Board adopts updated athletic policies and introduces new weights coach

The Hamilton Community Schools board on July 20 approved updated athletic department policies and heard from the district’s new weights and conditioning coach, Michael Harrison.

Athletic director Mr. Prokop presented the revisions, saying he updated contact information, added a Hamilton Athletics vision statement and clarified responsibilities for students and parents to establish a chain of command for communication. Prokop described an appeals process for athletic discipline that would involve the athletic director, principal and head coaches and said IHSA rule changes on transfers and roster accreditation required corresponding policy edits.

"So I will just kinda touch base on this real quick... I added in our the sports app that we use, which is SportsU," Prokop said while outlining the updates and noting that most changes were procedural or legal clarifications. He explained the appeals process for student-athlete discipline hearings.

Board members praised Prokop’s work on communication and outreach. The board then voted to approve the revised athletic policies for the 2026–27 school year.

Separately, the board introduced Michael Harrison, who will serve as a weights and conditioning adjunct coach. Harrison said he is a 2005 graduate, served five years in the Marine Corps, volunteered with school track and conditioning, and wants to emphasize injury prevention. "I'm excited to... give back to the school a little bit," he said.

The board asked administration to distribute updated policies to coaches, staff and families before the start of activities in the coming school year.