Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League

 
Hays wasn’t an athlete, coach or official, but his impact on the WPIAL was indisputable, nonetheless. The retired Moon Area principal was a dedicated member of the WPIAL Board of Control (now Board of Directors) until his retirement in 2000, and served 21 years on the WPIAL Student Athlete Scholarship Committee. His tenure with the WPIAL started with an early-morning call from executive director Charles “Ace” Heberling. Hays was in Orlando, Fla., at the time with the school’s marching band, and Hays wondered whether the call was bad news. He’d appeared before the WPIAL board not too long before the trip for a hearing involving the Moon soccer team. But this call came because Heberling wanted Hays to join the board and needed his resume immediately. “Hays, we want you on the Board of Control,” Heberling said sternly. “I need your resume by 3 o’clock today.” Hays later served several years as a WPIAL representative on the PIAA Board of Control. A graduate of Moon in 1961 and Edinboro University in 1965, Hays began his education career as a social studies teacher at North Hills before returning to his high school alma mater to teach American History. After earning his Master’s degree and principal certification from Duquesne University, Hays joined Moon’s administration as an assistant principal in 1976 and then high school principal in 1986.