The 96th annual NYSPHSAA Central Committee meeting took place Tuesday, July 30 and Wednesday, July 31 at the Turning Stone Resort in Verona.

Here's an update to important items voted on:

To see the complete list of action items that were voted on click here

The NYSPHSAA Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place Wednesday evening July 31 at the Turning Stone Resort.

Congratulations to the Class of 2019!

Seated L to R, Elieen Troy (Section 2), Jim Wolfe (Section 9), Cathy Stanilka (Section 2)

Standing L to R, Dick Cerone (Section 5), Ken Strube (Section 2)

Unable to attend, Anthony Famiglietti (Section XI)

To read the accomplishments of all the Hall of Fame inductees read their Overtime Sports previews by clicking here

Remember the first day for official practices for fall sports in the 2019-20 season is Monday August, 19th

Don't make a mistake by starting too early!

And keep in mind going over the maximum number of games could cost your team a spot in the spot season.

Legislation has been proposed to allow homeschooled students the opportunity to participate on interscholastic athletic teams in their home school district. The New York State Public High School Athletic Association has continued to oppose this legislation for a number of reasons; a detailed memo in opposition was distributed throughout the state. If adopted, the bill would have adversely impacted the balance of interscholastic competition and those students who already participate on their school teams.

As a result of effective lobbying efforts and a tremendous amount of membership outreach, the legislation did not get voted upon and was not passed during the 2019 Legislative session.

Spectrum News Buffalo aired a story on Unified Sports and age restrictions.

Dr. Robert Zayas, NYSPHSAA Executive Director was featured in the story. Click here to view the story

Please take note of the mandatory Athletic Director workshops that will be taking place in your sections beginning in late August.

Topics such as eligibility standards, NYSED Regulations, review of recently revised rules and an overview of the NYSPHSAA Handbook are covered during the two-hour workshop hosted by Dr. Robert Zayas, NYSPHSAA Executive Director and Todd Nelson, Assistant Director.

8/26/19 - Section 6 – 11:00 AM – Erie I BOCES, Harlem Road, West Seneca

8/27/19 - Section 5 – 8:00 AM – Burgundy Basin, Pittsford

9/9/19 - Section 9 – 9:30 AM – Wallkill HS

9/10/19 - Section 1 – 9:30 AM – Pearl River Elks, 2041 Elks Drive, Nanuet

9/16/19 - Section 4 – 9:00 AM – Chenango Valley HS

9/17/19 - Section 7 – 9:30 AM – Lake Placid Training Center

9/19/19 - Section 1 – 8:30 AM – Holbrook Country Club

9/20/19 - Section 8 – 8:30 AM – George Farber Administration Center

9/25/19 - Section 3 – 8:30 AM – Tailwater Lodge, 52 Pulaski Street, Altmar

9/26/19 - Section 10 – 8:30 AM - BOCES, 40 West Main Street, Canton

10/2/19 - Section 2 – 8:00 AM - Van Patten Golf Course, Clifton Park (Registration @ 7:30 AM)

10/16/19 – Make-Up – 9:00 AM – NYSPHSAA Office, Latham

From Fall 2018 through Spring 2019, the Refuel With Chocolate Milk program by the American Dairy Association North East has provided over 10,000 samples of chocolate milk for NY State high school athletes participating in championship events and looks forward to the next school year! Checkout REFUEL Highlight Video.

Have a happy, healthy summer – from the American Dairy Association North East!

Check out the latest edition of the NYSPHSAA Captains Club. In this edition, presented by the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association, we introduce you to Joseph Girard III. He is a three time state champ, the all time leading scorer in boys basketball and a young man who will never forget where he comes from.

Reminder, we are always looking for story ideas please contact Chris Watson if you have a suggestion.

Jim Rose, section one safety chair presents Steve Luciana, Director of Health, PE and Athletics for Pelham High School a CPR Save plaque.

On December 27, 2019 a student went into cardiac arrest inside the Pelham High School gym. Immediately, the emergency athletic plan was initiated.

CPR Saves in general have a low save percentage, for a variety of reasons including but not limited to: Needing and AED nearby, having a shock able rhythm, and of course a plan that comes together. In this case it saved or brought back a life of a student. It took the entire team of game and event management as well as a few volunteers to make it happen.

In addition, the three people that performed CPR and the AED procedure inclusive of the Pelham Athletic Trainer received a CPR Save Pins. 

Amazing work by the Pelham athletic event management team!

Currently, NYSPHSAA is accepting bids to host future state championships.

If you know of a site that would be interested in hosting one of these state championships, please use the link here and submit a Championship RFP.

It's time to start thinking about honoring your school or team for what they do in the community.

Nominate for the Community Service Challenge three times a year, in the fall, winter and spring seasons thanks to out partners at Team Up 4 Community.

Apply for the fall season starting Monday, August 12.

Deadline to apply for the fall Community Service Challenge is Monday, November 11.

Click here to apply.

Check out the officials page on nysphsaa.org. It has important information for current officials and information on signing up if you are interested in becoming an official.

Click here to visit the officials page

Spectrum News produced and aired a special show called "Seeing Stars" that took at a look at the number of concussions in girls soccer.

We've included a link to the special for you to view and listen to some of the information that could be useful to you.

This is not an endorsement of the information or equipment featured in the special, but rather something we thought you might find interesting to view.

Did you know the NFHS offers free on-line educational courses on a variety of topics?

The latest course is focused on Student Mental Health and Suicide Prevention. For a complete list of the courses available click here.

Don't forget to tell us #MyReasonWhy on social media. Tell us why you participate in sports, after school activities, coaching, officiating or other ways athletics have made a difference in your life.

The Brain Injury Association of New York State (BIANYS) was recently awarded a grant by the New York State Health Foundation to provide educators throughout New York State with Return to Learn training for when they are working with concussed students. BIANYS is a statewide, non-profit membership organization that advocates on behalf of people with brain injuries and their families. BIANYS provides education, advocacy and community support services that lead to improved outcomes for individuals and families impacted by brain injury.

These presentations are completely free for all participants and can be done at any teacher training day, staff meeting, etc., during the 2019-2020 school year. The presentation has been created by Dr. Brian Rieger and Dr. Andrew Hess, BIANYS Concussion Initiative Co-chairs, and by Michelle Kellen, M.Ed., a former Teacher, Coach, Associate Principal and Athletic Director, who also gives the presentation.

For a training that requires an overnight stay, the presenter will be available to do a free presentation for parents and students about Concussions and Concussion Management during an evening program. 

Each training is 75-90 minutes long. BIANYS is a New York State approved CTLE provider. Please contact Michelle Kellen at 518-459-7911 or [email protected] to schedule a training. The schedule will fill up fast, so please reach out today!

Access to financial aid is a key factor in whether low-income students – including many of New York’s student athletes – have the opportunity to attend college.

Yet across New York, low-income high school students are more likely than their wealthier peers to attend schools with low rates of completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

The New York FAFSA Completion Project aims to raise awareness of the importance of completing the FAFSA and provide easily accessible resources to schools so they can help more students through the process, drawing on national research and best practices already being used in New York schools.

Those resources include an interactive data tool that allows users to track the progress of New York high schools, with new FAFSA completion estimates updated weekly and comparisons to similar schools and top performers

.

The “3 Steps Every High School Can Take” resource at NYFAFSAChallenge.org encourages schools to:

1. Help their seniors make a plan to complete the FAFSA;

2. Hold a FAFSA completion event; and

3. Set targets and track the data.

At the end of the school year, Ed Trust–NY’s FAFSA Completion Challenge will recognize schools with high completion rates and that show improvement. Twelve awards will be granted to schools across the state. Each award will consist of $750 granted to the winning high schools for the purpose of providing a scholarship to one of its students.

Explore the data, read more about FAFSA completion strategies being used at New York schools, and find additional resources at NYFAFSAChallenge.org.