The REPORTER
School administrators Jim Brown of Fishers, Brian Strong of Logansport and Chad Gilbert of Charlestown will be recognized with special awards for the 2025-26 academic year from the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association.
The three athletic directors will be honored as 2026 Administrators of the Year from the IBCA. They are being recognized for their support of basketball programs in their school, area and for state-level events. There is one winner from each IHSAA district. Brown is the honoree from District 2.
Brown is 20th year as athletic director at Fishers and his 41st year overall after serving as athletic director at Triton Central for the previous 21 years. He is recognized for his support of Indiana high school basketball throughout his tenure in an administrative role.
A 1973 graduate of Southwestern High School in Tippecanoe County (now part of McCutcheon), Brown competed in basketball, baseball and cross country and earned a sportsmanship award in basketball. He went on to Ball State, earning a bachelor’s degree in industrial technology and physical education. He later earned a master’s degree in education from Indiana State in 1981 and an administrator’s license from Butler in 1985.
Brown began his career in education in 1978-79 as a physical education teacher at Rushville Junior High. He taught at the Indiana State University Lab School in 1980-81, then moved to Triton Central as a teacher beginning in 1981-82. He became the Triton Central athletic director in 1985-86, then added the duties of assistant principal from 1988-89 for the rest of his tenure in Shelby County. He moved to Fishers for the opening of the school in 2006-07, and helped oversee facility renovations in 2009 and 2013.
He also has coached as a McCutcheon girls’ basketball assistant in 1977-78, a Rushville Junior High football and wrestling assistant in 1978-79, the ISU Lab School junior high girls’ basketball coach in 1980-81, Triton Central boys’ track head coach from 1981-94, Triton Central football assistant from 1983-85 and Triton Central cross country head coach from 1988-90.
Brown currently is in his 12th year on the IHSAA Board of Directors, serving as Executive Committee vice chairman in 2016-17, 2022-23 and 2025-26, board president in 2018-19 and board vice president in 2021-22. He also is in his 34th year as an assistant director of the IHSAA boys’ basketball State Finals, and he worked at the IHSAA track State Finals from 1989-93 and the IHSAA volleyball State Finals in 2000 and 2001. In addition, he was co-director of the IHSAA soccer State Finals from 2006-11, a host school for the IHSAA soccer State Finals from 2019-21 and the host school for the 2025 Indiana All-Star Futures Games doubleheader.
He also has been involved with the Indiana Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. He has served that group as a District 4 director from 1991-94, second vice president in 1994-95, first vice president in 1995-96, president in 1996-97 and past president from 1997-2000. He also was the IIAAA treasurer and conference chairman form 1998-2015 and was a IIAAA conference presenter in 2004, 2006 and 2024.
In addition, Brown has been active in county and conference associations. He was executive secretary of the Shelby County athletic directors from 1986-2006, meet director for Shelby County cross country and track meets from 1987-2006, meet director for Mid-Hoosier Conference cross country and track meets from 1988-2006, executive secretary of the Big Blue River Conference in 1989-90, executive secretary of the RangeLine Conference in 1993-94, executive secretary of the MHC from 1997-2006 and president of the Hoosier Crossroads Conference athletic directors in 2009, 2013 and 2020.
Brown has been recognized with the State Award of Merit from the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association in 2001 and with the NIAAA Distinguished Service Award in 2012. This spring, Fishers will host the third annual “Jim Brown Unified Track Invitational” that has been named in his honor.
Brown is the father to two adult children, Liz and Nick. Together, he and his wife, Gretchen, have eight grandchildren.
