SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/460594
STMA in ACTiOn 46 SportsTurf | March 2015 www.sportsturfonline.com News from the Sports Turf Managers Association Town of Lexington; President-Elect Jeffrey Salmond, CSFM, Director of Athletic Field Management at the University of Oklahoma; Commercial Vice President James Graff, Owner, Graff 's Turf; and Secretary-Treasurer Tim Van Loo, CSFM, Manager of Athletics Turf & Grounds, Iowa State University. Newly elected Directors include Bobby Behr, CSFM, Athletic Director, Ashley Ridge High School, representing the K-12 mem- bership category; At Large Jimmy Simpson, CSFM, Facility Works Expeditor, Town of Cary; Dan Bergstrom, Director- Major League Field Operations, Houston Astros representing the professional facilities category; and Doug Schattinger, President Pioneer Athletics, representing the Commercial sector. The Directors who were appointed include Jeff Fowler, Penn State extension services, who represents the Academic segment; Matt Anderson, CSFM, Superintendent of Grounds for the University of Arizona, who represents the higher education cat- egory; and Dave Anderson, PE, Principal with D.A. Hogan & Associates, who is named to the second At Large position. Sarah Martin, CSFM, Turf Manager/Foreman 1 for the City of Phoenix is fulfilling her second year in her first term as Director. She repre- sents the parks and recreation category. STMA'S 2014 Field oF The YeAr AwArd wiNNers Professional Division: Soccer—Maryland SoccerPlex Stadium Field (Boyds, MD): Ryan Bjorn, Sports Field Director College and University Division: Baseball—Russ Chandler Stadium at Georgia Tech (Atlanta, GA): Jon DeWitt, CSFM, Sports Turf Manager; Chris May, Baseball Field Manager Football—"The Swamp" at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium - University of Florida (Gainesville, FL): Jason Smith, Turf Coordinator Softball—John Cropp Stadium at University of Kentucky (Lexington, KY): Eric Harshman, Sports Turf Assistant Manager Soccer—Georgia State Soccer Complex at Georgia State University (Atlanta, GA): Kyle Slaton, CSFM, Director of Sports Turf & Grounds Schools and Parks Division: Baseball—Don Dunker Field at Noblesville Schools (Noblesville, IN): Joshua Weigel, Superintendent of Grounds Football—Clover Memorial Stadium at Clover School District (Clover, SC): Will Rogers, Sports Turf Manager Softball—Waukegan Park District (Waukegan, IL): Noel Brusius, CSFM, Sports Turf Manager Soccer—North Area Athletic Complex Soccer Field at Jefferson County School District (Golden, CO): Sun Roesslein, Stadium Manager; Christi Clay, Stadium Manager Sporting Grounds—Championship Field at Pleasant View Sports Complex (Boulder, CO): Don McGhee, Head Maintenance Professional STudeNT ChAlleNge CelebrATeS 10Th YeAr The STMA student challenge celebrated its 10th year by expanding the exam to include a new hands-on component: irrigation assembly. Congratulations to all STMA Student Challenge participants for their exceptional perfor- mance on the exam. Thirty-one teams encompassing more t h a n 1 1 5 s c h o l a r s competed for $4,000 awards. These students represented both 2 and 4-year colleges across the nation. The Student Challenge is presented by SAFE, Founding Partner Hunter Industries, and new sponsor Ewing. Winning the 2-year competition was Penn State University – Team 207. Mt. San Antonio College - Team 206 took second place, and Mt. San Antonio College – Team 202 took third place. Winning the 4-year competition was University of Maryland - Team 414. Penn State University – Team 413 took second place and Penn State University – Team 420 took third place. SAFe FuNdrAiSerS SuCCeSSFul SAFE, the association's charitable foundation, raised almost $15,000 during the Conference through its "Night of Bowling;" "Casino Night"; and silent and live auctions throughout the week. Proceeds benefit educational programs, scholarships and grants with the goal of enriching communities through safe, sustainable sports and recreation fields for all athletes. A highlight of the live auction was two groundskeepers for a day packages - one valued at $2,500 from the Minnesota Twins, and the other similarly valued that offered a choice of teams from which to select. Those teams include Phillies, Marlins, Cardinals, Mariners, and Padres. SAFE announced that it has produced three educational videos about field safety, titled "Sports and Recreation Fields – Safety First." The videos help non-sports turf managers to do a field and facility inspection for elements that may pose hazards to players. The videos cover natural grass fields, synthetic fields, and sports facilities and equipment. They can be downloaded for free from SAFEFields.org. STMA and SAFE thanks its conference sponsors who make enhanced programming possible each year. The sponsors are: Barenbrug, Beacon Athletics, Bush Turf, Covermaster, Diamond Pro, Ewing, Fields, Graff 's Turf, Green One Industries, Hunter, John Deere, Rain Bird, Toro, and World Class Athletic Surfaces. Next year's event will be held in San Diego, January 19-22, 2016. Additional future sites include Orlando (2017) Fort Worth, TX (2018), and Phoenix (2019). The University of Maryland Team 414 took first place in the four year category of the 10th annual Student Challenge Competition. Penn State Team 207 took first place in the two year divi- sion of the 10th annual Student Challenge Competition.