Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Iowa Print Sports Writers Association is announcing that this year’s football all-state meeting will be conducted virtually via a Zoom meeting.
The all-state selection meeting will begin, via Zoom, at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 22. Please RSVP to iowasportswriters@gmail.com to receive the Zoom link and information. When RSVPing, please indicate the class you plan to vote in (or classes you may vote in if you’re unsure).
COACHES: You’ll receive the Zoom login information from the Iowa Football Coaches Association.
FORMAT/PROCESS
Please remember that as we move this meeting to virtual this year, all the normal standards as far as confidentiality remain. Please do not allow others to “sit in” on the meeting or broadcast/share it in any way. All information shared in the meeting is completely confidential and only intended to be heard by those in the meeting.
While possible to dial in by telephone to participate, it is preferred and strongly recommended you join by the Zoom app on a computer, cellphone or tablet so that you can be fully integrated into the process.
Here’s how the meeting will work: Everyone will join the Zoom call and be in the same room, initially. We will do our pre-meeting announcements, etc. After the announcements, we will use Zoom’s breakout rooms feature. There will be an on-screen prompt asking you to select which room you wish to join. We ask that sports writers not bounce from room to room. When you join a class, it’s expected you’ll only vote and attend the selection meeting in that class.
In each room, a room host has been designated to share their screen so everyone on the call can see the list of nominees, stats, voting results, and the teams as they are completed. We also plan to send out PDFs of the nomination lists so you can print and prepare prior to the meeting. These nomination lists should be deleted once the meeting is complete, and not shared in any way. The nomination lists themselves, like the discussion, are confidential.
Voting will be conducted via a Google survey, set up by each class chairperson and distributed to those participating in the class.
The meeting will work almost identically to how it does when we’ve met in person. Nominees will be discussed (it’s preferred if they are nominated prior to the meeting), votes will occur, and athletes will be selected. Once your meeting has concluded, you can disconnect from the Zoom call. We will email out the lists as soon as possible on Sunday evening, for the standard Tuesday release at 12:01 a.m.
Captains will be selected in each class, as normal. They must be a senior on first team. Someone in the room should volunteer to write a paragraph on the athlete selected, and email it to iowasportswriters@gmail.com as soon as possible Sunday.
MEMBER DUES
The Iowa Print Sports Writers Association Board of Directors has opted to waive renewal fees for all existing members. Those who paid at the time of last year’s football all-state selection meetings, or anytime after, are considered a paid and current member. Your memberships have been extended by one year.
Those looking to participate for the first time and are not active members must pay the normal membership fee prior to voting. If you have any questions please email us at iowasportswriters@gmail.com.
The Iowa Print Sports Writers Association 