OHSAA selects Jerry Snodgrass as next executive director

The search for Dr. Dan Ross’ replacement is at an end.

On May 4, the Ohio High School Athletic Association announced longtime Assistant Director and Director of Sports Management Jerry Snodgrass would be the next executive director of the OHSAA.

Snodgrass, a 2010 OHSAA Hall of Fame inductee who has been with the OHSAA since 2008, will be the 10th leader in the 111-year history of the OHSAA. He will assume leadership on Sept. 16, when Ross, who has served as the OHSAA Commissioner since Aug. 1, 2004, retires.

“We have an enormous responsibility in education-based athletics and I am ready to take that on,” Snodgrass said. “I have had a great mentor here and great mentors along the way to prepare me. No individual in this profession is successful without the help of others. We have a great staff and they will be an integral part of developing our annual goals, while always keeping in mind our mission statement to provide educational opportunities for the students through participation in sports.

“The success of our student-athletes is not possible without the thousands of coaches and administrators on the front lines and we need to help our coaches and administrators make this happen.”

Paul Powers, OHSAA Board of Directors President and the athletic director at Aurora High School, reflected the comments of Snodgrass, while adding that Snodgrass’ connection with Ohio schools was a key to the Board’s decision.

“Jerry has established great relationships with so many people and schools throughout Ohio,” Powers said. “He is very respected across the state and has been a leader within the OHSAA community for a long time, including the last 11 years in the state office. Jerry has not only been the administrator for many of the OHSAA sanctioned sports, but he has brought new ideas, especially in the areas of sportsmanship and tournament management. We are excited to see the direction of the Association in the years to come.”

Snodgrass, an Upper Sandusky native, served as a teacher, coach and administrator at schools including Defiance, Morral Ridgedale, Bryan and Findlay, where he served for 25 years, including 16 as athletic director. After 31 years in eduction, Snodgrass served as the administrator for various sports — including soccer, basketball, baseball, softball, lacrosse and hockey — after joining the OHSAA in 2008. He has been the main liaison with athletic administrators in his time with the OHSAA and also oversees the “Golden Megaphone” program and created “Military Appreciation Night.”

A 1973 graduate of Upper Sandusky High School, Snodgrass attended Bowling Green, earning his bachelor’s degree in 1977 and then his master’s degree from the University of Dayton in 1989.

Snodgrass began his career in 1977 as teacher and coach at Defiance High School. He moved on to teach and become the head boys basketball coach at Ridgedale High School between 1980 and 1982 before serving as a teacher and middle school athletic director in the Bryan City Schools during the 1982-83 school year.

Snodgrass was hired by the Findlay City Schools in 1983 to teach physical science and he also served as an assistant boys varsity basketball coach. In 1991, he was promoted to the head boys basketball coach at Findlay, continuing in that role through 1999. Overall, he spent 25 years at Findlay, the last 16 as the school’s athletic director. Snodgrass was elected to serve on the OHSAA’s Northwest District Athletic Board for many years and served a two-year term on the OHSAA Board of Directors between 2005-07. He was the Board of Directors president during in 2006-07 school year. Snodgrass also has been a trustee with the OHSAA Foundation, is a member of the OHSAA’s Sportsmanship, Ethics & Integrity Committee, and currently serves on the University of Findlay’s Sport & Hospitality Management Advisory Board and the Wilson Football Hall of Fame.