Georgia Athletic Directors Association Newsletter

www.GADAonline.net

Vol. 5 No. 7

February 2014

Dear GADA member,

Gary Long

Spring sports are now up and running. It is amazing to see all the student athletes practicing for their respective sports after school. The track is covered with runners, throwers and pole vaulters. I love the sounds of baseball players hitting baseballs and shagging fly balls. It is awesome to see the soccer teams running drills and scoring goals. It is good to see the Lacrosse players running, throwing and working hard to get ready for the season opener. The golfers are on the links and hitting hundreds of practice balls. The tennis courts are full of players volleying and practicing on their serves. The gymnastic teams are working on their skills for the spring season. It is really a great time to be around the high schools! We wish all the schools the best of luck this season. A special shout out to all the seniors who will be completing their high school sports careers in the next few months.

Please remember to get registered for the State Athletic Directors conference that will start on March 22 at the Hilton Savannah Desoto. We have a great conference scheduled with many LTI course's being offered. Dr. Ralph Swearngin will be our featured speaker. We will recognize the new inductee's into the Hall of Fame and recognize the Region and State AD of the year winners. We look forward to seeing everyone in Savannah.

Thanks to all the AD's in Georgia for your continued hard work and efforts. Good luck to each of you and your programs as we head into the busiest time of year for Georgia High School Athletics!

Gary Long, CMAA

GADA President

Director of Athletics

Mill Creek High School

2014 GADA Annual Conference Schedule

March 22-25, 2014 - Desoto Hilton, Savannah, GA

Hilton Savannah DeSoto's group rates expire Feb. 19th

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Leadership Training Courses: Chippewa, Monterey, & Telfair Rooms

1:00-5:00 P.M.

LTC 501 Athletic Administration (Philosophy- Leadership): Tommy Amoroso- Chippewa

LTC 615 Athletic Administration: Field Management: Nate Turner - Monterey

LTC 703 Student Centered Athletics (Beyond X'S & O'S): - Telfair?

2:00 - 2:30 Break: Registration - Reynolds Room

5:00 - 6:00 Board Meeting - Ossabaw Room

7:30 P.M. - Board Dinner

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Leadership Training Courses: Chippewa, Monterey, & Telfair Rooms

8:00 A.M. - 12:00

LTC 502 Athletic Administrations (Principles, Strategies & Methods):

Jeff Beggs - Chippewa

LTC 705 Coach to Coach Mentoring Program: Brian DeBerry - Monterey

LTC 616 Management of Indoor Plant Assets: Ruth Dohoo -Telfair

10:00 - 11:00 AM Exhibitor Registration - Ballroom

12:15 - 1:15 PM Hall of Fame Luncheon - Madison Ballroom

1:30 - 3:00 PM Registration: Oglethorpe Ballroom

3:00 - 4:30 PM School Safety National Certification: Jay Hammes - Madison Ballroom

4:30 - 5:30 PM Introduce Exhibitors & Drawings

4:30 - 6:00 PM Exhibits Open & Introductions of Exhibitors

5:30 - 6:30 PM Keynote Speaker: Dr. Ralph Swearngin, Executive Director Georgia High School Association

7:00 P.M. - Social with Exhibitors - Knights of Columbus

Monday, March 24, 2014

7:30- 8:00 AM Registration - Oglethorpe Ballroom

8:00 - 10:00 AM Awards Breakfast: Region Winners, Past Presidents, Retiring Athletic Directors, Members and Exhibitors- Madison Ballroom

10:30 -11:00 AM Exhibits Open and Registration - Ballroom

1:00 - 4:00 PM LTC 511 Budgeting & Finance (Using Excel): - Chippewa?

2:00 - 3:00 PM Workshop B: Technology: Randy Hagg & Doug Smith -Monterey

3:00 - 4:00 PM Workshop C: Turf Management: Matt Henson & Josh Kewan -Telfair

10:00 - 11:30 AM Golf Tournament - Southbridge Country Club

5:30 - 6:30 PM Low Country Boil Sponsored By Riddell - Knights of Columbus

7:00 - 8:30 PM CAA Exam - Chippewa

Tuesday,March 25, 2014

All Events in Oglethorpe Ballroom

7:30 - 8:30 AM Breakfast Speaker: Mike Hodges, Thomasville Sponsored by Fellowship of Christian Athletes

8:30 - 9:30 AM Exhibits Open

9:30 - 10:30 Gary Phillips: Assistant Executive Director

Georgia High School Association

10:30 - 11:00 AM General Meeting and Election of Officers

Click HERE to download the schedule

Note: The FINAL schedule will be updated on the website before the conference.

Number of sports-related concussions up in middle school girls

By Tyrone McCoy - WTVM

COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) - A recent study in a pediatric journal revealed that middle school girls who play soccer have a 30 percent chance of getting a concussion, a statistic that holds true in the Fountain City.

"In November, we saw almost 40 children in the emergency department here with head injuries," explains Dr. Joseph Zanga with Columbus Regional Medical Center.

All of those injuries caused by blows to the head or concussions in children as young as six years old.

"Especially in female soccer, you see a lot more concussions," says Jeff Battles, Athletic Director at Hardaway High School. "A higher percentage there than in some of the other sports because of the collisions that happen between two players going for the ball. Sometimes, again, falling down onto the ground."

Dr. Zanga says signs of a concussion can often be as subtle as a headache but could carry deadly consequences for these young girls.

"You could die from the first blow to your head or the tenth blow to your head," Dr. Zanga adds. "Or you could live a perfectly normal life if you do the right things after the first time you get a blow to the head and a concussion."

Dr. Zanga teamed up with coaches and doctors around Muscogee County to help young athletes and their families, as he says, do the right thing.

"Give every athlete a test that tests their brain levels before starts," says Coach Battles. "So, now if a child, if an athlete goes out and an accident happens, now we can come in and give them this test again as a post accident test. And see if it's affected the levels that they're testing on that test."

Helping to increase the awareness and hopefully prevent the injuries for coaches, parents and athletes.

Last year, the Georgia High School Association passed the Return to Play Act requiring coaches to pull athletes displaying signs of concussions. Those who suffer head injuries are not allowed to return to the game without clearance from a doctor.

Join and Renew your GADA-NIAAA
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Legislative Notebook: High school sports accounts under scrutiny

by Maggie Lee - Macon Telegraph

A top state senator wants Georgia's high school sports organizing body to publish an annual audit online that would include a list of its properties and other assets and liabilities.

"When it's public taxpayer dollars subsidizing the activity, I believe that it should be open and transparent," said state Sen. Charlie Bethel, R-Dalton, the sponsor of Senate Bill 288.

The Thomaston-based Georgia High School Association sets regions and divisions and organizes playoffs for sports including football. The nonprofit derived about half of its roughly $4 million annual income from playoff ticket sales last year.

But because the state cannot tell the GHSA what to do, Bethel's bill feints: It would bar schools from joining athletic bodies that do not publish full audits.

"We believe we have in place a lot of transparency" via an annual independent audit that is distributed to the trustees, said GHSA Executive Director Ralph Swearngin at a hearing of the Senate Education and Youth Committee. It's also subject to state open records laws and puts its meeting minutes online, he said.

But that's not good enough, according to the committee. It voted 7-0 to pass the bill Tuesday.

The Senate Rules Committee chairman has already signed the bill, so prospects look good for Senate passage.

2013-14 GADA High School Female/Male Scholarship Award Nominations

Scholarship applications are due on February 11th

The GADA High School Female/Male Scholarship Award will be presented to two seniors, one male and female who have both represented his/her sport(s) in both performance and leadership. Each winner will receive a $1000.00 scholarship award.

Please Click HERE to download the nomination form.

NIAAA Scholarship Award Rubric

Please complete and mail the following nomination form with one letter of recommendation attached to the form. Additional information and incomplete entries will not be considered.

2014 GADA Spring Conference LTC Offerings

Registration Deadline: March 1, 2014

Courses offered at the GADA Spring Conference on Saturday, March 22, 2014; Sunday, March 23, 2014 & Monday, March 24, 2014 at the Savannah Hilton DeSoto

LTI Session I: 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm Saturday, March 22, 2014

LTC 501 Athletic Administration: Philosophy, Leadership

LTC 615 Athletic Administration: Athletic Field Management

LTC 703 Athletic Administration: Student Centered Educational Athletics- Performance Beyond the X's and O's

LTI Session II: 8:00 am to 12:00 pm Sunday, March 23, 2014

LTC 502 Athletic Administration: Principles, Strategies and Methods

LTC 616 Athletic Administration: Management of Indoor Physical Plant Assets

LTC 705 Athletic Administration: Coach Centered Educational Athletics- A Character Based Coach to Coach mentoring program

LTI Session III: 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm Monday, March 24, 2014

LTC 511 Athletic Administration: Concepts and Strategies for Interscholastic Budgeting and Finance Using Excel Spreadsheets (During Golf)

Free Workshops
Sunday - March 23
Workshop A 3:00pm-4:30pm
National School Safety Certification - Jay Hammes

Monday - March 24 (During Golf Time)
Workshop B TBA: 3:00pm - 4:00pm
Workshop C TBA: 4:15pm - 5:15pm

LTI Cost: $100 per course (prepaid) - GADA and NIAAA Member
LTI Cost: $115 per course (non-member)

*****Deadline: March 1, 2014*****

*****NO LATE REGISTRATIONS ACCEPTED*****

MS Word Registration Form
PDF Registration Form

Help us stay up to date!

Update your contact information!

Another school year is here and we know many of you have moved onto new opportunities. Please help us update our records.

A quick EMAIL with your name, school, job title(s) and email address will be very helpful!

AD Checklist/Reminders For February

GADA Logo small

Schedule and disseminate agendas for upcoming athletic coaches meetings.
Recheck spring sports eligibility forms.
Attend scheduled region meeting.
Have completed academic and residency checks for upcoming spring sports for
eligibility purposes.
Host spring sports picture day.
Schedule meetings with spring sports booster clubs.
Review and audit concessions receipts and revenues.
Attend weekly administrative meetings.
Inform faculty on upcoming athletic events. Talk about the positive things that are
happening in the athletic program. Mention teams and students by name.
Update your athletic website.
Finalize fall sports schedules for next year.
Finalize wrestling weight class rosters for upcoming area traditional meet.
Update transportation of all scenarios with basketball region tournament travel
schedules.
Begin paying outstanding invoices from winter sports.
Attend region basketball seeding meeting. Review region standings for seeding
possibilities for upcoming basketball tournaments.
Review spring sports schedules and confirm all schedules.
Forward spring sports schedules and assignments to all school faculty and media
outlets.
Secure medical personnel and ATC's at spring sports events.
Confirm necessary security at spring sports events.
Finalize plans for football equipment reconditioning.
Make plans to attend the GADA State Conference in Savannah in March!

You are in the stretch run now. Things will not slow down until June.

Keep your blinders on and keep working!

Jeff Beggs CMAA

GADA Past President

Director of Athletics

Atlanta Public Schools

Click HERE to download the check list.

We value your comments and feedback. We encourage you to submit articles and items of interest for the newsletter and the new website.

Sincerely,

Gary Long, CMAA
President

Georgia Athletic Directors Association
www.gadaonline.net

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In This Issue

2014 GADA Annual Conference Schedule

Number of sports-related concussions up

High school sports accounts under scrutiny.

GADA Scholarship Award Nominations

2014 GADA Spring Conference LTC Offerings

AD Checklist/Reminders For February

GHSA Dec/Jan Newsletter

2014 GADA Conference News

NIAAA's Guide to Interscholastic Athletic Administration

Volleyball pioneer Nelson announces retirement

GHSA Dec/JAN 2014 Newsletter

Click HERE for the latest GHSA Newsletter

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2014 GADA Conference News

Hilton Desoto, Savannah, GA March 22-25, 2014

Safe Sport Zone and NIAAA Certification

FREE TO ALL GADA MEMBERS

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Athletic directors must address the risk management issues in athletic competition. Author of Contest Management, Jay Hammes will address these issues to assure a safer environment. Identified in the course are issues related to fans, athletics, facilities maintenance, evacuation procedures and applications for most other emergencies. By attending the course, members will receive a certification endorsed by the NIAAA.

Don't wait! Register for the conference today!

NIAAA's Guide to Interscholastic Athletic Administration

Featuring Decatur AD and past GADA President Carter Wilson

"It is an honor to have served as a contributor to Human Kinetics' NIAAA Guide to Interscholastic Athletic Administration. The goal of this publication is to serve as a comprehensive guide for athletic administrators in Georgia and throughout the country. I am proud to be a member of the GADA and the NIAAA and I hope that this publication will assist others in their service to young people." - Carter Wilson

Click HERE to purchase the guide.

West Hall, area volleyball pioneer Nelson announces retirement

By Staff - AccessNorthGA.com

OAKWOOD -- The sport of volleyball is exploding in northeast Georgia and Hall County, and many of the girls now taking part in the sport have Joe Nelson to thank for that opportunity.

Nelson helped initiate the program at North Hall in 1999 and helped spread the sport throughout the area.

Yet on Monday Nelson, currently the volleyball coach at West Hall, announced he had already coached his final varsity season, saying he will retire at the close of the school year.

Nelson has had a distinguished 18-year career as a volleyball coach in both North Carolina and Georgia, accumulating 430 victories, which is second highest among active coaches in the state.

In Georgia, his teams have made six state tournament appearances, advancing to the "Sweet 16" round five times. In addition, his teams have been Area runners-up five times. Read more...