March 18, 2009

RESTON, Virginia - Bellingham resident Terri McMahan will be honored as the Northwest District Athletic Director of the Year by the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) during its national convention in Tampa, Florida, March 30 - April 4. The Northwest Region represents a five-state area from Idaho to Alaska.

At the convention McMahan, who recently retired as director of athletics for Edmonds School District after 11 years of service and 19 years with Ferndale School District as a teacher, coach and athletic director, will vie with five other district winners from around the country for the "National Athletic Director of the Year Award."

Begun over 34 years ago, the purpose of the program is to give recognition to athletic administrators around the country who exemplify the highest standards of their profession. The award plaques are provided by Herff-Jones.

The National Athletic Director of the Year Award recipient will be announced on Friday, April 3, at the NASPE Hall of Fame Banquet. Olympic softball gold medalist Dot Richardson, M.D. will be inducted that evening into the NASPE Hall of Fame.

According to NASPE President Fran Cleland of West Chester University of Pennsylvania, "By making a significant impact on the lives of the students, Terri McMahan has made an outstanding contribution to her school and community. She is also recognized as an administrator of an exemplary athletic program and educator who keeps athletics an integral part of the total education program."

Retired Athletic Director in Edmonds School District, Kim Wilson, said "Terri has been an outstanding athletic director. She was a valued member of the many committees she served. Always one to ask the tough questions, she is not afraid of addressing the tough issues. She has made all of us better with her leadership."

Among her many accomplishments, McMahan created an environment which sparked improvement, change, and new programs in athletics. During her tenure as a director of athletics, she created a 32-person Athletics Advisory Committee to examine/evaluate current programming at the Edmonds District's four middle and four high schools. In addition, she started an athletic training/sports medicine program. After hiring the first Head District Athletic Trainer she expanded the program annually (over the next three years) until each of the four high schools had a full-time position. Not only that, McMahan created or managed over 15 projects to improve fields and facilities in her district, most notably, lighted FieldTurf multi-use fields at each of the four high schools.

Among her most recent professional awards, she received the Washington State (WSSAAA) Athletic Director of the Year Award, the WSSAAA District One Athletic Director of the Year, the WSSAAA Outstanding Service Award, and the Edmonds School District Board of Directors Recognition Award.

Her professional affiliations and activities include the National Interscholastic Association of Athletic Administrators (NIAAA), National Association for Sport and Physical Education/American Alliance of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (NASPE/AAHPERD), the National Association of Girls and Women in Sport (NAGWS), the Washington Secondary School Athletic Administrators Association (WSSAAA) and the Washington State Coaches Association (WSCA). She was an Executive Board Member of the WIAA State, WIAA District One, WSSAAA, and the WSCA. McMahan received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Western Washington University.

NASPE

The preeminent national authority on physical education and a recognized leader in sport and physical activity, the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) is a non-profit professional membership association that sets the standard for practice in physical education and sport. NASPE's 16,000 members include: K-12 physical education teachers, coaches, athletic directors, athletic trainers, sport management professionals, researchers, and college/university faculty who prepare physical activity professionals. NASPE seeks to enhance knowledge, improve professional practice, and increase support for high-quality physical education, sport and physical activity programs through research, development of standards, and dissemination of information. It is the largest of the five national associations that make up the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation & Dance (AAHPERD). For more information, visit www.naspeinfo.org.