Former Johnsburg AD Jim Meyers inducted into IADA Hall of Fame

Former Johnsburg athletic director Jim Meyers used to admire the names of Illinois Athletic Directors Association Hall of Fame members.

And now, Meyers is one of them.

Meyers, who worked four years at Crown High School, then the first 25 years of Johnsburg’s existence, was inducted into the IADA Hall of Fame on May 4.

Meyers served on many committees during his years as an AD and was honored as the IADA Class AA Athletic Director of the Year in 1993. He was one of the forces in pushing for the IHSA to switch from the two-class system to four classes (three in some sports), which it did in the 2006-07 school year.

“It makes me appreciate all the student-athletes and coaches I worked with,” Meyers said. “I appreciate what my wife and family did, too. It took a lot of people to help me put in 25 years at Johnsburg and four at Crown.

“I take a look at the names [in the IADA Hall], and to be included with them is quite special.”

Meyers and his wife, Marilyn, have two daughters, Jen and Jackie, along with five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Meyers refereed football and umpired softball for several years after retiring from Johnsburg, but quit in 2020.

“We had outstanding help,” he said. “I think of our trainers, our coaches. One time, I was going to give up coaching softball because it was just becoming too much. Some of the coaches came in and said, ‘You keep doing it, we’ll do what needs to be done.’ ”

Meyers, Jim LePage (Wauconda) Doug Smith (Woodstock) and Frank Cittadino (Grant) were some of the leading proponents for the IHSA to add classes for sports, making it a more even playing field for smaller schools. After more than a decade of discussion on that topic, the IHSA schools voted for the current four-class system.

Illinois was in the top 10 of states for number of schools but had only two classes in most sports. All those states larger than Illinois had more classes.

“We met with the board of directors, and I was on a committee and traveled throughout the state with the idea of multiple classes,” Meyers said. “It was well received in some areas and not so well in others.

“It represents a lot more communities and kids being able to have success. There are so many positive things that have come about with more classes.”

In Meyers’ last year at Crown, he also knew he was going to Johnsburg, which was a new school in fall 1978. He was scheduling for both schools for the 1978-79 school year.

Meyers coached football, baseball, basketball and even one season of cheerleading. Some of his most successful teams were Johnsburg’s softball teams in the 1990s. He was the Northwest Herald Softball Coach of the Year in 1992.

“What I quickly found out working with Jim was his complete dedication to do everything within his power to make every Johnsburg student and athlete have the best experiences possible,” former Johnsburg teacher and coach Rick Bailey said. “Jim was always the first one in the building and the last one to leave at the end of the day.

“If you needed anything that would enhance the quality of the athletic team, he would do all he could to make sure you received it.”

Meyers also was inducted into the Big “K” Officials Hall of Fame in 2020. That organization encompasses officials from northern Illinois and douthern Wisconsin and recognizes longevity and accomplishments among athletic officials.