David Dennehy is presented the NIAAA State Award of Merit from President Dan Scavone at the CAAD Awards Banquet on March 23.

Robert Baird accepts the Robert Duncanson “Meritorious Service Award” from President Dan Scavone at the CAAD Awards Banquet on March 23.

Diane Callis accepts the Distinguished Service Award from President Dan Scavone at the CAAD Awards Banquet on March 23.

On March 22-24, 2016, the Connecticut Association of Athletic Directors (CAAD) hosted its most widely attended conference ever. Over 220 athletic directors and 65 exhibitors attended the 32nd Annual CAAD Conference at the Sheraton Hartford South Hotel in Rocky Hill, Connecticut. This conference continues to be one of the most valuable professional development experiences for an athletic director whether he/she is a 25-year veteran or brand new to the profession.

Scholar-Essay grant recipients (left to right): Nicholas Hobert, Glastonbury; Katharine Reilly, Newtown; Jack Hutensky, Hall; Victoria Myers, Granby; Kazi Walker, Waterford; and, Joseph Niski, Shelton.

The inaugural class of the newly established CAAD Hall of Fame is comprised of three former athletic directors: (left to right) Robert Duncanson, Daniel Hand High School; Robert Broderick, Simsbury High School; and, Robert Summers, Avon High School.

On Tuesday, March 22, we offered two NIAAA LTC professional development courses and welcomed 22 guests for the NIAAA Section 1 meeting. On Wednesday, March 23rd, the high school athletic directors began their day with a two-hour presentation by the CIAC staff on the current rules and regulations governing our sports. Concurrently, the middle school attendees were in workshops dealing with middle schools issues and round table topics. The keynote speaker later that day was Bruce Whitehead, NIAAA Executive Director, who spoke about leadership and how it impacts youth. There were three “nuts and bolts” workshops given that afternoon dealing with coach’s evaluation and dismissal, the importance of a well-designed fitness room, and current “hot topics.” The night concluded with the annual awards banquet where CAAD held its first Hall of Fame induction ceremony. The Hall of Fame inductees were legends Robert Broderick, Robert Duncanson and Robert Summers. CAAD also honored three outstanding individuals who serve the students in Connecticut with passion and dedication. Diane Callis, the athletic administrator at Bulkeley high school, received CAAD’s highest honor with the Distinguished Service Award. Merit Awards were given to David Dennehy from St. Paul’s High School and Robert Baird of Stratford High School. Additionally, the CAAD Foundation recognized six outstanding students from Connecticut who were recipients of the NIAAA Scholarship Essay Grant. They were Victoria Myers from Granby Memorial High School; Jack Hutensky from Hall High School in West Hartford; Nicholas Hobert from Glastonbury High School; Joseph Niski from Shelton High School; Katharine Reilly from Newtown High School; and Kazi Walker from Waterford High School.

On Thursday, March 24, we heard from Pat Griffin, founding director of Changing the Game and professor emerita of UMASS, on planning for LGBT students in an athletic program. The rest of the morning included the unveiling of this year’s new coaching education module, Mod 21 – Stress in Athletic Programs. Every CAAD member in attendance was trained as a statewide faculty member licensed to teach this course to his/her own staff. The day wrapped up with a closing general meeting hosted by CAAD President Dan Scavone followed by a league-based door prize drawing, concluding the conference on a festive note.

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Conference Evaluation (based on 4.0 being the highest score)
Once again, the conference evaluations were extremely favorable and many thanks go out to everyone who helped in the planning and coordination. We continue to improve the conference in many areas – which we didn’t think was possible. Scores this high demonstrate CAAD’s commitment to excellence and provide a tremendous challenge for years to come. The results of the conference evaluations are as follows:

The results of the conference evaluations are as follows:

1. Conference Registration: 3.95
2. Conference Format: 3.95
3. Conference Organization & Details: 3.95
4. Hotel Service: 3.7
5. Hotel Accommodations: 3.9
6. Hotel Meals – Thursday Lunch: 3.75 / Thursday Banquet: 3.9 / Friday Breakfast: 3.7 / Friday Lunch: 3.9
7. CIAC Workshop: 3.6 / Middle School Workshop: 3.7
8. CAAD Annual Meeting: 3.8
9. General Session (Whitehead): 3.6
10. Workshops – Evaluation and Dismissal: 3.8 / Fitness: 3.8 / Hot Topics: 3.8
11. Awards Banquet: 4.0
12. Breakfast Meeting (Griffin): 3.1
13. Statewide Faculty: 3.8
14. Closing Meeting: 3.9