Sports medicine committee finalizing safety procedures for student-athletes

May 19, 2020 by Jose Garcia, AZPreps365


The Arizona Interscholastic Association’s Sports Medicine Advisory Committee is finalizing a document outlining safety precautions schools should take if and when their student-athletes are allowed to practice and play again.

David Hines, the AIA’s executive director, informed the AIA’s board of the document Monday during its final monthly meeting of the 2019-20 school year. Schools can’t reopen their rooms for students and start competing until the governor’s office, along with the Superintendent of Public Instruction’s office, gives the go-ahead.

The AIA board will likely receive the final draft of precautions by this week for the board’s approval, said Hines, who will also present the document to Kathy Hoffman, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Hines also made the newly formed AIA Crisis Management team aware of the precaution document.

SMAC adopted some recommendations made by professional leagues and the NCAA to help it produce the document. The 18-member SMAC is led by Dr. Javier Cardenas, a director at the Barrow Neurological Institute.

“They (SMAC) are phenomenal,” Hines said. “They are very busy, but this is their passion.”

During Hines’ monthly report, the board voted to allow Mark Mignella, the AIA’s legal council, to draft emergency legislation on two matters the board will vote on.

The first one is to allow the AIA to recover legal fees from member schools if fees exceed the AIA’s legal fund. The second is a declaration statement that states that schools understand and agree to follow the rules the AIA’s members have established.

Hines also shared with the board that conferences will try to schedule games for teams that might have to cancel their out-of-state matchups in the following school year.

In his report, Hines also saluted the work of the folks who organized the AIA’s annual Champions Gala. The event recognizes some of the state’s top student-athletes, coaches and administrators.

It was held online this year for the first time.

“It was done off of Zoom, and it was fantastic,” Hines said. “It was done very well electronically.”

New board president, vice president announced

The board unanimously approved the nomination of Toni Corona and William Duarte as the AIA executive board’s next president and vice president, respectively, for the following school year. Corona, the current vice president and 3A Conference representative on the AIA’s board, is Safford High’s athletic director.

Duarte, the 1A Conference rep on the board, is Superior High's athletic director.

Financial report

Due to the cancelation of the spring sports season and lost revenue, the AIA showed a loss for the month of April, Denise Doser, the AIA’s director of finance, said.

Prior to the cancellation, the AIA was slightly ahead compared to last year. But that doesn’t include the legal fees that are pending.

Agenda items approved

The following agenda items were approved:

The division/section placement wrestling appeals of Page (from Division III Section III to Division IV Section II) and Chinle (from Division III Section II to Divisision IV Section II).

  • Additional game requests from Notre Dame and Kingman Academy.
  • The recommendation to continue using Omni National in Tucson as the Division I golf championship venue.
  • Because of declining enrollment, Sedona Red Rock's cancellation request to drop football.
  • The proposed amendment change to start the fall soccer season no sooner than the 4th week and competition no sooner than the 7th week. This will give teams two extra weeks of competition.
  • The AIA’s budget proposal for the 2020-21 school year.