Press release below courtesy of NIAAA & NFHS:

Nine individuals who have made outstanding contributions to interscholastic athletics have been named recipients of the 2015 Distinguished Service Awards given by the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA), including New Trier's Deb Ofcky (right).

These individuals will be honored December 15 in Orlando, Florida, during the banquet at the 46th annual National Athletic Directors Conference conducted jointly by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and the NIAAA.

The Distinguished Service Award is presented annually to individuals from within the NIAAA membership in recognition of their length of service, special accomplishments and contributions to interscholastic athletics at the local, state and national levels. Nominations are submitted by state athletic directors associations, screened by the NIAAA Awards Committee and selected by the NIAAA Board of Directors.

This year’s winners include Arthur Ballard, CAA, director of transportation, building and grounds, and athletics, Estill County Schools, Irvine, Kentucky; Sean Dowling, CMAA, director of athletics, Madison (New Jersey) High School; Jim Dorman, CAA, assistant principal/athletics, Lincoln High School, Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Ray Ebersole, CMAA, athletic administrator, Hudson (Ohio) High School; James Gagen, CMAA, retired activities director, St. Louis (Missouri) Marquette High School; Deborah Ofcky, CMAA, assistant athletic director, New Trier High School, Winnetka, Illinois; Ronald Richards, CAA, athletic director/assistant principal, McNary High School, Keizer, Oregon; Jaime Sherwood, CMAA, director of athletics and activities, Wayzata High School, Plymouth, Minnesota; and Todd Sobrilsky, CMAA, associate principal, Brookfield (Wisconsin) Central High School. A bio on Deb Ofcky is provided below:


Deborah Ofcky, CMAA, Winnetka, Illinois
From the start of her career in athletics, Deborah Ofcky has proven herself to be a driving force for constant improvement in all aspects of athletic administration. She is currently the assistant athletic director of New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois, but her influence is felt far beyond her school.
At New Trier, Ofcky is involved in several committees, including the All-School Wellness Team Committee, the New Trier Spirit Committee, the Bullying/Harassment Prevention Committee and the Concussion Oversight Committee. She also continues to coach badminton and girls golf, and led the school’s girls badminton team to a Illinois High School Association (IHSA) state championship in 2010.

One of Ofcky’s major responsibilities at New Trier is coordinating the Student-Athlete Leadership Training (SALT), which serves juniors across all sports who participate in a wide variety of experiences and activities that encourage them to become lifelong learners and leaders.

Locally, Ofcky is a member of the Central Suburban League Leadership Conference Committee and is chair of the League’s Sportsmanship Committee. She is also heavily involved at the state level, serving on the IHSA Golf Rules Committee and the IHSA State Badminton Seeding Committee. She previously served on the IHSA Advisory Board for badminton and volleyball.

Ofcky has been a member of the Illinois Athletic Directors Association (IADA) since 2002, and has served as the IADA state certification chair since 2006. In 2008, she was co-chair of the IADA state conference and in 2006 and 2007, Ofcky was the IADA registration co-chair.

At the national level, Ofcky has been a strong proponent of NIAAA certification and has been a CAA exam administrator since 2006. From 2006 to 2014, she was a member of the NIAAA Certification Committee, working as the lead mentor for CAA and CMAA readers. In addition, Ofcky was a member of the NIAAA Professional Development Academy in 2013 and 2014 and has been a regular presenter and moderator at the National Athletic Directors Conference.