UMass Amherst Alumni Association

Awards & Grants

Distinguished Alumni Awards Recipients

Karissa L. Niehoff '88

Karissa Niehoff ’88 believes that we should embrace every opportunity to celebrate the human spirit and to learn from one another.  She has been a teacher of Physical Education, Health and Latin; a championship high school coach; an advisor to multiple school and community groups; and an athletic director for the last 11 years. She graduated from UMass Amherst in 1988 with a bachelor’s degree in physical education.

As a member of the United States Olympic Committee’s Education Committee, Niehoff was Dean of the National Olympic Academy for Youth Sport Leadership, program leader for the 1996 Olympic Games Youth Camp, curriculum author, and U.S. delegate to the International Olympic Academies in Greece and Canada.  She is the former president of the  Connecticut Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, an educational consultant for the state of Connecticut, and recipient of state and New England awards for excellence in education and contributions to women’s sport.  She has spoken at many state and national conventions on educational and sport-related issues.
 
Currently, Niehoff is principal at Lewis S. Mills High School in Burlington, CT and is beginning her doctoral dissertation.  She serves on the US Field Hockey Association Board of Ethics, the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) Board of Control, and chairs the CIAC Sportsmanship Committee.  A great joy and source of inspiration for Niehoff is coaching the nationally ranked Connecticut High Fives women’s senior basketball team.