News

The IHSAA salutes the student-athletes, parents, and coaches of the baseball, softball, boys golf, girls tennis, track and field, and Unified Track & Field teams whose seasons were cancelled this year. Thank you for your continued support of high school sports in Indiana.

---

 

Grateful, Thankful, Blessed

The artwork you see in this offering hangs in our home and serves as a daily reminder of our good fortune. As I conclude a career spanning 41 years in education, I would like to share some thoughts through these three simple words.

 

I am truly GRATEFUL for the opportunity to have served as commissioner of this remarkable organization. I am proud of our accomplishments on behalf of our student-athletes, member-schools, and patrons. The occasion to lead a dedicated, talented, and passionate staff, along with the support of dozens of educators serving on our Board of Directors, has been extremely rewarding, occasionally exasperating, yet always gratifying.

I am THANKFUL to so many; they cannot all be named in this short missive. To attempt to list everyone would most certainly create omissions, causing an injustice to the selfless contributions all have made throughout my journey. School administrators, coaches, officials, student-athletes, business associates, and colleagues across the Hoosier State and destinations beyond are all included in this extraordinary circle of friendship. I genuinely thank you for your unwavering support.

Our voyage has been BLESSED. The wonderful fortune to work an entire career surrounded by young people and hopefully providing a measure of guidance, instruction, motivation, and perhaps inspiration has been a true blessing. These experiences, which have been aggregated for over four decades, are treasures to behold. Blessings indeed.

As my wife and I begin to open a new chapter of our lives, we do so with great optimism for the future of the IHSAA. Our organization remains buoyed by the steadfast commitment of the membership to protect, promote, and preserve the values of education-based athletics. Student-athletes will continue to enjoy wholesome interscholastic athletic experiences which will resonate with them for a lifetime. Memories will be made. We are grateful, thankful, and blessed to have been a small part of this enterprise. Our fondest farewell and sincere thanks are offered to you all.

With gratitude,

BOBBY COX
Commissioner
Indiana High School Athletic Association, Inc.

 

---

 

 

Presenting This Year's Cato Scholarship Winners

An annual event traditionally held during the spring of every year is the announcement of the C. Eugene Cato Memorial Scholarship winners. Thirteen Indiana high school students who are seniors, have won at least one varsity letter, have a minimum 3.0 grade point average, and have distinguished themselves through their exemplary approach to sportsmanship, citizenship, and community involvement win the coveted award each year.

Excellence can be expressed in lots of unique and interesting ways. As you review the list of this year’s recipients, you’ll be impressed by all 13 winners and how selflessly they have served their school and community.  

This year’s Cato Scholarship winners include:

SHAMIYA BEASLEY Merrillville High School Volunteers at church and helps train elementary students in track and field	TURNER ROYAL Bloomfield High School Won 12 varsity letters while maintaining a 4.1 GPA
ALAINA CLADY Plymouth High School Volunteers with the Special Olympics and Dance Marathon	COOPER RUSCH New Castle High School Competed on multiple academic teams and served meals with Wheeler Mission
MYKAYLA COUCHENOUR South Knox High School An officer of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Future Farmers of America	KENZEE SMITH Decatur Central High School A mentor and member of the National Honor Society and Student Council
RYLEE JOHNSON Shenandoah High School Started a soccer team at her school and has been on five mission trips	SAVANNAH STRIETER Evansville North High School A fundraiser for Champions Together and the Susan G. Komen Foundation
LOGAN OWENS Henryville High School Volunteers at basketball camps and works with kids who have special needs	ABIGAIL TEIPEN South Putnam High School Active in numerous school clubs and community charity events
MIKE PERKINS Prairie Heights High School A 4-H member for 10 years and active in his church youth group	HANNAH TIPPETS Brownsburg High School Volunteers with Days for Girls, an organization that provides opportunities for girls in third world countries
KINSEY PRICE Rising Sun High School A first-degree black belt in Taekwondo and teaches Sunday school

 

The IHSAA has now presented $510,000 worth of Cato Scholarships to 204 outstanding student-athletes since the inception of the award 17 years ago. To learn more about any of this year’s recipients, see the IHSAA’s Cato Scholarship announcement here.

All together now, let’s give this year’s C. Eugene Cato Memorial Scholarship winners a big round of applause!

 

---

 

The "Brand Trust" of the IHSAA Continues to Grow

Research shows that, when times are tough, most people have the tendency to turn to individuals and institutions they trust the most for support and guidance. The phenomenon is called “Brand Trust.”

Constantly evolving to maintain a level playing field for the student-athletes of every generation, the IHSAA has been earning the trust of Hoosiers since its inception in 1903. This has even been apparent during the past three months.

Here’s one example. The IHSAA’s #FaceOfSportsmanship social media campaign had been emphasizing the importance of responsible parent behavior at high school athletic events since the beginning of the 2019–2020 school year. The response to the campaign, measured in terms of “likes” and “retweets,” was the best ever.

However, when the world was turned upside down by the coronavirus pandemic, #FaceOfSportsmanship pivoted from a message about sportsmanship to one of encouragement, reassurance, hope, and the promise of good things to come.

The result? As the chart below illustrates, the number of impressions and engagements on the IHSAA’s Facebook and Twitter accounts increased by approximately 50% in March and April, compared to what they had been in January and February. Because of the 117 years of “brand trust” the IHSAA has been developing, sports fans, students, parents, and social media followers turned to it for a dose of positivity during a time of stress and, based on the analytics, responded very favorably to what they found. 

Thus, the level of connectivity between the IHSAA and the state of Indiana continues to grow.

 

 

---

 

Congratulations to All Graduating Seniors

One of the underlying messages in the IHSAA’s most recent social media campaign has been to celebrate the high school seniors who play a spring sport and missed their entire season because of the coronavirus pandemic. 

It’s not only the athletes who didn’t have the opportunity to compete, it’s also their parents, coaches, friends, and fans of the sport who have been disappointed.

To all who missed their final spring sports season, we thank you for your interest in high school sports. The lessons you’ve learned will serve you well. Congratulations to you all.

 

---

 

 

---