Burzichelli introduces NJSIAA-dismantling bill

It was 1918. Woodrow Wilson was the president of the United States, not a high school in Camden.

That's when the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association began its oversight of high school sports.

That nearly century-long run would end in September 2011 if legislation introduced Thursday night by assemblyman John Burzichelli becomes law.

"This has the potential to be a national model for the oversight of interscholastic sports," Burzichelli said of his controversial plan to dismantle the 92-year-old NJSIAA.

Burzichelli (D., Gloucester/Salem) and Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver (D., Essex/Passaic) are coauthors of the bill, which was dropped Thursday night. Burzichelli said Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D., Gloucester) is coauthor of an identical bill that will be dropped in the Senate on Friday.

"Anybody that doesn't think this is serious needs to take a look at the names on the bill," Burzichelli said.

The bill calls for oversight of high school sports in New Jersey to be taken over by the Department of Education, which would then transfer day-to-day operations to the New Jersey School Boards Association.

For the bill to be enacted, it must pass through the Assembly and Senate and then be signed into law by Gov. Christie.

"We're marrying what we like about the NJSIAA with what's best about the School Boards Association," said Burzichelli, who has been an outspoken critic of the NJSIAA for around five years.

Burzichelli said the new organization could be called the Garden State Interscholastic Athletic Association. He said non-public schools would be invited to join along with public schools.

Burzichelli said the new organization would follow all the rules and regulations of the NJSIAA and would continue to offer the same tournaments in the same sports.

"The football field will still be 100 yards long," Burzichelli said. "The wrestling championships will still be in Atlantic City. But we'll have a better setup, all the way around."

Several South Jersey athletic directors expressed concern Thursday about the future of high school sports under Burzichelli's plan.

"Dismantling' is an alarming word," Washington Township athletic director Kevin Murphy said of the NJSIAA. "There's such a complexity of operations, it seems to me like it would be detrimental to the student athletes."

Rancocas Valley athletic director Tony Lotierzo said the NJSIAA's need to improve its accounting practices and reduce its expenses is no reason to change high school sports dramatically.

"You're going to throw the whole operation under the train because they need to cut costs?" Lotierzo said.

Burzichelli is aware of apprehension among school officials, coaches, athletes, and parents.

"People are nervous, but this is going to work out," Burzichelli said.

He said the NJSIAA's six full-time directors would not be part of the new organization. He said the School Boards Association plans to offer employment to the "six or seven, rank-and-file" individuals who work for the NJSIAA.

"There still will be somebody there to answer the phone every day," Burzichelli said.

Burzichelli said he would reach out to NJSIAA executive director Steve Timko on Friday to ask him to cooperate with School Boards Association officials in terms of a transition of operations.

Timko was highly critical Wednesday of a report issued by the State Commission of Investigations that charged the NJSIAA with "lax management" and "primitive" accounting practices.

NJSIAA counsel Mike Herbert said Wednesday that Burzichelli's plan was "fraught with legal problems," and said that "operationally, it's absurd."