RENO, NEVADA —  Highly respected retired Andalusia High School boys’ basketball coach Richard Robertson was among 12 high school leaders across the United State honored Friday with the prestigious National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Citation Award at the 97^th annual NFHS Summer Meeting being held in Reno.

      Robertson, selected as recipient of the NFHS Coaches’ Citation, was chosen from a pool over more than 150,000 coaches at more than 19,000 high schools that make up the NFHS membership.
     The Citation Award is designed to honor individuals who have made contributions to the NFHS, state high school associations, athletic director and coaching professions, the officiating avocation and fine arts/performing arts programs and is one of the most highly regarded achievements in high school athletics and performing arts.
     “Richard Robertson’s leadership has been very important for the AHSAA and our state,” Alabama High School Athletic Association Executive Director Steve Savarese said. “Inducted into the AHSAA Sports Hall of Fame in 1996, Coach Robertson played a key role in helping Alabama move through the difficult time of integration as the Alabama High School Athletic Association and its black counterpart – the Alabama Interscholastic Athletic Association merged in 1968-69.
     “Through the years he became a mentor to hundreds of coaches, remained in his home town of Andalusia where he served as the school’s athletics leader and made a difference in the world around him. We are very proud of Coach Robertson and thank him for his many contributions.”
     Robertson, a humble “old-school” coach and teacher who reached kids in his 2014-15 just as effectively as he did 50 years ago, said the Citation Award “is not about me as a coach but about the many students who participated in our program at Andalusia throughout my career and all the coaches in our state who understand what a high school coach’s mission really is.  I have loved teaching and coaching. We had a lot of successes on the basketball but the really successes are the young people who grew up to be outstanding adults.”
Others recognized Friday included: NFHS Section Citation Award recipients   Nina Van Erk, retired executive director of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association; Butch Cope, associate commissioner of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association; Gene Menees, assistant executive director of the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association; Gina Mazzolini, assistant director of the Michigan High School Athletic Association; Kevin Merkle, associate director of the Minnesota State High School League; Peter Contreras, retired assistant athletic director at the Texas University Interscholastic League; Marc Ratner, Southern Nevada commissioner of officials for the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association; and Brad Garrett, assistant executive director of the Oregon School Activities Association.
     Mississippi basketball, football and baseball contest official Harold Cooper received the NFHS Officials Citation. Jay Dunnahoo, executive secretary of the Texas Music Adjudicators Association, received the Music Citation, and Pam McComas, retired director of forensics, Topeka (Kansas) High School, received the Speech/Debate/Theatre Citation.
     Robertson retired as the boys basketball coach at Andalusia following the 2014-15 season after 40 years at the school and 50 years in interscholastic athletics. Robertson’s association with his hometown spanned 57 years dating back to his own years as a high-school athlete at Ralph Bunche High School in Andalusia. During his remarkable career, Robertson compiled a 749-357 win-loss record.  Among his coaching achievements, Robertson’s 2010-11 team registered a 31-3 record, and his 1996 squad won the AHSAA Class 5A state championship.

      Despite these outstanding accomplishments, his “victories” off the court were even more impressive. “Coach Rob,” as he was affectionately known, was a tremendous leader who was a second father to many of his players and an only father to other boys during his coaching days. Among the many individuals who played for Robertson was Robert Horry, who was a part of six NBA championship teams during his professional career. Horry said of his high school coach: “Coach took a skinny kid in 1984 and turned me into the player and man I am today.”

      Robertson played a key role in helping Alabama move through the difficult time of integration as the AHSAA merged with the Alabama Interscholastic Athletic Association in 1968-69. Through the years, Robertson became a mentor to hundreds of coaches as he remained in his hometown of Andalusia throughout his career.

     Robertson was a member of the AHSAA Central Board of Control for many years, including a term as president. He was granted Central Board Emeritus status in October 2015. In 1996, Robertson was inducted into the AHSAA Sports Hall of Fame, and, in 2012, he received the AHSAA’s highest honor, the “Making a Difference Award.”