To view entire meeting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWY6cUZ-8qM

Unless the Arizona Interscholastic Association’s executive board makes a change, fans and AIA member schools must continue to follow the spring sports modification rules throughout the postseason.

That means that fans must wear their masks during every playoff game. But getting fans to do so, in some areas of the state, during the spring regular season has been a challenge, some AIA board members acknowledged during Monday’s monthly board meeting in Phoenix.

If fans aren’t wearing their masks during the playoffs, the games will be stopped, David Hines, the AIA’s executive director, said. Contracts the AIA signed with municipalities that'll host playoff games next month require mask use, said Mark Mignella, the AIA’s attorney.

AIA board president Toni Corona asked her fellow board members to inform the schools and communities they represent in the state of the postseason expectations. Hines added that he and his staff will work on ways to address the potential playoff issue.

Transfer request tabled

A request by the 6A Conference to allow students athletes to compete immediately if they return to their home school after transferring during the pandemic was tabled.

Some students transferred after their schools cancelled athletics during the pandemic. The 6A wants to allow AIA athletes to return to action at their original home school without penalty.

But the board would like the 6A to clarify which sports and schools (public, private, charter) it’s referring to before determining if it will vote on the emergency legislation.

Flagstaff requests to rescind 1960s suspension 

Jeannine Brandel, Flagstaff High School’s athletic director and 4A Conference board representative, made a request to rescind the 1960s suspension of one of Arizona’s all-time best multi-sport stars, James Dugan.

The AIA suspended Dugan for punching a basketball player after Dugan, a black athlete on Flagstaff’s team, was allegedly berated and spat on during a game against Prescott.

“No one deserves the kind of treatment that actually took place,” Brandel said.

She added, “He (Dugan) regrets what he did, but he also feels what happened that night to him was not fair.”

The AIA’s board agreed that it will address the matter during its May board meeting.

Survey results of AIA departments

The AIA received 175 responses to a survey it sent to its member schools.

In the survey, members were asked to grade the AIA’s departments.

These were the grades Hines shared with the board:

• 90.34 percent for the AIA’s customer service.
• AIA emails (89.7 percent) and azpreps365.com (89.5 percent) communication departments.
• The fiscal inservice AIA director of finance Denise Doser runs, workshops for coaches and its AD summit were among the highest rated workshops of the AIA.
• 78.6 percent said the first two rounds of the state tournaments should be held at high schools. The 1A and 2A schools would like the AIA to select neutral sites to host the first two rounds because of travel concerns.
• The communication rating the AIA’s state tournament coordinators received was 94 percent.
• The effectiveness of the AIA’s virtual meetings with coaches was 94 percent.

Hines also noted that there were questions about the availability of AIA officials during games and how officials called games.

“We appreciate the feedback on that,” Hines said. “It helps us get better.”

Schools can still participate in culture-changing initiative

Schools interested in participating in the InSideOut Initiative, a program that seeks to change the win at all costs mentality in sports, can do so on Aug. 25. That’s when the next meeting will be held with InSideOut and AIA member schools.

So far, 56 AIA schools are already involved. The Aug. 25 meeting will be held at State Farm Stadium.

“The goal that we have in athletics is to win, but what is our purpose as a coach and as a school?” Hines said. “That is one of the things that is important for our schools and coaches to really get to the bottom of. Why do I do what I do, and share the message to our communities.”

There is no cost to participate in the program.

Return to play promotional package being planned

A proposal is being drafted to fund and create a return to play promotional package at no cost to AIA member schools.

A lot of the schools' athletic and activity programs have lost kids during the pandemic, Hines said. But the AIA wants to let families know that its members schools will be up and running at full force once the following school year begins.

Board reps selected; Highland Prep joins AIA

The board voted unanimously to keep Corona, the current AIA board president, as the 3A representative on the board.

By a 5-4 vote, Jenn Burks, Perry’s athletic director, will be the next 6A rep on the board when the next school year starts.

The board also approved unanimously Highland Prep’s request to become an AIA member school during the following school year. Highland Prep, located in Surprise, will become the 276th school to join the AIA.