MIAAA Awards

Below you can find a list of all available MIAAA awards.

Administrative Assistant Dedicated Service

Presented to identify and honor outstanding Athletic Secretaries for serving the profession for 5-10-15-20-25-30-35 or more years
  • Must be secretary for Athletic Director who is a member in good standing of MIAAA
  • Minimum of five (5) years of service
  • Completed application (including proper signatures) filed with Regional Representative and forwarded to Awards Committee Chairperson

Current Year: 2025  (3/31/24 - 2/1/25)

Athletic Director Dedicated Service

Presented to identify and honor outstanding Athletic Directors for serving the profession for 5-10-15-20-25-30-35 or more years.
  • Current member in good standing of MIAAA
  • A member for a minimum of five (5) years
  • Fulfillment of the requirement may include verified membership in another state.
  • Completed application (including proper signatures) filed with Regional

Representative and forwarded to Awards Committee Chairperson.

Current Year: 2025  (3/31/24 - 2/1/25)

Administrative Assistant of the Year

Presented on an annual basis to an MIAAA member who, through their position as an Athletic Administrative Assistant, has made a significant impact on the lives of their students and has successfully used athletics as a catalyst to achieve demonstrable progress in the social and cultural environment of their respective school and community.
  • Current member of MIAAA
  • Fifteen(15) years of service in Michigan (*Must have combination of 15 years of MIAAA membership and/or MIAAA Annual Conference attendance)
  • Time, effort, and commitment to athletics and/or the MIAAA as an Athletic Administrative Assistant.
  • Once a person becomes inactive in interscholastic athletics, the Awards Committee may still consider the name for the following year.

Current Year: 2024  (3/31/24 - 11/30/24)

MIAAA Exemplary Athletic Program

The Michigan Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association's (MIAAA) Exemplary Athletic Program was established in 1998. Its purposes are fourfold: (1) to identify and give public recognition to our outstanding athletic programs statewide; (2) to provide a framework that encourages high school athletic administrators throughout the state to voluntarily engage in a self-assessment and comparison of their current program to a set of established exemplary criteria; (3) to facilitate communication and a sharing of best practices throughout our state; and (4) to encourage continued improvement in our state's high school athletic programs.

MIAAA exemplary programs model excellence and equity. They all provide for what is best in educationally sound high school athletics. There is a strong, district-wide commitment to athletic excellence for all of the school's student-athletes. The athletic program's success in advancing the emotional, social, moral and physical growth of all of its participants is a basic foundation of the recognition criteria. In awarding exemplary status to our state's athletic programs, the MIAAA looks to recognize schools where sustained successes in teaching the values of high school athletics are evident.

The quality of each program will be judged by comparing the standards of excellence to the school's goals (vision statement) and the processes that have been put in place to meet those goals. To what extent is the athletic program serving its various constituents (athletes, staff, parents and patrons)? An exemplary school's athletic program continually strives to meet and exceed the needs of all student-athletes.

Exemplary athletic programs offer growth opportunities for athletes that meet or exceed the highest standards of the MIAAA, MHSAAA, leagues or conferences and their local school boards.

Conceptual Basis for the MIAAA Exemplary Athletic Program

The MIAAA established a blue ribbon committee in 1997 to study the possibility of providing an awards program to recognize our state's exemplary programs. Reports were made by this committee to the membership in the summer of 1997 and 1998 and also at the annual winter conference in 1998. The MIAAA board of directors wholeheartedly supports the concept of recognizing and awarding our outstanding programs on a state-wide basis.

With that charge, a proposal was brought forth by the MIAAA Exemplary Athletic Program advisory committee to the MIAAA membership in 1998 to pilot such a program during the 1999-2000 school year.

Current Year: 2024  (1/1/24 - 12/30/24)

Regional Athletic Director of the Year

Presented on an annual basis to MIAAA members in recognition of their dedicated service, leadership, and special contributions to their local and regional levels of interscholastic athletic administration
  • Current member in good standing of MIAAA
  • Athletic Administrator and MIAAA member for at least five (5) years
  • Demonstrated contributions to local, conference and/or regional interscholastic athletics
  • Once a person becomes inactive in interscholastic athletics, the Awards Committee may still consider the name for the following year.
Nominations will be held current for three years

Current Year: 2024  (3/31/24 - 12/30/24)

George Lovich State of Merit

Presented to an Athletic Director who is presently a member in good standing of both the MIAAA and NIAAA; must have demonstrated long-term contributions, leadership and meritorious service to their profession of interscholastic athletics at the State and/or National level
  • Current member MIAAA and NIAAA
  • Ten (10) years of service in Michigan
  • Time, effort, commitment to athletic administration and to the MIAAA and/or NIAAA
  • Demonstrated leadership in athletic administration.
Nominations will be held current for three years

Current Year: 2024  (3/31/24 - 5/31/24, 2025 opens on 4/1/25)

Jack Johnson Distinguished Service

Presented annually to an individual inside or outside the field of interscholastic athletic administration who has, over the years, demonstrated a service to the high school athletes of the state and/or MIAAA.

  • Open nomination to any person who has given their time, effort and commitment to Michigan High School athletics and the student participants.
Nominations will be held current for three years

Current Year: 2024  (3/31/24 - 5/31/24, 2025 opens on 4/1/25)

Special Recognition

This award is not one that would be presented each year. It would be available to honor an individual/s or organizations that have given in many different ways to High School sports or to MIAAA. This award is presented for outstanding commitment, Dedication, Leadership, Service and Enthusiasm to Michigan's athletes, coaches, and athletic administrators.

  • Open nomination to any person who has made contributions that have made the job of athletic director that much easier and is greatly appreciated.
Nominations will be held current for three years

Current Year: 2024  (3/31/24 - 5/31/24, 2025 opens on 4/1/25)

Thomas Rashid Athletic Director of the Year

Presented on an annual basis to an MIAAA member who, through their position as an Athletic Director, has made a significant impact on the lives of their students and has successfully used athletics as a catalyst to achieve demonstrable progress in the social and cultural environment of their respective school and community.
  • Current member of MIAAA and NIAAA
  • Fifteen(15) years of service in Michigan
  • Time, effort, and commitment to athletic administration, MIAAA and/or NIAAA
  • Regional Athletic Director of the Year award recipient
  • Once a person becomes inactive in interscholastic athletics, the Awards Committee may still consider the name for the following year.
Nominations will be held current for three years

Current Year: 2024  (3/31/24 - 5/31/24, 2025 opens on 4/1/25)