Alberta Schools' Athletic Association
The Alberta Schools' Athletic Association (ASAA) is a voluntary, non profit organization that has been established to coordinate a program of worthwhile athletic activities for the young people of Alberta in an educational setting. The membership, currently 358 high schools, ultimately determines the policy of the Association through representation on the provincial Board of Governors.
History
The first organizational meeting was held in Calgary on March 17, 1956. The desire to have a provincial championship in high school boys basketball and the realization that it was time to establish a structure for the overall coordination of school sport in the province. [1] Out of that meeting came the first provincial basketball tournament as well as the constitution that has been the cornerstone for growth and development during the past 54 years.
The activities sponsored by the ASAA have continued to grow in accordance with the consistent increase in membership (schools). The participation in boys basketball continued to increase and girls began to compete at the provincial level in 1960. By 1966, both boys and girls were competing in A, B and C Divisions.
Track and field was the second activity sponsored by the Association with the first provincial competition held in 1958. Badminton was added to the schedule of provincial events in 1963 and soon after, in 1964, the first ASAA volleyball competition was held. It was not until 1968 that cross country was hosted, bringing the total number of activities to five.
In 1970, gymnastics was held in Calgary, followed in 1971 by wrestling and in 1977 by curling. By 1983, there was a demand for golf and cheerleading provincials, so those two sports were adopted by the ASAA. Football was added in 1985 but gymnastics was eliminated in 1989. In 1995, girls wrestling was introduced on a two-year trial basis and became permanent in 1997. The first ASAA provincial rugby championship was held in June 2006. In April, 2010, the ASAA is introducing Team Handball on a two-year trial basis.
As the number of activities increased, there was a growing need for changes in policy, communication, organization and public relations. In 1970, each activity appointed a commissioner as a resource person, resulting in a continual upgrading of the caliber of provincial competitions. In 1974, four levels of classification were set up for volleyball and basketball based on the size of the participating schools. In 1984, the original geographical structure of 10 zones was was reduced to eight - two urban and six rural.[2]