WPIAL plans Diversity Advisory Council to better represent minority communities

By: Chris Harlan
Friday, June 19, 2020 | 1:05 AM

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The WPIAL soon could have a Diversity Advisory Council, created to give a louder voice to the challenges faced by minority communities.

Associate executive director Amy Scheuneman shared her idea Thursday with the WPIAL board of directors, who supported the plan and voted unanimously to develop the council at a workshop next month. The council would offer guidance to the board and possibly take part in WPIAL hearings.

The WPIAL has heard criticism that its board doesn’t accurately reflect the racial diversity of its member schools, said Scheuneman, who’ll become the WPIAL executive director next month when Tim O’Malley retires.

The council would help the WPIAL “gain information and knowledge to the background and social challenges that affect minorities who are underrepresented on the board of directors,” Scheuneman said. “This council will help provide perspective and resource to the executive director and the WPIAL board of directors for the betterment of all student-athletes.”

She envisioned the council having between five and seven appointed members, but those details will be discussed next month. Along with advising the WPIAL, members could speak to student groups and be available as a resource for school administrators.

Council members would not be members of the WPIAL board or vote during hearings.

Among others, the council could include local NAACP representatives, who’ve offered the WPIAL assistance in the past, Scheuneman said.

“This is to let us understand what else is out there,” she said. “If there are people who feel underrepresented, they can come to that council to have their opinions voiced and heard.”

The WPIAL board has 19 voting members, comprised largely of school administrators including athletic directors, principals and superintendents.

Ten members are elected annually on one-year terms and nine are appointed by various constituencies, such as the athletic directors’ representative and the school boards’ representative. That limits the WPIAL’s ability to diversify its board.

“We don’t have the ability to necessarily have great representation because it’s an election process,” Scheuneman said.

High school principals vote for the 10 at-large members.

This past school year, the board had no minority members. That changed when Woodland Hills athletic director Ron Coursey was elected for the 2020-21 school year.

“This is something that in my opinion is long overdue,” said Coursey, calling the council “100% necessary.”

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.