For the third year in a row, Executive Director Steve Witty represented the IBCA at the National High School Basketball Coaches Directors' Conference in Louisville Kentucky on July 22 and 23, 2008. This organization was established after meetings between representatives from Texas, Indiana, Ohio, New York, Michigan, and Wisconsin three years ago in Indianapolis. This past year the NHSBCD was officially formed. Currently 20 states are members. The Kentucky Coaches' Association hosted this year’s meeting in Louisville after Indiana did so the two previous years.
Some purposes of the NHSBCD are (1) advocates for scholastic basketball and scholastic basketball coaches. (2) to network and communicate in all directions. (3) to share ideas for the improvement of State Basketball Coaches Associations. (4) to provide a unified voice for State Basketball Coaches Associations, scholastic basketball coaches and scholastic basketball with the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), the National Federation and any other national organization concerned with scholastic basketball.
One of the most beneficial reasons for attending the annual conferences is to discuss issues that affect high school basketball throughout the country. The following 20 states are members of the NHSBCD: California, Southern Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Washington.
The national meetings are very informative and the IBCA has gained many new ideas from the various state associations. The NHSBCD has helped various states start basketball associations (Tennessee and Florida most recently). Coaches vs Cancers, the National Federation and the NABC made presentations at this years conference. The NABC officially recognizes this organization thus giving high school basketball a national voice. The NABC has agreed to reduce high school coach’s membership dues and provide opportunities for high school member coaches to obtain NCAA Final Four tickets as well as allowing high school coaches to serve on future NABC committees.
