Board of Directors
Deon Birkes, CMAA Lincoln AR
Deon Birkes brings over 32 years of dedicated service in education and athletics, having made a lasting impact as a teacher, coach, administrator, and speaker. For the past 17 years, Deon has been an integral part of the Lincoln Consolidated School District, serving as District Athletics Director, Assistant Principal, and Transportation Director. His commitment to leadership development is evident through his work with the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA), where he has taught leadership courses and presented at numerous state and national conferences. Currently, Deon serves as President of the Arkansas High School Athletic Administrators Association and holds key positions on various national and state committees. In 2018, he played a role in the supervision staff for the BCS National Championship Game in San Francisco. He is also actively contributing to the 6th Strategic Plan Committee for the NIAAA and serves on the National Faculty for LTI 625. Deon’s outstanding contributions to athletics and education have earned him several prestigious awards, including the NFHS Citation, the NIAAA State Award of Merit, and the Frank Kovaleski Professional Development Award. A proud alumnus of the University of Arkansas, where he earned a BSE in 1993, Deon went on to complete his MAEL at Southern Nazarene University in 2004. Throughout his career, Deon has served in various capacities at Westwood ISD, Shiloh Christian School, Westville, and Lincoln High School, where he has been a teacher, coach, and Athletic Director. Above all, Deon values his roles as a devoted husband to his wife, Traci, for over 20 years, and a loving father to their two children, Jace, 19, a Freshman at Ottawa University in Kansas and Layni, 17, a Junior at Lincoln High School. He is also known for being a loyal friend and a guiding presence in his community.
Jason Culler, CMAA Jenks OK
Jason Culler is the Assistant Athletic Director at Jenks, bringing 17 years of experience as an athletic administrator and over 20 years in education. For the past eight years, he has contributed to Jenks’ athletic program by staffing coaches, scheduling events and officials, coordinating transportation, and managing athletic facilities. Jason oversees eligibility and compliance for approximately 1,400 student-athletes. Jason currently oversees these programs at Jenks: Football, Cross Country, Fast Pitch Softball, Slow Pitch Softball, Track, and Wrestling. Jason’s career began in Fort Worth, Texas, where he taught Economics, Government, Oklahoma History, and US History, while coaching various sports, including softball, basketball, football, baseball, track, and golf. In 2018, he founded the Oklahoma Athletic Directors Conference, which has seen an annual growth of 30-45%, achieving its highest attendance in 2023 and aiming for further expansion in 2024. A graduate of Oklahoma State University with an M.A.Ed. from Southern Nazarene University, Jason serves in multiple leadership roles. He is the President of the Northeastern Oklahoma Athletic Directors Association (NEOADA) and a past president of the Oklahoma Interscholastic Athletic Administration Association (OIAAA). He currently serves as the NIAAA Liaison and holds a Certified Master Athletic Administrator (CMAA) designation. Jason is also a member of the NIAAA National Faculty and serves as the Membership Committee Secretary, having presented at the National Athletic Directors Conference and various regional Leadership Training Institute (LTI) courses. Outside of his professional life, Jason enjoys spending time with his family. He is married to Shannon, a Speech Pathologist with the Tulsa Health Department, and they have three children: Avery (21), Kadyn (15), and Brooks (13).
Wayne Stehlik, RAA Fayetteville, AR
Wayne Stehlik has spent over 40 years in the world of Athletics. As a basketball coach, Director of Development and Director of Athletics he has had a front row seat for the dramatic changes that have taken place in athletics. In the summer of 2023, Wayne Stehlik retired at the Director of Athletics for the Springdale Public Schools District. Upon his retirement, the District Athletic Department was one of the largest in Arkansas with over 3900 student athletes and 200 coaches. During his tenure as the Director of Athletics for Springdale Public Schools, sports were added, facilities were built or upgraded and one of the state’s best sports streaming program was created. The district won 19 State Championships and 31 Conference Championships. Stehlik is originally from Pleasant Dale Nebraska and was raised on a third-generation farm. He attended Nebraska Wesleyan University and began his coaching career as an assistant to Dr. Irv Peterson, who had been an assistant to Phog Allen at Kansas after World War II. He earned his master’s degree at the University of Kansas where he worked under legendary Coach Ted Owens After a 2-year stint as the Head Basketball and Golf coach at Baker University, he joined Coach Nolan Richardson at the University of Arkansas and was part of the staff when the Arkansas Razorbacks defeated Duke to win the 1994 NCAA National Championship. He spent 17 years on the Men’s Razorback Basketball staff. Stehlik served as the Development Director for Women’s Athletics during the Campaign for the 21 st Century. It was also during this time, he created Play2Win Consulting, with a mission to connect people and communities. Prior to Stehlik assuming the Director of Athletics position at Springdale, Stehlik was the assistant basketball coach for the WNBA Tulsa Shock under Head Coach Nolan Richardson. Stehlik is married to Tracey Mays Stehlik, who is an Associate AD for Compliance at the University of Arkansas. They have 2 daughters who are University of Arkansas graduates. Mollie, the Director of Events for University of Arkansas Athletic and Maggie, who works for Sweti Marketing in Bentonville.
Norman Mitchell Gravette, AR
Norman is in his 18th year as the athletic director at Gravette High School, where he oversees 13 varsity sports and numerous conference titles. His responsibilities include managing the department budget, operations, events, and fundraising. Mitchell has been active at both state and national levels. He served as president of the Arkansas High School Athletic Administrators Association (AHSAAA) from 2019-2021 and is a five-time 4A-1 Conference Athletic Director of the Year, with the AHSAAA 4A Athletic Director of the Year award in 2021. He holds CAA Certification from the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA) and the NFHS State Citation. He was on the NFHS Conference Advisor Committee and received the NIAAA State Award of Merit in 2016. With over 30 years in education, Mitchell has coached basketball, baseball, and football, and has served as a mentor to other coaches. A Northwest Arkansas native, he enjoys spending time with his family, hunting, fishing, and reading. He and his wife Shannon live in Hiwasse and have three children.
Doug Killgore, CMAA Springfield, MO
Doug is a national Board-Certified Master Athletic Administrator and Certified International Athletic Administrator who has semi-retired after 20 years as an AD, activities director, and assistant principal. He has taught over 35 Leadership Training Courses from the NIAAA curriculum and presented at 15 national conferences. From 2011 to 2016, he was Secretary of the NIAAA Board and is a former president of the Arkansas High School Athletic Administrators Association. He has also served as Arkansas’s State Professional Development Coordinator and NIAAA Liaison and continues his work with the Missouri Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. In 2017, Killgore was on the faculty of the Section 1 Summer Institute and taught Leadership Training courses at the EARCOS Leadership Conference in Bangkok in 2017 and Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia in 2019. He has presented at conferences in 26 states and at international schools in South Korea, the Philippines, and various countries in Asia, Europe, Saudi Arabia, and Mongolia. He has received numerous awards, including the NFHS Citation, NIAAA State Award of Merit, and Arkansas’ Athletic Director of the Year in 2007. Killgore was inducted into the Arkansas High School Athletic Administrators Association Hall of Fame in 2018 and the NIAAA Hall of Fame in December 2020. In 2022, at the State Coordinators’ Summit in Indianapolis, he was recognized for 20 years as a State Coordinator and was chosen for the NIAAA Professional Development Academy’s Triple Legacy Recognition. He and his wife Sheila, a middle school science teacher, live in Springfield, Missouri where Killgore continues in education as a Special Education Paraprofessional at a middle school.
Dr. Dustin Smith, CMAA Broken Arrow, OK
Dr. Dustin Smith, CMAA, has been the Executive Director of Athletics at Broken Arrow Public Schools since May 2023. Previously, he was the Director of Athletics at Greenwood Public Schools and served as the athletic director at the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith for 9 years. He is a national faculty instructor for LTC 719 and serves as the Region A At-Large representative on the NIAAA Board of Directors. Dr. Smith has also participated in the NIAAA-U Executive Leadership Cohort, served on various NIAAA committees, and presented at three National Athletic Director Conventions. He earned his Certified Athletic Administrator distinction in 2018 and Certified Master Athletic Administrator in 2019. In Arkansas, he was active in the Arkansas High School Athletic Administrators Association, and in Oklahoma, he serves as the co-chair of the mentorship committee for the Oklahoma Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. He has received multiple awards, including the Frank Kovaleski Award Nominee, Arkansas AD Association Newcomer of the Year, and the 2022 Emerging Industry Leader Award. Dr. Smith holds degrees from Northwestern Oklahoma State University, East Central University, and the University of Arkansas. He co-hosts the Pairadocs podcast and is a fan of the Chicago Cubs and Oklahoma State Cowboys. He is married to Jennifer and they have three children: Alec (father-in-law to Kirby), Riglee, and Raelynn.