Seven high school athletic administrators will be inducted into the 11th class of the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA) Hall of Fame December 17 during banquet festivities at the 50th annual National Athletic Directors Conference co-sponsored by the NIAAA and the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).

This year’s conference will be held December 13-17 at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland.

The 2019 NIAAA Hall of Fame class includes Doug Smith, a long-time athletic director in Illinois. Read more on Doug’s amazing career below:


Doug Smith, CMAA
Naperville, Illinois
Doug Smith retired in 2011 after 27 years as a high school athletic director at three Illinois high schools. Including his six years as a teacher and coach to begin his career in secondary education, Smith devoted 33 years to high school teaching, coaching and athletic administration.

After teaching and coaching at East Peoria Community High School for six years, Smith was assistant principal and athletic director at Monmouth High School for five years, followed by 14 years in a similar position at Woodstock High School. He concluded his education career as athletic director at Naperville North High School for eight years.

During his time as athletic director at the three Illinois high schools, the various teams won 80 conference championships, 50 Illinois High School Association regional titles, 25 IHSA sectional titles and eight IHSA state championships. He started an Athletic Hall of Fame at all three schools, and he developed student leadership programs at Woodstock and Naperville North.

Smith was responsible for facility improvements at all three schools as well, including new athletic/physical education facilities and two new gymnasiums at Woodstock, and a new turf field, renovated pool and fieldhouse at Naperville North.

However, Smith’s most lasting legacy at the local level was his creation of Hoops for Healing, a basketball tournament that he started in Woodstock and continued in Naperville, in which all funds go to cancer awareness research. Started in response to his own battle and eventual victory over colon cancer, all proceeds have gone to CAMP HOPE for the past 13 years and now total more than $400,000.

In addition to his contributions locally, Smith was president of the Illinois Athletic Directors Association (IADA), and was co-creator of the IADA Mentoring Program and the IADA Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the IADA Hall of Fame in 2015 and was IADA Class AA Athletic Director of the Year in 1993-94. He has taught more than 30 Leadership Training courses at the state level, and was a speaker at nine IADA state conventions.

Smith also served on the IHSA Strategic Planning Committee (2001-02) and was a two-term member of the IHSA Legislative Commission.

At the national level, Smith has been an NIAAA member since 1984 and served on the NIAAA Board of Directors from 2006 to 2008. He served on the NIAAA Credentials Committee from 1995 to 2002, including the final three years as chair, and he was NIAAA delegate to the national conference from 1988 to 1991. Smith was a speaker at four National Athletic Directors Conferences, completed 30 Leadership Training courses and had several articles published in Interscholastic Athletic Administration magazine.

In 2015, Smith co-authored Leadership Training Course 640 (Role of the Urban Athletic Director) and was national chair of the course for several years and was co-chair of LTC 608 – Office Management – until 2017.

Smith, who earned his bachelor’s degree from Western Illinois University and his master’s from Bradley University, has received numerous awards, including the NIAAA Distinguished Service Award and the NFHS Citation. He was inducted into the Woodstock Athletic Hall of Fame in 2008.