WIAA executive director Anderson to retire in July
In addition to navigating through the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the WIAA will be searching for a new leader for the first time in 12 years.
Dave Anderson will retire from his post as executive director effective July 30. The Board of Control accepted his retirement during a closed session of its monthly meeting Friday and scheduled a meeting for Thursday to determine the process for hiring his successor.
“The WIAA has been my home, my family and much of my life for the past 22 years, and I am grateful,” Anderson said in a news release. “It has always been the people and purpose that has defined the quality of every work experience, and within this office and membership, there are no finer people to work with.
“I believe it is the right time because we have a great staff and a great Board of Control in place. Looking ahead at the challenges we know are going to be a part of coming out of this pandemic, I think it is a great opportunity for a new face, a new voice and new ideas moving forward.”
Anderson, 67,
succeeded
Doug
Chickering on Aug. 1, 2009, coming to the job from his role as deputy director. His tenure as executive director has been marked many challenges and accomplishments.
The boys and girls basketball tournaments went from four divisions to five and the girls tournament moved from the Kohl Center in Madison to the Resch Center in Green Bay.
In football, he led the charge to add concussion insurance for players. He also led the push to adjust the playoff calendar. That change eliminated the Tuesday playoff game that had long been in place and in the process eliminated the three games in 10 days teams that advanced that far had to play.
He also oversaw changes to the conference realignment process aimed at adding more transparency and documentation to the process.
Financially, the organization built enough in its reserve funds under his leadership to survive the lost revenue created by the pandemic.
And in response to the pandemic, the WIAA staff, under his guidance, came up with an alternate fall season for teams/schools that were not able to compete at the traditional time.