While Kris Isom has been retired for almost a year after spending nearly 40 years as athletic director of Madison, the honors are still coming in for the decorated administrator.
Last month, Isom received the Charles E. Forsythe Lifetime Achievement Award from the MHSAA, an honor she has helped given out in years past during her time on the MHSAA representative council.
Isom's in her first school year away from the role as AD, but admitted to missing those she dedicated nearly four decades of her life to assisting.
“What I miss the most is the interaction with the kids.," Isom said in a press release. "The coaching of course, but then everyday them coming into the office or giving me a hug or asking me what’s up. It’s not always the athletes you intermingle with; it’s the kids in need and even today when I see them or run into them, I get a hug or thank you and that makes it all worth it.”
The Forsythe Award is given annually to someone who has given back to their athletic communities both regionally and statewide.
Along with spending 38 years as AD at Madison and another year at Clinton, where Isom graduated, Isom was member of the MHSAA council from 2008-23. She also served as president of the Tri-County Conference for more than 20 years.
Isom was also a member of both the Michigan and National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association, the MHSAA Coaches Advancement Program and the Michigan Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.
Locally, she not only worked with athletes as AD, but she coached as well. At one level or another, Isom coached basketball, volleyball, softball, track and field and cheer.
Isom helped MHSAA navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, both in making the tough decision to forgo the 2020 spring season and safely return to play in the fall, through another suspension of play in late 2020 and finish the fall seasons in January of 2021.
“For nearly four decades, Kristen Isom served as an excellent example of how to navigate the daily challenges of athletic administration while making a difference in the lives of her students and an impact on educational athletics on a larger scale as well,” said MHSAA executive director Mark Uyl in the release. “She often showed a way forward as the MHSAA worked through complex topics, and always with the best interests of students first and foremost.”
The award has been given out since 1978. Isom is the second Lenawee County administrator to receive the honor after Jim Gilmore of Tecumseh earned it in 2013.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Former Madison AD Kris Isom earns MHSAA Forsythe ...
