Byers becomes the ninth PIAA Executive Director
MECHANICSBURG, PA – As the calendar flips to a new year, a new leader will take the helm at Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, Inc. (PIAA). With unanimous support from the PIAA Board of Directors, Mark E. Byers will take over as PIAA Executive Director on January 1, 2026. He has been with the organization since 1999. Byers becomes the ninth Executive Director to lead the PIAA since the non-profit organization was founded in 1913.
Byers has been a member of the PIAA Administrative Staff for 26 years. He was brought on staff as an assistant executive director and was promoted to chief operating officer in 2012. His duties at PIAA include serving as the tournament director for golf, cross country, soccer, wrestling, basketball, track & field and baseball championships. In addition to his sports and tournament responsibilities, Byers directed the PIAA Foundation Cross Country Invitational and handles many of the day-to-day inquiries regarding interpretations of the PIAA By-Laws, Policies and Procedures and Rules and Regulations compliance and eligibility provisions to member schools’ administration. He serves as the staff liaison to Market Street Sports Group (MSSG), the marketing firm that has helped facilitate corporate sponsorships/partnerships for the PIAA since 2006. Byers oversaw the PIAA “Sportsmanship: The Only Missing Piece Is You!” program.
“On behalf of the entire PIAA Board of Directors, we are delighted to have Mark step into the role of executive director”, said Frank Majikes, PIAA Board President. “His knowledge and tenure at the association will help continue to bring the best for student-athletes in Pennsylvania.”
Byers will take over the fourth (4th) largest state in the nation for interscholastic athletics by way of student athlete participation. Byers played an integral role in the addition of two girls’ sports: Girls’ Wrestling and Girls’ Flag Football. He helped bring exposure to Girls’ Flag Football by partnering with two National Football Teams (NFL) the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The sport saw rapid growth, growing from an emerging sport to a sanctioned sport in a little over a year. Byers also helped in the integration of Unified Special Olympics of Pennsylvania Championships into PIAA Championships, including hosting the Unified Bocce Championships during the PIAA Basketball Championship and Unified Track and Field Championships during the PIAA.
In 2021, Byers was honored by the National Federation of High School Associations (NFHS) and awarded the NFHS Citation, for his contributions and service to high school activity programs throughout the nation. This award was presented at a luncheon at the 2021 NFHS Summer Meeting in Orlando, Florida, on June 30, 2021.
He has provided a variety of presentations at numerous NFHS Annual Summer Meetings. He has served the NFHS as a member of their Coaching Education Advisory Committee, Publications Committee, Student Services Committee, Football Rules Committee and National Athletic Directors Conference Advisory Committee.
As executive director, Byers will continue with Bylaw interpretations with the addition of strategic planning, fiscal management, office operations, the PIAA Foundation, and legislative affairs.
Byers is a 1993 graduate of Carlisle High School and participated in soccer, football and wrestling for the Thundering Herd. His soccer prowess assisted him in his matriculation to East Stroudsburg University, where he played for 4 years and was elected by his teammates to serve as a two-year captain. The team earned NCAA Division II playoff
berth in 1994 and 1995. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree from ESU in 1997 in Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management and followed that with a Masters’ Degree in Education in 2002, with a concentration in Sport Management.