EAST LANSING – The first, largest and longest-running program of its type in the country, the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s Women In Sports Leadership Conference, will take place February 7-8 at the Lexington Lansing Hotel (formerly the Sheraton Lansing Hotel).

The 19th edition of the conference will feature three keynote speakers and a variety of workshops. The program annually attracts upwards of 500 participants, most of them high school female student-athletes, who are interested in pursuing careers in the athletic world as a coach, official or administrator.

On the first day of the conference, Kathy DeBoer, the executive director of the American Volleyball Coaches Association, returns to Michigan to deliver the opening address.  A two-sport standout at Michigan State University  and a graduate of Grand Rapids Christian High School, DeBoer was a college volleyball coach and athletic administrator for 23 years.

The speaker for the banquet that day will be Shelley Irwin, an award-winning radio producer and host of the WGVU Morning Show in west Michigan.  She is a five-time winner of the Gracie Allen Award from the Foundation of American Women in TV and Radio for excellence as a program host.

On the second day of the conference, Dawn Plitzuweit, the associate head women’s basketball coach at the University of Michigan will be the general session speaker. A Michigan Tech graduate, Plitzuweit is in her third season with the Wolverines.  She was previously the head coach at Grand Valley State University, leading the Lakers to the NCAA Division II title in 2006.

Workshops offered during the conference include topics on coaching, injuries in general and knee injuries in particular, leadership skills, officiating, sports nutrition, careers in athletics, and interactive sessions of  Cardio Kickboxing, Yoga, Pilates and Aqua Aerobics.