NIAAA & NFHS AWARD WINNERS
NIAAA Hall of Fame
The NIAAA Hall of Fame was created to honor retired Athletic Administrators who had exemplary careers in athletic administration both prior to as well as after the formation of the NIAAA. Selection to the NIAAA Athletic Administrators Hall of Fame is a four step process including nomination, screened by the Hall of Fame Screening Committee, rated by the NIAAA Selection Committee and finally, the NIAAA Board of Directors selects those individuals to be inducted.
Name of Recipient – Year Recognized and Conference City
Clarence Noe, CAA – 2010 Orlando
Wayne Taylor, CAA – 2012 San Antonio
Ron Balazs, CAA – 2015 Orlando
NIAAA Award of Merit
The Award of Merit is presented by the NIAAA to an individual in recognition of outstanding leadership and personal commitment to the values of interscholastic athletics. The NIAAA Board of Directors selects this recipient and the award is given only in those years when the board deems there is a candidate worthy of this honor. It is the NIAAA’s highest individual award.
Name of Recipient – Year Recognized
Wayne Taylor, CAA – 1991
NIAAA Thomas E. Frederick Award of Excellence
The Thomas E. Frederick Award of Excellence is presented to an NIAAA member who has provided strong leadership to education-based athletics, loyalty to the association and contributions to the profession of athletic administration. The award is named for the late Thomas Frederick, who served as an assistant director of the NFHS until 1989. Frederick was largely responsible for facilitating the start of the NIAAA in 1977. By nomination of and at the recommendation of the NIAAA Past Presidents, the board annually selects one individual to receive the Thomas E. Frederick Award of Excellence.
Name – Year Recognized
Paul McLaughlin, CAA – 1996
Ron Balazs, CAA – 2001
NIAAA Distinguished Service Award
This award is presented to a limited number of NIAAA members each year in recognition of their length of service, special accomplishments and contributions to athletic administration at the local, state and national levels. There is only one nomination per state. Nominations for this award are made by the Past Presidents Committee.
Name and City of Recipient – Year and Conference City
Ward Burgess, Hialeah – 1979 Dallas
Clarence Noe, CAA, Ft. Lauderdale – 1981 Las Vegas
Wayne Story, CAA, Miami Springs – 1986 Nashville
Jim Moses, Hollywood – 1987 Chicago
C.H. McKinnon, Lake Worth – 1989 Dallas
Donna Blumer, CAA, St. Petersburg – 2000 San Diego
Chuck Holland, San Antonio – 2002 San Antonio
Jay Rader, CAA, Palm Beach Gardens – 2004 New Orleans
George Phelan III, CAA, Miami – 2005 Orlando
Michael Colby, CMAA, Gainesville – 2008 San Diego
Andy Chiles, CMAA, Orlando – 2017 Phoenix
Scott Drabczyk, CMAA, Orlando – 2021 Denver
Lanness Robinson, CMAA, Tampa – 2022 Nashville
NIAAA State Award of Merit
Each state may nominate one person, who is a member of the NIAAA, for this award. The nominee must be recognized in the community as a leader who maintains athletics as an integral part of the total educational program. He/She shall administer an exemplary athletic program making full use of school and community resources and involving as many students as possible. While involvement at the national level may be a consideration, it is not intended to be a prerequisite for selection. Nominations for this award are made by the Past Presidents Committee.
Name and City of Recipient – Year Recognized
Daniel Riveiro, Tampa (1988)
Bob Williams, Orlando (1989)
Kelly Williams, Plant City (1990)
Wayne Williamson, Tampa (1991)
Paul McLaughlin, CAA, Gainesville (1992)
Robert Hosack, Largo (1993)
Ron Balazs, CAA, Miami (1994)
George R. Phelan, III, CAA, Miami (1995)
Edward Piero, Miami (1996)
Wayne Williamson, Tampa (1997)
Donna Blumer, CAA, St. Petersburg (1998)
Michele Lee Berry, CAA, Sunrise (1999)
Jay V. Rader, CAA, Palm Beach Gardens (2000)
Tommy St. Amant, Panama City (2001)
Ronnie Youngblood, Tallahassee (2002)
Dennis Duffy, Zephyrhills (2003)
Patricia Highland, CAA, Orlando (2004)
Bill Massey, CMAA, Boca Raton (2005)
Danny Ninestine, CAA, Port St. Lucie (2006)
Andy Chiles, CMAA, Miami (2007)
Chris Hixon, Hollywood (2008)
Lanness Robinson, CMAA, Tampa (2009)
Dan Comeau, CMAA, Port St. Lucie (2010)
Kevin Demer, CAA, Orlando (2011)
Tommy St. Amant, Retired (2012)
Jake von Scherrer, CMAA, Palmetto Bay (2013)
Michael Colby, CMAA, Gainesville (2014)
Scott Drabczyk, CAA, Daytona Beach (2015)
Cam Harrison, Fernandina Beach (2016)
Lauren Otero, Tampa (2017)
Russell Wambles, Apopka (2018)
Daniel Talbot, CAA, Bartow (2019)
Ronald Allen, Lecanto (2020)
Jay Getty, CAA, Oviedo (2021)
Tammie Talley, CAA, Jacksonville (2022)
David LaRosa, Ft. Myers (2023)
NFHS Citations
This award is presented to individuals associated with categories of professionals who have made significant contributions to the NFHS and/or other national organizations which have impacted high school activities. There is only one nomination per state.
Among the factors which may be considered are:
- Individual has a long-standing and distinguished record of involvement with high school activities programs at the local and state levels.
- Individual is recognized as among the best in their profession by their colleagues.
Nominations for this award are made by the Past Presidents Committee.
Name and City of Recipient – Year and Conference City
Wayne Taylor, CAA, Miami – 1980 Atlanta
Chuck Holland, Tampa – 1983 Orlando
Paul McLaughlin, CAA, Largo – 1986 Nashville
Clarence Noe, CAA, Ft. Lauderdale – 1991 Orlando
Ron Balazs, CAA, Miami – 1996 Orlando
Michael Colby, CMAA, Hialeah – 2003 Indianapolis
Dave Horner, CAA, Ocala – 2004 New Orleans
Donna Blumer, CAA, St. Petersburg – 2005 Orlando
Danny Ninestine, CAA, Port St. Lucie – 2007 Nashville
George Phelan III, CAA, Miami – 2008 San Diego
Andrew Chiles III, CMAA, Orlando – 2012 San Antonio
Lanness Robinson, CMAA, Tampa – 2019 National Harbor
Russell Wambles, CMAA, Apopka – 2020 Tampa (recognized 2021 Denver)
NIAAA Frank Kovaleski Professional Development Award
This award is presented to an NIAAA member who has made significant contributions and demonstrated excellence in professional development at the local, state and national levels. There is only one nomination per state. Nominations for this award are made by the FIAAA Awards and Recognition Committee.
Name of Recipient – Year Recognized and Conference City
Michael Colby, CMAA – 2007 Orlando
Michael Colby, CMAA – 2008 Orlando
Michael Colby, CMAA – 2009 Orlando
Michael Colby, CMAA – 2010 Orlando *
Michael Colby, CMAA – 2011 Orlando *
Michael Colby, CMAA – 2012 Orlando *
Michael Colby, CMAA – 2013 Orlando *
Michael Colby, CMAA – 2014 Orlando *
Lanness Robinson, CMAA – 2015 Orlando
Lanness Robinson, CMAA – 2016 Orlando *
Jake von Scherrer, CMAA – 2017 Orlando
Jake von Scherrer, CMAA – 2018 Orlando
Jake von Scherrer, CMAA – 2019 Orlando
Jake von Scherrer, CMAA – 2020 Orlando
Dan Talbot, CMAA – 2021 Orlando
Dan Talbot, CMAA – 2022 Orlando
Lanness Robinson, CMAA – 2023 Kissimmee
* also the NIAAA Section 3 Nominee