Meeting was convened at 4:20 p.m. by Chairman Frank Majikes
ITEM 1 Chairman Majikes called the meeting to order at 4:20 p.m.
Absent but accounted for: Eric Emmerich, Joseph Farrell, Ben Tolerico
Advisors Present: Atty. Donald Rogers, District II Solicitor
Chairman Majikes welcomed the newest addition to the PIAA District II
Committee, John Haas, Principal of Pittston Area High School.
ITEM 2 A motion was made by Pat Patte, seconded by Vito Quaglia, to approve the minutes of the September 15, 2015 meeting. All Ayes
ITEM 3 Frank Victor and Pat Patte reviewed the Payment Rate structure for the assigned workers for 2015-2016 District II sponsored championship events for all sports. That list includes the officials, game and assistant game managers, site managers, and all other workers associated with the event. Following the presentation, a motion was made by Chris Thomas, seconded by Chad Vinansky, to approve the report as presented. All Ayes
Chairman Majikes also related to the committee that for all state playoff games beginning with this fall’s events, all workers must be paid by check issued by the PIAA State Office. It is also encouraged that District’s begin that same method of payment in the near future. After discussion, it was agreed that for 2015-2016 District II will continue to pay workers as has been done in the past. In most cases, that would be by cash payment at the event.
ITEM 4 Sports Reports:
· Cross Country (Bill King): Bill King reviewed the plans for this year’s Cross Country Championships to be held at Elk Lake Junior-Senior High School. He explained that there has been a change in the fee structure and reviewed that change with the committee. After discussion, Chairman Majikes and Bill will call the Elk Lake Superintendent and discuss that fee structure and return to the committee with the results of that discussion.
· Tennis (John Coyle): John Coyle reviewed the recently completed championships and informed the committee that AAA Team Champion Abington Heights and AA Team Champion Scranton Prep will be involved in the upcoming PIAA State Team Tennis Championships.
· Volleyball (Maureen Williams): Maureen Williams reviewed the seeding procedures for the district championships. All league competition concludes on Friday with the District Championships scheduled to begin on Monday of next week.
· Field Hockey (Chris Gegaris): Chris Gegaris reviewed the plans for the upcoming District II Field Hockey Championships.
· Soccer (Mark Rinaldi): Mark Rinaldi informed the committee that all is set for the upcoming District II Soccer Championships. He thanked the seeding committee for their efforts and looks forward to very competitive championships in all classifications.
· Football (Mike Ognosky): The current standings are located on the web page and are up to date through Week #8. The District II Football Committee will be meeting on Sunday, November 9th at 9 a.m. at the Wilkes-Barre Area Career and Technology Center to determine the final seeding and develop the playoff brackets. That information will then be disseminated to those schools who will be participating. All member schools have indicated their desire to participate in this year’s playoffs – there were no opt outs received.
· Basketball (Frank Majikes): Chairman Majikes announced to the Committee that there will be a joint press conference held on Wednesday, November 11th at the Mohegan Sun Arena at 11 a.m. to announce that the PIAA District II Boys’ and Girls’ Basketball Championships for 2016, 2017 and 2018 will be held at the Arena. Frank encouraged all members of the Committee to attend the meeting.
ITEM 5 The District II Committee acted upon the following eligibility requests presented at this evening’s meeting:
· A motion was made by Fred Barletta, seconded by Chris Gegaris, to approve the eligibility of Benjamin Lovvorn, Encore Academy (Ohio) to Old Forge, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Pat Patte, seconded by Vito Quaglia, to approve the eligibility of Nicholas Lovvorn, Encore Academy (Ohio) to Old Forge, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Mark Rinaldi, seconded by Bill King, to approve the eligibility of Rodafo Rivera, GAR to Meyers, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Chad Vinansky, seconded by Ron Collins, to approve the eligibility of Ruddy Diaz, Wyoming Valley West to Meyers, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Danielle Adams, seconded by John Haas, to approve the eligibility of Joseph Egar, James A. Ferris HS to Wallenpaupack, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Pat Patte, seconded by Fred Barletta, to approve the eligibility of Jefferson Randle, West Scranton to Abington Heights, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Chris Gegaris, seconded by Chris Thomas, to approve the eligibility of Yvonie Jones, Scranton to Wyoming Area, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Vito Quaglia, seconded by Pat Patte, to approve the eligibility of Anthony Krug, Delaware Valley to Wallenpaupack, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Mark Rinaldi, seconded by Bill King, to approve the eligibility of Jacob Jakubczyk, Holy Redeemer to Wyoming Valley West, in accordance with Article VI, Section 4, of the PIAA By-Laws, principal-to-principal sign off, effective immediately. All Ayes
ITEM 6 The following Foreign Exchange eligibility requests were acted upon by the District II Committee:
· A motion was made by Chad Vinansky, seconded by Chris Thomas, to approve the immediate eligibility of Teng Lu Yu, Taiwan to Tunkhannock, in accordance with Article VII, Foreign Exchange Students. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Chris Gegaris, seconded by Vito Quaglia, to approve the immediate eligibility of Julia Seuza, Brazil to Tunkhannock, in accordance with Article VII, Foreign Exchange Students. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Mary Ruth Tanner, seconded by Mark Rinaldi, to approve the immediate eligibility of Louis Metens, Belgium to Tunkhannock, in accordance with Article VII, Foreign Exchange Students. All Ayes
· A motion was made by Pat Patte, seconded by Vito Quaglia, to approve the immediate eligibility of Nicoline Gaardsoe, Denmark to Wallenpaupack in accordance with Article VII, Foreign Exchange Students. All Ayes
ITEM 7 A motion was made by Bill Schoen, seconded by Chad Vinansky, to approve the PIAA membership of the following schools: Maple Manor Middle School, McAdoo Middle School, and West Hazleton Middle School. All Ayes
ITEM 8 A motion was made by Bill King, seconded by Pat Patte, to approve a Cooperative Agreement for Indoor Track between Benton (District IV) and Northwest Area. All Ayes
ITEM 9 Chairman Majikes distributed to each committee member the PIAA By-Laws regarding “Qualification for Post Season Participation: Policy Concerning Qualification for Post Season Competition of Individual Students From Schools That Do Not Sponsor A Team During the Regular Season”. It is the responsibility of the student’s school Principal or Athletic Director to make the necessary arrangements with other schools to have the student participate in the necessary events in order to qualify as an individual in a sport. All students who attempt to qualify as individuals must meet all PIAA eligibility rules and requirements and must be accompanied and supervised by a Coach from the member school that the student is representing, or by a full time professional employee of the school or school district in lieu of a Coach.
ITEM 10 Chairman Majikes reviewed the actions taken at the most recent PIAA State Board of Directors’ Meeting of Wednesday, October 7. 2015. Minutes of that meeting can be found on the District II Website.
ITEM 11 A motion was made by Jay Starnes, seconded by Chris Thomas, to adjourn the meeting. All Ayes
Meeting was adjourned at 7:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Mike Ognosky
Mike Ognosky
District II Secretary