GREENFIELD — When Kevin Horrigan first considered starting a career as an athletic director, his mentor Roland Inskeep warned him not to do it.
Inskeep was certainly half-joking, Horrigan said. The long-time athletic director at North Central High School was just insisting that he be cautious before entering a career with long hours,
From that moment forward, Inskeep gave him helpful advice on everything he needed, Horrigan said. And after a 40-year career in education and athletics, Horrigan’s name has joined Inskeep’s on the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association Hall of Fame.
He sure is glad he didn’t listen to his oldest mentor’s initial advice, Horrigan said with a chuckle.
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The NIAAA hall of fame is the highest award presented to individuals who have been active in leadership roles throughout the organization, said Dr. Mike Blackburn, Executive Director. With Horrigan’s extensive résumé from a long career as a teacher, coach and athletic director, his credentials spoke for themselves, Blackburn said.
Horrigan worked in several leadership capacities in the state and local level. Most recently, he served on the NIAAA endowment committee for several years, helping to honor other athletic directors in Indiana and beyond. Horrigan has always cared about the community of athletes, teachers and coaches that he’s worked for, and his selfless heart is often on display, Blackburn said.
“The best way I could describe Kevin is that he’s a servant leader,” Blackburn said. “He is always willing to help, to jump in, whatever the situation might be. Whether it’s at the local, state, national level, it doesn’t make any difference. He’s always willing to lead in any area that he’s called upon.”
Horrigan joins 85 other individuals in the Hall of Fame, 10 of which are from Indiana.
“I’ve just known him over the past 35 years, and having worked with him in many capacities for so long, we’re very excited to see him get into the hall of fame,” Blackburn said.
When Horrigan began his career in education 40 years ago, with 29 spent as an athletic director, going into any kind of Hall of Fame was the last thing on his mind, he said. Taking a look at those who were honored ahead of him, from a national and statewide perspective, it’s an incredibly impressive group of gentlemen, Horrigan said.
“I’m not sure I belong on that list with some of these people, some of whom mentored me,” Horrigan said. “I very much appreciate all the things people have done for me along the way. It was a humbling experience. That’s the best way I can put it; it was completely out of the blue.”
Horrigan was the athletic director at Brebeuf Preparatory School and Lawrence Central before arriving at Greenfield-Central High School in 2002. He worked there for 12 years, until his retirement in 2014.
During his 29 years at those three schools, Horrigan hosted 129 sectional championships, 31 regional championships and 10 semistate championships for the IHSAA, documents state. He also has been in charge of the finish line at the IHSAA Boys and Girls State Track and Field Championships since 1993, and he has been tournament director for the IHSAA Boys State Basketball Championship since 1993.
The career made way for a rewarding life experience; he got to watch athletes go on to have successful futures not just in sports, but onward in life, Horrigan said. To watch them grow older and still be involved, some of them even going on to become teachers and coaches, gave him a lot of fulfillment, he said.
“You graduate from high school once, but I’ve seen more than 38 graduations,” Horrigan said.
Horrigan was officially inducted into the Hall of Fame at a ceremony at the national NIAAA headquarters in San Antonio this week.
“I have been very fortunate in my life,” he said. “I had a job where every day I got up, and I enjoyed going to work. To me it wasn’t work. It was fun. Again, if I go back to all the people who have helped me along the way, I hope that in some small way, I’ve been able to give back something to them.”
