-02 school year. Participants in these two sports must now conform to FHSAA eligibility requirements and sportsmanship standards. Both sports may become eligible for sanction as a state championship series sport in two years.
• Appointed Walter Miller, principal of North Marion High School in Citra, to fill a vacant seat on the Section 2 Appeals Committee.
• Appointed Nuri Ayers, principal of Sickles High School in Tampa, to fill a vacant seat on the Section 3 Appeals Committee.
• Elected Bob Burnside, athletic director of Miami Southridge High School, to serve as vice president during the 2001-02 school year.
• Discussed a recommendation by the Florida Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (FIAAA) that the length of the seasons in all sports be reduced in length.
• Heard a presentation by Hughes on the possibility of changing the name of the Association.
The Florida High School Activities Association is the governing body for interscholastic athletic competition in Florida. It has a membership of 634 middle, junior and senior high schools.
Contact:
Jack Watford
Director of Communications, FHSAA
(352) 372-9551 ext. 170
jwatford@fhsaa.org
