IBCA E-Newsletter

The IBCA has presented Administrator of the Year awards since 2008. Most years, there are three winners, one from each IHSAA district. In some years, as many as four or five winners were named.

This year’s winners were announced in December, and presentations were made to the honorees at their respective school during the basketball season.

Congratulations to the 2025 Administrators of the Year – LaPorte athletic director Steve Santana, Ben Davis athletic director Heather McGowan and Scottsburg athletic director Jamie Lowry.

District 1: Steve Santana, athletic director, LaPorte

Steve Santana is in his third year as athletic director at LaPorte after serving as assistant athletic director at the school the previous 16 years. He is recognized for his support of Indiana high school basketball throughout his tenure in an administrative role.

Santana is a 1990 graduate of LaPorte, where he played baseball and was part of the Slicers’ 1990 state championship team as a senior. He matriculated to Ball State, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary education in 1994. He later earned a master’s degree in education from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2005.

Santana started in education as a teacher at Warsaw High School from 1995-1998, where he also served as an assistant baseball coach. He taught at Lowell High School in 1998-99, then returned to his alma mater in the fall of 1999. At LaPorte, he was an assistant baseball coach from 2000 to 2014 and became the assistant athletic director in 2006.

While a baseball coach, he was on staff when LaPorte won the Class 4A state championship.

He has been active within the Indiana Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. For the IIAAA, he served on a strategic planning committee in 2014, was a junior director from 2015-17, was a District 1 director from 2017-19 and was a Section 1 director in 2019-20. He also was on an IIAAA-IHSAA Advisory Committee from 2016-19, and he has been the IIAAA District 1 membership chairman since 2022.

Santana and his wife, Missy, are parents to two adult daughters – Natalie and Gillian.

District 2: Heather McGowan, athletic director, Ben Davis

Heather McGowan is in her third year as athletic director at Ben Davis after serving as assistant athletic director at the school the previous seven years. She is recognized for her support of Indiana high school basketball throughout her tenure in an administrative role.

McGowan has been on staff at Ben Davis since 1995, working as a teacher and certified athletic trainer for 16 years. She served as the school’s Dean of Students from 2011-15 before becoming the assistant athletic director in 2015.

A 1989 graduate of Mound Westonka High School in Minnestrista, Minn., the former Heather Dorfner competed in volleyball, basketball and softball for the Mohawks. She then attend South Dakota State University, where she played softball, was selected an All-America Scholar-Athlete by the National Softball Coaches Association and earned bachelor’s degrees in 1994 in health, physical education, recreation, dance, education and athletic training. She later earned a master’s degree in education administration from Butler University in 2006.

While at Ben Davis, she was named a “Top 30” honoree in 1999 and again in 2000. That is a recognition awarded to a teacher from the top 30 students academically from a given year’s graduating class. She also has been on the support staff for seven basketball state champions (boys in 1996, 2017 and 2023; girls in 2000, 2001, 2009 and 2010), two basketball state runners-up (boys in 2019 and 2024), six football state champions (1999, 2001, 2002, 2014, 2017 and 2023), one football state runner-up (1996) and three track state champions (boys in 2008, 2009 and 2010).

McGowan and her husband, Ron, are parents to two adult children – daughter, Korbyn, and son, Braden.

District 3: Jamie Lowry, athletic director, Scottsburg

Jamie Lowry is in his ninth year as athletic director at Scottsburg after previously working in sales and in the golf industry. He is recognized for his support of Indiana high school basketball throughout his tenure in an administrative role.

A 1988 graduate of Scottsburg, Lowry participated in basketball and cross country for the Warriors. He attended Franklin College and Indiana University Southeast, earning a bachelor’s degree from IUS in 1994.

Lowry started his professional career in sales, with Hoosier Hills Awards in Scottsburg from 1993-98 and then with Larry Dismore & Associates from 1998-2000. He moved to the golf industry as a pro shop consultant at Scottsburg’s Westwood Golf Course from 2000-07, then served as general manager of the facility from 2007-16 prior to joining the athletic staff at his alma mater.

He also was a broadcaster for Scottsburg basketball radio from 1998 to 2013 and created a Scottsburg basketball website in 2003 that still is maintained and updated.

Lowry twice has been recognized by Indiana Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. He won an IIAAA District V Distinguished Service Award in 2006 for his contributions as a broadcaster and to the Scottsburg basketball website. He later was cited as the IIAAA District V Athletic Administrator of the Year in 2022.

Lowry and his wife, Jennifer, have two children – daughter, Reese, 16, and son, Andrew, 11.

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IBCA ADMINISTRATOR OF THE YEAR AWARD WINNERS

Administrator of the Year award winners as presented by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association from 2008-present. Three, four or five winners per year with the IHSAA in a three-district format.

• 2008 – District 1: Michael Pettibone, superintendent, Adams Central Community Schools. District 2: Jerry Holifield, superintendent, Plainfield Community School Corp. District 3: Kendall Wildey, principal, Jennings County High School.
• 2009 – District 1: Garry Nallenweg, athletic director, Chesterton High School. District 2: Kevin Horrigan, athletic director, Greenfield-Central High School; Phil Waddell, athletic director, Hamilton Heights High School. District 3: Gary Cook, principal, North Decatur High School.
• 2010 – District 1: Larry "Jake" Jackowiak, assistant superintendent, Concord Community Schools. District 2: Mike Huey, athletic director, New Palestine High School. District 3: James Babcock, former athletic director, assistant principal and principal, Paoli High School.
• 2011 – District 1: Janis Qualizza, athletic director, Merrillville High School. District 2: Mike Necessary, superintendent, Randolph Southern School Corp.; Kevin Stephenson, athletic director, Beech Grove High School. District 3: Brad Lindsay, superintendent, Mooresville Consolidated School Corp.
• 2012 – District 1: Michael Smith, athletic director/assistant principal, Munster High School. District 2: Grant Nesbit, athletic director, Lawrence North High School; Jim Zeller, assistant athletic director, Lawrence North High School. District 3: Paul Neidig, athletic director, Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp.; Jerrill Vandeventer, superintendent, Greater Jasper Consolidated Schools.
• 2013 – District 1: Don Gandy, principal, Wheeler High School. District 2: Wayne Barker, superintendent, Bluffton-Harrison Metropolitan School District. District 3: Don Unruh, athletic director, New Albany High School.
• 2014 – District 1: Robert Falls, athletic director, Michigan City High School; Geoff Penrod, athletic director, Columbia City High School. District 2: Chad Bolser, athletic director, Richmond High School; Phil Ford, principal, Jay County High School. District 3: Mike Whitten, principal, Boonville High School.
• 2015 – District 1: Debb Stevens, athletic director, Caston Junior-Senior High School. District 2: Troy Inman, principal, Pike High School; Dave Worland, principal, Cathedral High School. District 3: Brett Bardwell, athletic director, Southridge High School; Jeff Hester, athletic director, Columbus North High School.
• 2016 – District 1: Ed Gilliland, athletic director, LaPorte High School. District 2: Mel Seifert, principal, Plainfield High School. District 3: Rob Moorhead, superintendent, South Ripley Community School Corp.
• 2017 – District 1: Patti McCormack, athletic director, Lowell High School. District 2: Chuck Weisenbach, principal, Roncalli High School. District 3: Ron McBride, athletic director, Bloomfield Junior-Senior High School.
• 2018 – District 1: Jane Allen, superintendent, Middlebury Community Schools. District 2: Steve Cox, director of transportation, Beech Grove City Schools. District 3: Steve Killian, athletic director, Wood Memorial High School.
• 2019 – District 1: Nathan Dean, athletic director, Jimtown High School. District 2: John Clark, athletic director, Ben Davis High School. District 3: Jeff Doyle, principal, Barr-Reeve High School.
• 2020 – District 1: Stacy Adams, athletic director, Valparaiso High School. District 2: Shane Osting, athletic director, New Castle High School. District 3: Tim Grove, superintendent, South Knox School Corp.
• 2021 – no winners named (winners from 2020 honored in 2021 because of COVID-19 pandemic).
• 2022 – District 1: Garland Hudson II, athletic director, South Bend Washington High School. District 2: Pat Mapes, superintendent, Perry Township Schools. District 3: Tom Black, principal, East Central High School.
• 2023 – District 1: Chip Pettit, superintendent, Duneland School Corporation. District 2: Brandon Ecker, athletic director, Mt. Vernon High School (Fortville). District 3: Jeff Cerqueira, athletic director, Floyd Central High School.
• 2024 – District 1: John Steinhilber, athletic director, River Forest High School. District 2: Drew Tower, athletic director, Brownsburg High School. District 3: Doug Louden, athletic director (retired), Forest Park High School.
• 2025 – District 1: Steve Santana, athletic director, LaPorte High School. District 2: Heather McGowan, athletic director, Ben Davis High School. District 3: Jamie Lowry, athletic director, Scottsburg High School.