If you were a former high school athlete, you might remember the thrill of opening the local paper and seeing your name and photo front and center. Maybe you clipped that article and hung it on your fridge — a proud symbol of your hard work and success.
Before the digital age, athlete recognition for high schools relied on local media. But today, with newspapers fading and social media thriving, digital recognition for high schools is becoming the new norm.
Parents, students, and communities now expect achievements of every size to be shared instantly online. Athletic directors are at the forefront of this shift, transforming traditional athlete recognition into digital celebrations that build school spirit and community pride.
“Our kids are doing amazing things every day,” says Green Level High School Athletic Director Colin Fegeley. “We really want to celebrate them because they deserve it.”
WATCH: How Colin elevates recognition and community engagement with modern tools
In this guide, we’ll explore how to boost athlete recognition for high schools through modern digital tools — without increasing your workload.
What does athlete recognition look like in high schools?
Recognition in high school athletics comes in many forms — both classic and digital.
Traditional athletic recognition includes:
- Awards ceremonies and banquets
- Scholarship announcements
- Hall of fame inductions
- Trophy cases and plaques
- Newspaper or newsletter features
Modern digital recognition for high schools adds new opportunities:
- Social media highlights
- Features on your athletic website
- Digital halls of fame
- Athlete spotlights in newsletters
In short, recognition is anything that showcases and celebrates athletes, coaches, and staff while connecting your community through storytelling.
Why is athlete recognition in high school so important?
Recognition — and lots of it — can have a significant positive impact on your athletes, your community, and your school as a whole.
Recognition inspires the next generation
Highlighting the achievements of your athletes, especially those who have gone on to compete at the collegiate or professional level, inspires the next generation of athletes. This visibility shows current athletes what they can achieve if they work hard, which not only impacts their own paths, but can create winning mindsets on your teams.
For Colin, showcasing alums like Lauren Martinho, who plays D1 soccer at Duke University, is hugely important at Green Level, “We know that a lot of our younger student athletes, our freshmen, our sophomores in particular, like, they want to be Lauren. She's a great role model for them, so there’s no reason we wouldn’t spotlight her.”
Recognition attracts students and families
Green Level High School is situated in a competitive school choice environment, and Colin knows that the more he showcases success stories for current athletics, the more attractive Green Level athletic programs will be to prospective parents and students.
“Parents and fans can learn about what's possible at green level high school. Every school has something like that to showcase and to inspire the next generation of students and to really attract more people to your program.”
Recognition builds your school’s brand
Your school’s brand shapes how people perceive you, from students to parents and prospective families. Colin knows that, too often, it’s the negative stories coming from your school that can get the most public attention. But today’s athletic directors have the power to change that, ““We are the storytellers of our program… and if we’re not doing that, then that one negative story becomes the story.”
Recognition helps get the positive stories out into the world. That way, people form positive opinions about your school.
“We want to build that positive brand so when folks hear our school’s name, they immediately think positive things.”
Recognition improves coach and staff retention
Recognition often focuses on athletes, and rightly so. But, there are many people who help keep the wheels turning in your athletic department who rarely see the spotlight. Your coaches and staff work tirelessly to keep athletes motivated, build enriching programs and training, and coordinate every moving part. Their jobs can often be taken for granted — but recognition can show them that’s not the case.
“Recognition is important in motivating those around you—your coaches, your staff, your sponsors. Celebrating everyone involved builds morale and brings the whole community into your program.”
More motivated coaches and staff means a more successful athletic department. Plus, the more you show appreciation for your behind-the-scenes people, the less turnover you’ll have in your department.
How to boost athlete recognition with digital tools
While traditional forms of recognition — like trophy cases and plaques — can be a great feature in your school hallways, it’s not enough in today’s digital age.
It’s crucial that you take your recognition digital as well — because that’s where athletes, parents, and community members are. “Our students are living online every single day… so it’s incredibly important for a high school to interact in that space.”
Here’s how Colin has expanded his digital recognition to three digital channels using tools that ultimately save him time.
1. Social media
Recognition on social media can really mean anything: weekly schedules, gameday promotions, “player of the week” posts, and game recaps are all forms of recognition. Social media is about getting the word out and keeping your community connected to what’s going on in your athletic department.
Colin’s advice: “Start small… game-day posts, weekly schedules, athlete of the week. Start there and build your recognition strategy over time.”
Colin uses Gipper Engage to build out his recognition strategy on social media. With features like:
- 10,000+ professionally-designed sports graphics templates
- One-click branding
- Post scheduling
Colin can create and post social media graphics in minutes.
2. Digital newsletters
Colin uses his monthly athletic department newsletter, Swamp Stories, as an opportunity to share the stories of the Green Level athletic programs that his community "wouldn't know otherwise.”
Digital newsletters allow for unlimited space to tell unlimited stories, which helps Colin equitably promote and celebrate his programs. “Our newsletter gives us a chance to include a lot of our sports that maybe don’t necessarily get the love and support that some of our other sports do.”
“It lets us celebrate things like our tennis runner-up, or our cross-country champions… things our students may not ever see otherwise.”
Colin also uses Gipper Engage to create and share his digital newsletters. With the same ready-made templates and branding tools as the graphics creation tools, creating a digital newsletter with Gipper is seamless. Plus, sharing is as easy as copying and pasting a unique link to your newsletter wherever — social media, email, website, and more. It’s super easy to get your newsletter in front of your community, wherever they are.
Colin also makes use of features like clickable links and embedded media in his newsletter. If he’s highlighting a tennis champion, he can feature a video of match point. If he’s promoting an upcoming state cross country meet, he can include links to buy tickets. That way, his community can turn recognition into action.
3. Digital hall of fame
Colin has most recently expanded Green Level’s recognition strategy with a touchscreen hall of fame experience. More and more high school athletic directors across the country are moving away from physical trophy cases to interactive digital halls of fame. These digital forms of recognition provide more space to tell more stories and preserve more history.
At Green Level specifically, Colin uses Gipper Touch to showcase more than just hall of fame inductees. His touchscreen also includes award winners, alumni spotlights, staff directories, and facilities information — it’s become a “treasure trove of information and green-level athletics history.”
The boost in community engagement became clear for Colin immediately, “I’ve walked out of the gym and seen eight or ten parents surrounding the touchscreen, tapping through pages of our award winners.”
“Students are using it all day long — during lunch, in the hallway, before games.”
The touchscreen not only offers in-person interactivity, but Colin can share the display via link on social media, his website, and more. That way, every community member — whether their on-campus or not — has the opportunity to celebrate Green Level athlete achievements.
Colin takes advantage of the integration between Gipper Engage and Gipper Touch to build custom, branded graphics for his touchscreen, access media already saved to his Gallery, and repurpose content from social media and digital newsletters. This workflow saves Colin a ton of time and produces a professional, engaging result.
Why invest in digital recognition at your high school
At Green Level, Colin and his team have redefined what athlete recognition for high schools can look like in the digital age. Through a mix of creativity and technology, they’ve built a model that balances tradition with innovation.
“We really go over and above when it comes to recognizing our kids and their achievements,” says Colin. This commitment to athletic recognition doesn’t just celebrate wins. It builds culture, pride, and unity across the entire school.
With tools like Gipper Engage for social media and digital newsletters, and Gipper Touch for touchscreen halls of fame, athletic directors can create powerful digital recognition for high schools that’s fast, easy, and far-reaching. These platforms make it simple to highlight athletes high school communities care about — from state champions to unsung heroes — while saving valuable time.
As Colin puts it, “It goes a long way with our community and their families to build a lot of goodwill.” In the end, investing in consistent, meaningful athlete spotlights doesn’t just celebrate the moment — it strengthens your athletic brand for years to come.
Digital recognition frequently asked questions
Why is digital recognition important for high school athletics?
Digital recognition helps athletic directors reach students, families, and the community where they already spend their time — online. It boosts school pride, builds a positive brand, and ensures every athlete, coach, and program gets the spotlight they deserve. By sharing achievements instantly through social media, websites, newsletters, and digital halls of fame, schools create stronger engagement and celebrate success more consistently.
What are the easiest ways to start implementing digital recognition?
You don’t need a big team or extra hours to get started. Many ADs begin with simple social media posts such as gameday graphics, weekly schedules, or “athlete of the week” highlights. Tools like Gipper Engage make this easy with ready-made templates, automatic branding, and post scheduling. From there, you can expand into digital newsletters or touchscreen halls of fame to tell deeper stories and recognize more programs.
How do digital platforms like Gipper Engage and Gipper Touch help save time?
Modern platforms are designed specifically for busy athletic directors. Gipper Engage lets you create professional graphics and newsletters in minutes using templated designs and easy sharing tools. Gipper Touch allows schools to replace outdated trophy cases with interactive digital halls of fame that preserve history and display more achievements than ever. Both platforms integrate with each other, so you can repurpose content across channels without extra work — giving your community a professional, always-updated recognition experience.
What is athlete recognition?
Athlete recognition is any effort that highlights and celebrates the accomplishments of student-athletes. It can take many forms — from traditional awards, banquets, and trophy cases to digital spotlights on social media, websites, newsletters, and digital halls of fame. The goal is simple: to celebrate achievements, build community pride, and make every student feel seen and valued.
Should digital recognition focus on athletes only?
No, digital recognition does not need to focus exclusively on athletes. While athletes should be a major part of your recognition strategy, digital recognition works best when it highlights everyone who contributes to your athletic program — including coaches, trainers, support staff, alumni, and even community partners. Showcasing team culture, academic success, behind-the-scenes contributors, and program milestones helps strengthen your brand, boost morale, and tell a more complete story of your athletic department.
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