Assistant AD at Mundelein High honored

The National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association has announced that Jessica Upchurch, assistant athletic director at Mundelein High School, has been recognized by the association as a certified athletic administrator.

To earn this distinction, Upchurch has demonstrated the highest level of knowledge and expertise in the field of interscholastic athletic administration. The voluntary certification process includes a thorough evaluation of the candidate's educational background, experience and professional contributions, as well as a rigorous, comprehensive written examination.

Upchurch is one of an elite group of interscholastic athletic administrators nationwide to attain this level of professionalism.

"I am a current member of the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association," Upchurch said. "This certification is based on the premise of continuing education, professional growth and program development in athletics. Being a part of this association has strongly enhanced my ability to better serve our school, athletic department and community. I really want Mundelein High School to benefit from the leadership training I received during the process of becoming a CAA."

The NIAAA is a national professional organization consisting of all 50 state athletic administrator associations and more than 9,000 individual members. It is dedicated to promoting the professional growth of high school athletic administrators and preserving the educational nature of interscholastic athletics and the place of these programs in the secondary school curriculum.

"My experience at MHS has been great," Upchurch said. "The highlights have been working with student athletes in our Student Athlete Leadership Training group and our Hispanic Athletic Counsel.

"We have such great kids, who are motivated and eager to take initiative to facilitate change. The opportunity to work with, in my opinion, one of the best athletic directors in the area has been awesome."