The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors met for its regularly scheduled meeting at the IHSA office in Bloomington on Monday, June 13, 2022, where Dan Le (right) was approved by the Board to join the IHSA staff as an Assistant Executive Director. Le becomes the 36th individual in the IHSA’s history to hold the title of Assistant Executive Director on the Association’s administrative staff.
“We are excited to welcome Dan Le to the IHSA staff,” said IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson. “Dan has shown incredible leadership and growth in his time as an athletic and activities director. I have no doubt that his passion for helping young people and own personal experiences as a student-athlete, coach, and administrator will translate to a successful career at the IHSA.”
Le comes to the IHSA after serving as the Director of Athletics & Activities at LaSalle-Peru High School (LPHS) since 2019. Prior to joining the staff at LPHS, he worked for ten years as a teacher, administrator, and coach at Ottawa Township High School (OTHS). Le was the recipient of the Illinois Athletic Directors Association’s (IADA) New Athletic Director of the Year Award in 2021 and serves on the IADA’s Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion committee.
“I am humbled and honored to be joining the IHSA staff,” said Le. “This is an exciting opportunity to provide students across the state with memorable experiences through interscholastic athletics and activities.”
In addition to overseeing the athletic and activity programs at LPHS, Le served as the district’s transportation director and was a lead member of the school’s Hall of Honor committee. He also sat on the IHSA’s All-State Academic Team selection committee the past two years and hosted multiple IHSA Regional, Sectional and Super-Sectional events across several sports at LPHS.
“I look forward to collaborating with the IHSA team,” said Le. “I hope to help the Association continue to grow by improving operations in its current programs and increasing opportunities for students to enhance their educational experiences.”
Le is a 2002 graduate of Ottawa Township High School (OTHS), where he participated in tennis, cross country, scholastic bowl, and was a member of the National Honor Society. A past North Central Illinois Conference tennis singles champion, Le’s tennis career also included a pair of team conference titles and a Sectional team crown.
After high school, Le matriculated to the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics with a Minor in Secondary Education, graduating with distinction in 2006. He went on to attain his Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership from Aurora University in 2010 and a Master’s Degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Illinois in 2013. Le also holds a Type 75 Administrative Certificate and is currently working towards his Registered Athletic Administrator (RAA) certification.
Le’s first job in education was at Grand Ridge Grade School (Grand Ridge, IL) where he taught math and coached basketball and track & field from 2006-2009. He then accepted a math teaching position at OTHS, where he also had tenures coaching boys basketball, girls basketball, boys tennis, and girls tennis. He oversaw the school’s peer mentoring program and the high school’s student section, which was crowned the Class 3A/4A State Champion in the IHSA’s 2016 Student Section Showdown. During his final two years on staff at OTHS, Le gained district instructional coach responsibilities, which saw him organize professional development, instructional technology, and curriculum development for staff members.
Away from work, Le enjoys staying active, attending sporting events, spending time with family and friends, and occasionally deejays events.
Le will officially join the IHSA staff in July and the sports, activities, and initiatives that he will oversee will be announced shortly thereafter.
Other items of note that happened during the meeting on Monday include the Board approving a recommendation to rescind action that was taken in February regarding the seeding of the football playoffs in Class 1A-6A. The Board elected to change the seeding in Class 1A-6A in February to 1-32, but reversed that decision based on current economic factors. As a result, the IHSA Football Playoff seeding in Class 1A-6A will revert back to being split into two 1-16 brackets in each class. Rockridge High School Principal and Board President Katy Hasson says, “In February, I was a proponent of the change in the seeding process for the IHSA Class 1A-6A Football Playoffs. When taking into account the current fuel prices, and the fact that this change will create more travel for schools and fans, myself and several other Board members were no longer comfortable implementing the change at this time. I do expect that when fuel prices return to a more manageable price level the Board will revisit this topic.”
The Board also held further discussion on creating an IHSA Football Playoff for eight-player football. The Board has directed the IHSA staff to gather more information on the topic for further review at a future meeting.
