Youngberg named North Mason schools' WIAA representative

Kirk Boxleitner | Jun 09, 20220

Erik Youngberg, the new director of District 1 on the North Mason School District Board of Directors, assumed another role during the board’s May 19 when District 3 Director Laura Boad nominated him to be the board’s Washington Interscholastic Activities Association representative for the 2022-23 school year. Youngberg accepted the position.

District 5 Director Arla Shephard Bull said the WIAA is “the organization governing athletics, interscholastic activity and competitions in Washington state,” for which school districts including North Mason “annually delegate certain authority to the WIAA, and it is time to name a board member contact and adopt the WIAA resolution.”

District 4 Director John Campbell deemed it “a great idea,” and even recalled seeing “a little group called ‘People for Youngberg’ ” as an example of the community’s confidence in him.

Youngberg comes to his position with the WIAA after seven years as a soccer and fastpitch coach, and five years on the North Mason Youth Fastpitch League board, of which he’s spent the past three years as its board president. He’s also spent the past two years as the fundraising chair of the recreation youth soccer board.

When Youngberg applied for the board director position left vacant by Art Wightman, he noted his duties as president of the youth fastpitch recreation league have ranged from resolving issues among parents, players, Mason County and other leagues, to developing mutually beneficial fundraising efforts.

The WIAA assesses its member schools via set classifications, but school boards, including North Mason, retain their right to establish eligibility standards that meet or exceed the rules and regulations of the WIAA.

Youngberg’s return-to-play plan was used by multiple organizations in Mason and Kitsap counties to get youth sports back on the fields amid COVID, which he credited to his ability to work with others.

The school district also offered congratulations to North Mason High School senior Elora Hancock for placing third in the Personal Financial Literacy event at the DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) International Career Development Conference, which took place from April 23-26 in Atlanta.

Out of the more than 17,000 students who gathered for the competition. Hancock competed against 200 of the best students in the world in the preliminary round of competition and made it into the top two for her respective group, which in turn qualified her for the final round of competition against the top 20 students in the world, among whom she placed third.

Hancock is slated to receive her Associate of Arts degree from Olympic College this spring, and plans to continue at the University of Washington in the fall.

Hancock earned her finish with Joey Hua, her career and technical education teacher and DECA adviser, by her side in Atlanta.