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STMA Announces New 2007 Board of Directors

The 2007 STMA Board of Directors was presented to the membership during the association’s Annual Meeting on Jan. 18, in San Antonio. The meeting is required by the STMA Bylaws and was held in conjunction with the association’s 18th Annual Conference and Exhibition. MORE


STMA Conference

Despite the icy conditions in San Antonio, STMA members brought a huge quantity of warmth and energy as more than 1,500 attended the 18th Annual Conference. This reflects an overall increase of 3 percent in attendance despite the loss of more than 200 walk in registrants. MORE


Have Trouble Getting to San Antonio?

Win a free conference registration for next year’s conference in Phoenix! Enter the Travel Travails Contest. The member with the most dreadful travel experience to San Antonio will receive a free registration to next year’s conference! Road Warriors – start writing! Send your experience in 200 words or less to STMA Headquarters by March 31. For more information, read the March issue of SportsTurf Magazine or call STMA Headquarters at 800-323-3875.

For those members who signed up for the cancelled Seminar on Wheels and SAFE/Jacobsen Golf Tournament, refunds may be requested by contacting STMA headquarters at STMAinfo@sportsturfmanager.org. Because the golf tournament is a main source of the SAFE Foundation’s funding, Jacobsen is matching 50 percent of any golf tournament fees donated by registrants.

Information will be sent next week to members who were unable to attend the conference due to weather.


STMA Board Member Tibbetts Resigns
Lance Tibbetts, CSFM, the board member elected to represent the Parks and Recreation segment, resigned Feb. 1. Citing a need to spend more time with his family and focus on work, Tibbetts thanked the board for the opportunity to serve the association. He plans to stay active locally and be an ambassador for the association, encouraging other sports turf managers to join STMA. Per the STMA Bylaws, President Andresen will appoint a member from the Parks and Recreation category to fulfill the remainder of Tibbett’s term, which ends in Jan. 2008. Andresen plans to make the appointment by the end of March.


Baseball Field Maintenance DVD a Success!

STMA, SAFE and NIAAA (National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association) co- produced two videos, Home Plate Maintenance Mound-building. The DVD debuted at the STMA conference and quickly sold out. To order a copy, fill out the form and fax it to STMA Headquarters at 785-843-2977. The cost is $15 each, plus $3 shipping and handling.


STMA Honors Founders Awardees

At the STMA Awards banquet held on Fri., Jan. 19 in conjunction with its 18th Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Antonio, four Founders Award winners were honored. The winners of STMA’s most prestigious honors include:



Mike McDonald, CSFM, Turf Manager at the University of Minnesota. He received the Dick Ericson award, which is given to a sports turf manager who positively impacts the sports turf industry and exhibits effective team leadership.






James McAfee, Ph.D., Extension Turfgrass Specialist at Texas A&M. He received the Dr. William H. Daniel Award, which acknowledges significant contributions to the sports turf industry through research, teaching and extension outreach.




Todd Jeansonne (pictured), Sports Turf Manager at Louisiana State University and Jeff Kershaw, Director of Maintenance for the West Baton Rouge Parrish School both received The George Toma Golden Rake Award for their efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The Toma Award acknowledges an individual’s strong work ethic and job performance.




Boyd R. Montgomery, CSFM of The Toro Company. The Harry C. Gill Memorial Award recognizes an individual for their hard work in the sports turf industry and acknowledges their dedication and service to the STMA.






STMA Presents 11 Field of the Year Awards

Eleven STMA Field of the Year winners were also honored during the annual awards banquet. The sports turf managers whose fields won were judged to have exceptional playability and aesthetic playing surfaces, employ innovative solutions, use budget dollars effectively, and develop and implement a comprehensive, agronomically sound maintenance program. The winners include:

Baseball
(Professional): Blair County Ballpark, Altoona, Pennsylvania
(Schools/Parks): Gaebelein Field, Norcross, Georgia

Football
(Professional): Marie P. DeBartolo Sports Centre, Santa Clara, California
(Collegiate): Greentree Practice Facility – University of Miami Coral Gables, Florida
(Schools/Parks): Raider Stadium at Atlee High School Mechanicsville, Virginia

Soccer
(Collegiate): Jeffrey Field – Penn State University, State College, Pennsylvania
(Schools/Parks): Greene Field – Noble and Greenough School, Dedham, Massachusetts

Softball
(Collegiate): Cyrill Softball Stadium – University of South Carolina-Upstate, Spartanburg, South Carolina
(Schools/Parks): Mizuno Field – Eastside Center, East Peoria, Illinois

Complex
(Professional): Surprise Recreation Campus, Surprise, Arizona
(Schools/Parks): Village of Lincolnshire – NorthPark, Lincolnshire, Illinois


Past President Trigg Presents Minor League Baseball Awards

In December 2006, now Past President Mike Trigg, CSFM presented awards to four Minor League Baseball (MiLB) Sports Turf Managers recognizing the quality of their fields during the Baseball Winter Meetings in Orlando. STMA is a co-sponsor with the MiLB for these Sports Turf Manager of the Year Awards. Sixteen leagues selected a winner and from those winners, STMA awards the Sports Turf Manager of the Year. The winners are:

  • Short Season/Rookie – Joe Skrabak, Greeneville Astros
  • Class A – Greg Elliott, Lake County Captains
  • Class AA – Patrick Coakley, Altoona Curve
  • Class AAA – Jake Tyler, Toledo Mud Hens