Todd Olson
 

NDHSAA Staff Report

VALLEY CITY, N.D. – The National Federation of High School Association (NFHS) will award NFHS Citations to eight high school athletic directors December 12 in Nashville, Tenn., during the 47th annual National Athletic Directors Conference sponsored jointly by the NFHS and the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA).

One of the eight recipients of the NFHS Citations is Todd Olson, activities director of Fargo Public Schools.

NFHS Citations are presented annually to outstanding athletic directors in recognition of contributions to interscholastic athletics at the local, state and national levels. State associations nominate athletic directors for NFHS Citations, and the NFHS Board of Directors approves recipients.

For nearly three decades, Todd Olson, CMAA, has helped educate and lead student-athletes in North Dakota. Olson began his education career in 1991 as a math teacher and boys basketball coach at Grand Forks (North Dakota) Central High School. During his 14 years as a coach, he was named the state’s Class A Boys Basketball Coach of the Year in 1995, and the Associated Press Male Sport Coach of the Year in 1996, the same year he led Central to the Class A state championship.

In 2005, Olson was named athletic director for Grand Forks Public Schools overseeing the athletic program of two high schools and four middle schools. During his seven years in that position, he oversaw a $2 million upgrade to the school system’s field and track, and was named Class A Administrator of the Year for the 2009-10 school year.

Since 2012, Olson has worked as the director of student activities of Fargo Public Schools, where he is responsible for the activities programs at three high schools and three middle schools with more than 11,000 students and 300 coaches.

Olson is active in the North Dakota Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NDIAAA), having served on the NDIAAA Board of Directors since 2007. His time on the board includes a term as president in 2010-11. Additionally, Olson currently serves as the NDIAAA Spring Conference chair and is on the state’s Leadership Training Institute faculty.

Olson is equally involved with the North Dakota High School Activities Association (NDHSAA). From 2010 to 2014, he served on the NDHSAA Board of Directors, culminating with a term as president in 2013-14. From 2011 to 2013, Olson was chair of the NDHSAA Football Committee and since 2005, has served on the association’s Tournament Manager’s Committee.

Nationally, Olson began a term on the NIAAA Board of Directors in 2015, and served on the NIAAA Certification Committee from 2011 to 2014 and the NFHS Coach Education Committee from 2010 to 2012. In 2013, Olson earned the NIAAA Distinguished Service Award.

Olson earned his bachelor’s degree from Mayville State (North Dakota) University in 1991 and his master’s degree in education administration from the University of North Dakota in 1998.

Follow NDHSAA on Twitter at @NDHSAA and visit www.ndhsaanow.com for the latest NDHSAA sports and activities news from around the state.