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An East / West Pilot Charter bracket for the next NFHS-recognized category of high-school activity. Coach Lucy leads the West. Dr. Rob leads the East. Twelve US state associations and eight international partners compete across three regional tiers — North, Central, South — and one International division per side. Eight regional winners earn a 2027-28 Pilot Charter: a funded Summer Session, fall activation in their schools, half-time holiday reporting, spring community engagement, and a final competition in May.
Why now — and why this works
There is no single sanctioning vote at the National Federation of State High School Associations for a new activity category. Recognition happens the way Esports earned it between 2018 and 2024 — partnership, resource-content recognition, state-by-state opt-in, and inclusion in the national participation survey. We're running that playbook with a bracket twist: two sides, eight regions, one charter per region.
NFHS's 2023 flagship document The Case for High School Activities names every outcome our (STEAM TEAMS)3 program is built to deliver — mental health, suicide-behavior reduction, school engagement, sense of belonging. Today those outcomes are the byproduct of athletics and arts. We're proposing an activity where those outcomes are the competitive content itself.
"Students involved in sports had significantly higher rates of exercise and healthy self-image and significantly lower odds for emotional distress and suicidal behavior compared to non-participants." — NFHS, The Case for High School Activities (2023)
Six of our 12 US targets have brand-new executive directors taking office between July 2025 and July 2027. New leaders want signature first-year initiatives. The political window for a coalition pilot has rarely been this open.
What a STEAM TEAM does
A Healthy STEAM TEAM is coached like a varsity squad and competes the way a robotics team competes — seasonal events, judged outputs, regional and final championships. Every team works the same four pillars, adapted to the realities of their community.
Teams map and act on the upstream drivers of health in their own zip code — food access, housing, transportation, education, social connection — and earn PHIT Score points for measurable community gains.
Each team launches a real micro-venture tied to a health outcome — a campus produce stand, a mental-wellness app, a community fitness pop-up — judged on revenue, reach, and replicability.
Teams partner with a Chamber of Health Director and at least one local entity — clinic, school, faith group, employer — and report verified Live It / Share It / Learn It activations through the Force for Health platform.
Every pilot is designed so the team — and its impact — outlasts the season. Curriculum, alumni mentorship, an Angel Investor pathway, and an annual scorecard make the program self-renewing year after year.
Inside every Healthy STEAM TEAM
Every STEAM TEAM rotates through the cube — Science · Technology · Engineering · Arts · Math — with the sixth face reserved for the team's signature Community Health project. The full interactive cube — spinnable, role-by-role, with each face tied to a Live It / Share It / Learn It activity bank — lives on the (STEAM TEAMS)3 program page.
The national picture
Hover or tap any colored state to apply for consideration. West (green) is Coach Lucy's region — runs from Texas and the Plains westward. East (blue) is Dr. Rob's region — runs from Minnesota / Iowa / Louisiana eastward. Gold rings mark our focus markets. International partners are listed below the map.
The bracket roster
Each side splits into three US regional tiers — North, Central, South — plus one International division. Two state associations compete per US tier; four international partners compete in each International division. One regional winner per zone earns a 2027-28 Pilot Charter.
Oregon School Activities AssociationOSAA · Wilsonville
Peter Weber, Executive Director
Utah High School Activities AssociationUHSAA · Midvale
Rob Cuff, Executive Director
California Interscholastic FederationCIF · Sacramento
Ron Nocetti, ED — 2025-26 NFHS Board President
New Mexico Activities AssociationNMAA · Albuquerque
Dusty Young, Executive Director
Arizona Interscholastic AssociationAIA · Phoenix
Dr. Jim Dean, ED (since July 2025)
University Interscholastic LeagueUIL · Austin (UT-Austin)
Dr. Jamey Harrison, Executive Director
Maine Principals' AssociationMPA · Augusta
Mike Bisson, ED · Todd Sampson incoming July 2026
NY State Public HS Athletic AssociationNYSPHSAA · Latham
Dr. Robert Zayas, Executive Director
Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Assoc.PIAA · Mechanicsburg
Mark E. Byers, ED (since January 2026)
Ohio High School Athletic AssociationOHSAA · Columbus
Doug Ute, ED — NFHS Board member
South Carolina High School LeagueSCHSL · Columbia
Jerome P. Singleton, Commissioner (retires by July 2027)
Louisiana High School Athletic Assoc.LHSAA · Baton Rouge
Eddie Bonine, M.Ed., CAA — Executive Director
The 2027 Spring Bracket
Each side runs four parallel zones: three US regional tiers + one International division. One zone winner per side per region earns a Pilot Charter — eight total Pilot Charters activated for the 2027-28 program year.
The Pilot Charter season
A Pilot Charter is a season — not a one-day announcement. Group Leaders are trained in the summer, schools activate in the fall, half-time reporting drops over the holidays, community engagement figures get tallied in the spring, and the regional + cross-region finals close the loop in May.
Coach Lucy and Dr. Rob host the Summer Session — pillar curriculum, judging rubrics, scorekeeping, brand standards. Group Leaders go home certified.
Pilot schools launch their STEAM TEAM under the state association's banner. Roster locked. First Live It / Share It / Learn It activities logged.
Each pilot files a holiday checkpoint — micro-venture progress, SDOH map, partner relationships activated, scoreboard snapshot.
Final pillar push — public events, partner reports, impact metrics. Numbers locked for regional judging.
Zone winners crowned in each of the 8 regions. Cross-region championship caps the season — broadcast on the NFHS Network channel pursued by FFH.
The Fit Friday Report runs across the Force for Health Network every week — one participating school per week, their STEAM TEAM, their pillar story, their community partner, their numbers. Pilot Charters that opt in get featured on rotation across the bracket season.
Primary action
Five-minute form for state association leaders, athletic directors, activities coordinators, and international school-system partners. We review every submission and reply within 5 business days with a tailored 2026-27 Summer Session invite and a draft Pilot Charter scope.
Other ways to start
Walk through (STEAM TEAMS)3 and the Pilot Charter with Coach Lucy (West) or Dr. Rob (East). No slides — a working conversation.
Email to book a call →14-page PDF: pillars, season calendar, judging rubric, MOU template, regional reach figures, and the path to NFHS recognition.
Request the prospectus →Forward this page to a state association board, athletic director, or international curriculum partner who should see the bracket.
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