Fifteen leaders in high school activity programs across the country have been selected to receive National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Citations.

An award designed to honor individuals who have made contributions to the NFHS, state high school associations, athletic director and coaching professions, the officiating avocation and fine arts/performing arts programs, the NFHS Citation is one of the most highly regarded achievements in high school athletics and performing arts.

The 2017 NFHS Citation recipients will receive their awards July 1 at the 98^th annual NFHS Summer Meeting in Providence, Rhode Island.    

Eight of the 12 award winners represent NFHS-member state high school associations, and four recipients represent NFHS professional organizations for officials, coaches, music leaders and speech/debate/theatre directors. The other three Citation recipients are being honored for their contributions to the NFHS at the national level.

The eight state association recipients are Richard Neal, Section 1, former executive director of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association; Bob Goldring, Section 2, associate commissioner of the Ohio High School Athletic Association; Karen DeHart, Section 3, associate commissioner of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association; Tom Shafranski, Section 4, assistant director of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association; Stacy Schroeder, Section 5, associate executive director of the Missouri State High School Activities Association; Tom Robinson, Section 6, associate commissioner of the Colorado High School Activities Association; Dr. Harold Slemmer, Section 7, executive director of the Arizona Interscholastic Association; and Tom Welter, Section 8, former executive director of the Oregon School Activities Association.

The four Citation recipients representing the NFHS professional organizations are Sharon Hughes, NFHS Officials Association, volleyball official and state volleyball rules interpreter, Wayne, New Jersey; Dick Katte, NFHS Coaches Association, retired basketball coach, Denver (Colorado) Christian High School; Neil Hendriksen, NFHS Music Association, director of choral activities, Woods Cross (Utah) High School; and J. Scott Baker, NFHS Speech/Debate/Theatre Association, former speech and debate teacher, Cypress Creek High School, Cypress, Texas, and current professor at the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse.

The other three Citation recipients are being honored for their contributions to the NFHS at the national level, particularly as 10-year charter members of the High School Today Publications Committee. These individuals are Lee Green, J.D., Overland Park, Kansas, an attorney and professor emeritus at Baker University in Baldwin City, Kansas, and one of the top sports law experts in the country; Dr. David Hoch, CMAA, Fallston, Maryland, retired high school athletic director and coach, who has written more than 150 articles for NFHS publications; and Steffen Parker, Williston, Vermont, former high school music educator in Vermont and a long-time contributor to NFHS music programs.