FAIRFIELD, Ohio — There are dozens of school district athletic directors in southwest and west-central Ohio but according to a recent award, the best one is in Fairfield Schools.
Fairfield Schools Athletic Director Aaron Blankenship has been honored as the best at his job of overseeing all sports in the district by the Ohio Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (OIAAA) in a recent ceremony.
It’s the first time an athletic director from the 10,000-student Fairfield school system, which is the second largest in Butler County and one of the biggest in Ohio, has won the award.
The annual award, which was presented to Blankenship by OIAAA officials in Columbus, honored Blankenship’s leadership in coordinating Fairfield’s 99 boys and girls sports teams – more than 1,215 student-athletes - in grades 7 to 12.
Blankenship, who previously was an assistant principal at Fairfield High School until being promoted to athletic director in 2019, said he was surprised to win the top regional honor among so many other area sports directors.
“I was surprised,” he said, adding “it’s a good honor for an individual but it couldn’t happen without my (athletic director’s) team.”
“I am deeply honored to be recognized as one of the recipients of this award and to be acknowledged at the OIAAA Conference in Columbus. It’s a humbling reminder of how grateful I am to serve such an incredible community like Fairfield,” said Blankenship.
“While this award is presented to an individual, I view it as a reflection of the outstanding team we’ve built here at Fairfield. From our dedicated coaches and trainers to our supportive boosters.”
In recent years the Fairfield Indians sports teams – boys and girls – regularly are among the winningest in the region with teams competing in the powerful Greater Miami Conference, whose member school districts are some of the largest in Ohio.
“Over the past few years, our greatest achievement has been fostering our ‘One Tribe’ culture - a unified, collaborative environment where everyone strives for excellence for every student-athlete and program,” he said.
Billy Smith, superintendent of Fairfield Schools, said there is a good reason why Blankenship is being honored.
“We are incredibly proud of Aaron Blankenship for being recognized with the athletic director of the year award. This honor is a testament to Aaron’s hard work, dedication, and unwavering commitment to our student-athletes and the Fairfield City Schools community,” said Smith.
“His leadership has elevated our athletic programs, and we are fortunate to have such an inspiring and passionate individual in this role.”
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