Section III has new structure, new leadership

BY PhIL BLACKWELL

As the overseer of high school sports in most of Central New York, Section III athletics has mostly existed as its own entity with its own administration, independent of the school districts who compose its membership.

But after the retirement of longtime executive director John Rathbun in December 2022, the path to find his successor ultimately led Section III to a new arrangement, though it’s not a new concept.

Beginning on Aug. 16, Todd Mulvaney takes over as the section’s executive director, and in doing so helps unite the section with Onondaga-CortlandMadison Board of Cooperative Educational Services, or OCM-BOCES.

Mulvaney’s hiring coincides with OCM-BOCES assuming administrative control of Section III, which is comprised of more than 100 schools, more than four times the number of the 23 for which OCM-BOCES provides shared services.

However, in most of the other 11 sections that comprise the New York State Public High School Athletic Association, BOCES and the individual sections have the same partnership.

In doing so, said OCM-BOCES district superintendent Dr. Matt Cook, “we have learned a lot from their successes along the way.”

The 44-year-old Mulvaney is the athletic director and dean of students at Moravia High School in Cayuga County.

A graduate of SUNY Brockport and holder of a master’s degree at SUNY Cortland, Mulvaney has taught physical education at Auburn for 14 years.

He also brings experience as a highly successful boys basketball coach at Moravia, winning a state championship in 2017 and five times reaching the state final four while earning six Section IV titles.

“Section III has a rich history and I am honored to be a part of it,” said Mulvaney. “(Also) I am excited to serve and collaborate with our member schools and provide a meaningful experience for our student-athletes.”

Part of the reason Section III and OCM-BOCES are joining forces has to do with the costs of high school athletics.

In the past, schools shared administrative costs with the section, but now they will get partial reimbursement of Section III l Page 12

Drive sober

The idea of driving sober seems like something that should go without saying, but the reality is many do choose to get behind the wheel under the influence of alcohol or other substances.

Make no mistake, this is a dangerous decision for many reasons that can carry many consequences that can affect the life of the driver, their friends and families as well as people they may not even know.

State police and local law enforcement will be out in force through Labor Day weekend as part of the national “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign to prevent drugged and drunk driving. The national enforcement period begins on Friday, Aug. 16 and runs through Labor Day.

The last few weeks of summer through Labor Day weekend traditionally results in heavy traffic volumes throughout the state. Unfortunately, this increased flow of traffic brings with it increased accidents, serious injuries and fatalities.

Because this period is marked by increased travel and end of summer celebrations that include alcohol consumption, law enforcement officials across the country have chosen to jointly participate in the campaign. The state police goal is to maximize enforcement efforts to ensure motorists are not needlessly injured or killed by an intoxicated or drug impaired driver during this time.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, drunk driving killed 10,497 people in 2016. On average, one person is killed every 50 minutes in an alcohol-impaired driving crash.

Drivers can expect to see sobriety checkpoints during the campaign, along with more troopers on major highways during this detail.

In addition to the DWI checkpoints and patrols, troopers will also be watching for distracted or impaired drivers, vehicle occupants who are not properly buckled up, and drivers that are violating the Move Over Law.

During the campaign, which is funded by the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, troopers will be using both marked state police vehicles and concealed identity trafficenforcement(CITE)vehiclesas part of the operation.

The CITE vehicles allow troopers to more easily identify motorists who are using handheld devices whiledriving.CITEvehiclesallowthe trooper to better observe distracted driving violations. These vehicles blend in with every day traffic, but are unmistakable as emergency vehicles once the emergency lighting is activated.

Over Labor Day Weekend 2017, the state police made 193 DWI arrests and issued more than 21,900 tickets.

Aside from the tickets issued, the number of lives lost and the even larger number of lives affected by drunk driving is staggering and should serve as impetus to make wise decisions and not get behind the wheel when impaired.

And as recent commercials warning about drunk driving remind us, having glasses of water or coffee is not a way to suddenly be sober. It takes the body some time to process alcohol and there is little anyone can do to speed up that process.

If you are going to drink, don’t drive, call a ride service, walk or have a designated driver in the interest of your own safety and all the others out on the road.