Eleven schools are being honored for sportsmanship this week by the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association (DIAA).  The Dale Farmer State Champions in Sportsmanship Award is presented annually to schools that have demonstrated a strong school community commitment to the educational nature of interscholastic athletics.

The 2022-23 Dale Farmer award is being awarded to the following schools:

Caesar Rodney High School (13)

Caravel Academy (14)

Charter School of Wilmington (10)

Concord High School (14)

Middletown High School (7)

Mt. Pleasant High School (7)

Newark Charter High School (8)

Sanford School (12)

Sussex Tech High School (17)

Talley Middle School (2)

William Penn High School (25)

*The number listed beside each school denotes the total number of times the school has won the award

“Sportsmanship is the cornerstone of athletics.   The DIAA lives by the moto of ‘Education through Athletics’ each and every day.  The Dale Farmer award recognizes those member schools who embrace the DIAA philosophy and incorporate ‘Education through Athletics’ throughout their athletic programs.  I am pleased to recognize those educational institutions that embrace and teach sportsmanship,” DIAA Executive Director David Baylor said.

Thirty-seven different member schools have won the award at least once in its 25-year history. For award consideration, schools must submit a portfolio to DIAA. The DIAA sportsmanship committee reviews the school submissions against a set of standards. The process is demanding and involves the total school community.

“Sportsmanship is essential to a positive interscholastic athletic experience for students, coaches, and fans.  Programs that cherish and value good sportsmanship pave the way for positive and productive adults,” said James Connor, DIAA Sportsmanship Committee chair.  “The life lessons learned on the athletic competition surfaces prepare our youth to make a powerful impact in our world.  Congratulations to all of our award winners!”

The Dale Farmer State Champions in Sportsmanship award is named in recognition and memory of Dale Farmer, the first executive director of the predecessor to DIAA and the 2016 recipient of the DIAA Lifetime Achievement Award.

For media inquiries contact Alison May at Alison.May@doe.k12.de.us. For more information, contact DIAA at 302-857-3365.

Dover, DE (August 19, 2022) – DIAA is aware of recent information shared with media outlets by the Delmarva Football Officials Association (DFOA) regarding a work stoppage for football officials that could potentially impact the upcoming football season’s games for Henlopen Conference schools.

DIAA is committed to working collaboratively with all DIAA approved officials’ associations, in addition to DAAD and DIOC, when considering all future requests concerning officials’ fees. The opportunity to participate in interscholastic athletics is vital to the social, emotional, and physical wellbeing of student athletes. A work stoppage by DFOA would hinder such an opportunity and would not be in the best interest of Delaware’s student athletes.

For more information, please review the letter DIAA sent DFOA on Thursday, Aug. 18, 2022.

The Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association [DIAA] and Special Olympics Delaware [SODE] are proud to announce the continued support of the Allstate Foundation for their 2018 Student Leadership Conference, which is being held today at Delaware Technical Community College.  Approximately 35 schools and 200 students and adult leaders from across Delaware will participate in the program.

“Our goal is to provide students with activities, speakers and practical experiences to help them learn and hone their leadership skills.”, said Tommie Neubauer, the Executive Director of the DIAA.  “We are very thankful for the support from the Allstate Foundation and their desire to help us grow and develop this conference”

Students will attend various breakout sessions that will cover various topics such as: Leadership Development, Planning/Organization, Unified Sports and Responsible Social Media. One focused outcome for students will be in recognizing the importance to accept, include and value people with intellectual disabilities in all aspects of life, and thereby promoting the expansion of Special Olympics Unified Sports in Delaware where high school students with and without disabilities can train and compete on the same team in officially sanctioned DIAA sports.

“The Allstate Foundation is very proud to support this phenomenal effort involving DIAA and SODE and our Delaware student athletes,” said Caitlyn Barron, Allstate spokesperson.  “We believe a lifelong commitment to positively impacting the community begins at a young age and we hope the athletes will return to their schools inspired to lead and empower other students to take on similar projects to better their communities.”

About The Allstate Foundation Established in 1952, The Allstate Foundation is an independent, charitable organization made possible by subsidiaries of The Allstate Corporation (NYSE: ALL). Through partnerships with nonprofit organizations across the country, The Allstate Foundation brings the relationships, reputation and resources of Allstate to support innovative and lasting solutions that enhance people’s well-being and prosperity. With a focus on building financial independence for domestic violence survivors, empowering youth and celebrating the charitable community involvement of Allstate agency owners and employees, The Allstate Foundation works to bring out the good in people’s lives. For more information, visit www.AllstateFoundation.org

Media Contact: Tommie Neubauer, DIAA, 302-857-3365

The Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association [DIAA] offers an annual statewide competition in sportsmanship. The member schools compete against a set of ten standards that measure the school community’s commitment to the educational nature of interscholastic athletics. The process is demanding and involves the total school community.  Member schools submit a portfolio that is judged by the Sportsmanship Committee to determine if each school has successfully met the standards.

The award is named in recognition and memory of Mr. Dale Farmer the first Executive Director of the Delaware Secondary Schools Athletic Association and recipient of the DIAA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016.

The evaluations of this year’s applications are complete and the DIAA Sportsmanship Committee is extremely pleased to announce the 2017 – 2018 DIAA State Champions in Sportsmanship.  Seventeen member schools applied for the award this year and all were judged as winners. Thirty-four different member schools have won this award at least once in the twenty-two year history of the award.

“These schools truly embrace the philosophy of education-based athletics and demonstrate exemplary sportsmanship by their behavior and actions”, said DIAA Sportsmanship Committee Chair Heath Chasanov. “We commend the Sportsmanship Committees of these schools that are constantly promoting the value of sportsmanship and supporting the mission of DIAA.”

The 2017-2018 DIAA State Champions in Sportsmanship:

Brandywine High School (2)

Caesar Rodney High School (8)

Caravel Academy (10)

Charter School of Wilmington (5)

Concord High School (12)

Conrad School of Science (9)

Lake Forest High School (8)

Middletown High School (2)

McKean High School (9)

Mt. Pleasant High School (2)

Newark Charter (3)

Sanford School (7)

Sussex Tech High School (12)

Springer Middle (2)

Tatnall School (4)

William Penn High School (21)

Woodbridge High School (7)

(#) the number indicates the number of years that school has won the Award.

Please contact the DIAA office at 302-857-3365 for any further information

The Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association (DIAA) Board of Directors is pleased to announce the winners of the 2018 DIAA/Harry Roberts – Senior Scholar Athlete awards.  The award is named in recognition and memory of Dr. Harry Roberts, former superintendent of the Caesar Rodney School District who served DIAA on several committees, most notably as chair of the DIAA Sportsmanship Committee for many years.

“This was a stellar group of student athletes and choosing from so many qualified candidates was a humbling and difficult task,” said DIAA Board Chairperson Dr. Bradley Layfield  on behalf of the selection Committee. “I cannot remember a more impressive group of young men and women who exemplify the DIAA motto ‘Education through Athletics.’”

“These student-athletes exemplify the outstanding job DIAA member schools are doing in providing a well-rounded educational experiences for Delaware’s young people,” he said.

The awards are presented annually by the DIAA based on the student’s academic, athletic and leadership accomplishments.

In the history of the awards there have been 107 scholarship recipients, from 33 different member schools with the total amount of money awarded being more than $140,000.

Contact: Thomas E. Neubauer, thomas.neubauer@doe.k12.de.us, 302-857-3365