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Crosby-Ironton eighth-grader Tori Oehrlein made Minnesota girls basketball history on Feb. 8 when she became the fastest player to reach the 1,000-point milestone.

Synopsis of the Minnesota State High School League's Board of Directors Meeting Synopsis  Thursday, Feb 3, 2022

In a run-up to the national celebration of the passage of Title IX legislation on June 23, the Minnesota State High School League’s Board of Directors is joining other high school administrative leaders across the country recognizing individuals for their pioneering efforts. 

Before Stillwater Area High School’s Jessie Diggins became a worldwide Olympic sensation in Nordic Skiing, she and St. Paul Academy’s Annie Hart were two of the most dynamic competitors in Minnesota State High School League competitions. In 2010, leading up to what was expected to be a dandy duel between the friends, the St. Paul Pioneer Press previewed their final high school race and then captured the most dazzling, heart-stopping finish in Nordic Skiing. Both would become teammates on the U.S. Olympic Nordic Skiing Team. Stories and photos courtesy of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

Longtime Associate Director Lisa Lissimore, who has served in that role for 34 years, will retire on April 30, 2022.

Title IX changed my life. It has allowed me to live my dream as a student-athlete, a teacher, a coach, an official, a mother, and now as a grandmother. But even before the passage of Title IX federal legislation, my athletic journey started when I was very young in Milaca. I was five years old, a year younger than my brother, Bruce, when my dad brought us to play t-ball. What possessed my dad to bring us both down, I’ll never know, because it was 1963 and “girls didn’t play ball.” But I’m so thankful for forward-thinking men like my dad and Herb Claffy. My dad introduced us, and asked Mr. Claffy if it was OK if I played. I’ll never forget his answer that was loud, proud and bold enough so all the boys could hear it, too: “Why of course you can play, put your glove on and go to first base.” I put the glove on the wrong hand and ran to third. I didn’t know the bases or how to play . . . yet. It wasn’t in the cards for my brother to continue to play, but I never stopped going. I played every summer through the sixth grade.

Longtime Robbinsdale Armstrong High School Choral Director Stephanie Trump has been selected as the Minnesota recipient of the NFHS Outstanding Music Educator Award. This prestigious honor is presented by the National Federation of State High School Associations in recognition of music educators that excel with enthusiasm and purpose in educating students in the Fine Arts

Implementation of a 35-second shot clock beginning in the 2023-2024 season for Boys and Girls Basketball was approved today by the Minnesota State High School League’s Board of Directors during its regularly scheduled meeting. 

Synopsis of the Minnesota State High School League's Board of Directors Meeting Synopsis  Thursday, Dec. 2, 2021  

On July 20, 1969, astronauts from the United States walked on the moon. This historical moment led to innovations that still reap benefits.
About three years later, one of the most important pieces of legislation was another historical moment that led to opportunities for an underrepresented class of student-athletes within our great nation. It was the birth of Title IX. As we continue the walk-up in marking the 50th year of Title IX, I want to reflect on my experience of how it impacted my educational experience and acknowledge how it has also impacted so many deserving student-athletes.

While North Side playgrounds in Minneapolis were magnets of athletic opportunities for young people, too often, some were relegated to the sideline. Especially female athletes.
That didn’t sit well with Kathie Eiland-Madison in the late 1960s. So, she made a stand. Rather, a sit-in to protest. She believed she was every bit as good as the boys at all sports, but at the time, females as athletes weren’t seen as much beyond the “tom-boy” tag. Eiland-Madison would show her disgust by not being selected to play in a pick-up game by sitting at midcourt. She’d refuse to move until someone took a chance on her or she had to be moved. Mind you, she was on the same court as neighborhood standouts Terry Lewis, Jimmy Jam and Jellybean Johnson. If those names sound familiar, you aren’t mistaken. All were bandmates in the Minneapolis-based group, The Time. Johnson, by the way, was the one typically in charge of lifting Eiland-Madison off the court and carrying her to the side.

As we celebrate the 50th year of the passage of Title IX legislation, I can’t help but think of all the remarkable men and women who’ve influenced my life and helped me fulfill my dream of becoming an athlete. I’m particularly reminded of the story of Weller Johnson, a gifted and talented athlete, whose determination to play and compete inspired me. She was my peer role model. I wanted to emulate her success. It started in 1970 when my family moved from one side of St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood to the other. I was 10 years old and a student at J.J. Hill Elementary School. Recess was my favorite class. It was at J.J. Hill where I met Weller, who was an athletically-gifted girl who loved recess more than I did. Everything she did, whether it was running, jumping, throwing or playing kickball, I tried to do as well. After playing on the playground together for several weeks, Weller asked if I wanted to join the girls flag football team at the Oxford Recreation Center.