Jim Strick has been named the next Communications Director for the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association, and he will join the organization on Sept. 28. He is set to work alongside Todd Clark through Clark’s retirement on Jan. 15, 2027.
The move gives the WIAA a long runway before the handoff is complete. Strick, who now serves as Communications Director for the Neenah Joint School District, brings 29 years in education communications and a track record that stretches across school districts, athletic administration and state tournament work.
Strick has been at the Neenah Joint School District since 2013, after three years as the district’s activities director. He also spent the past 13 years as communications director for the Fox Valley Association and the past two years as its co-commissioner. In 2025, he received the Wisconsin School Communicator of the Year Award from the Wisconsin School Public Relations Association, and in 2026 he received the National Federation of State High School Associations Award for Outstanding Service in Wisconsin.
His connection to the WIAA is already deep. Strick has been the public address announcer for nearly 100 WIAA State Tournaments and has served as official statistician and scorer during those events. He also worked at the University of Minnesota from 2007 to 2010 as director of athletic communications for men's hockey and men's and women's tennis, after serving from 1999 to 2007 as assistant athletic director for media relations at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and from 1997 to 1999 as sports information director at St. Norbert College. Earlier in his career, he also worked the Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City in 2002 as the primary media contact and moderated press conferences for freestyle and slalom skiing events.
Stephanie Hauser said the WIAA is thrilled to welcome Strick as the new Communications Director, calling out his broad background in school communications, athletic administration and conference leadership. Strick said education-based athletics is at a pivotal moment and said he looks forward to helping tell the stories and strengthen the value of participation. The remaining question is how quickly that experience translates into day-to-day duties once he arrives on Sept. 28 and begins the months-long overlap with Clark.
For the WIAA, the timing matters as much as the hire. Strick is not stepping into a blank slate; he is entering a communications office that will be managed through a transition period lasting until January 2027, with one longtime voice easing out while another familiar voice steps in.
