Mike Stanley of Harlan Named National Active Official of the Year

Iowa Officiating- The Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) announced that Mike Stanley of Harlan has become the fifth Iowan to win the National Active Official of the Year as awarded by the NFHS Officials Association. Stanley has been a registered IHSAA official since 1970, and he has been registered as an official for 44 years for boys’ and girls’ track and field and 42 years in boys’ and girls’ basketball, football, and volleyball.

Mike Stanley has worked as meet marshal for the Drake Relays for 15 years, once at the NCAA Division I National Championships, and multiple NCAA Division III National Championships and Iowa Conference Championships. Lewie Curtis, the IHSAA director of officials, had this to say about Stanley,

Mike Stanley’s name is synonymous with high school track and field in Iowa. His excellence as an official is unparalleled and he is most deserving of this prestigious award. Mike’s service to the youth of Iowa is seen not only through his life’s work as an educational leader, but also as a sports official.”

One of the 2022-2023 selections for 2022-2023 Iowa Sports Official of the Year was Dell Wagner of Muscatine for Girls’ Cross Country.