Boyd Sands, 88, formerly of Glassboro, Gloucester County, retired teacher, coach, principal, and superintendent of the Delsea Regional School District, and Hall of Fame former executive director of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, died Saturday, Jan. 17, of complications from a stroke at Cape Canaveral Hospital in Florida.
An All-Star football player in high school and college, and a longtime baseball umpire and basketball referee, Mr. Sands directed the NJSIAA from 1993 to his retirement in 2006. He and the association’s executive committee organized hundreds of statewide championship playoff tournaments, hired thousands of game officials, and enforced eligibility and sportsmanship rules for high school athletes in more than 30 sports at more than 400 public and private high schools.
He was an expert on all kinds of rules and a champion of the state’s expanded football playoff format and more programs for girls. He oversaw ever-changing conference alignments and supervised the association’s multimillion dollar budget.
He attracted dozens of corporate sponsorships to fund new initiatives regarding improved officiating, violence at sports events, and drug education. He forged working relationships with the state’s Sports and Exposition Authority, Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, the NHL’s New Jersey Devils, and other organizations.
Overall, Mr. Sands served more than three decades as a member of the NJSIAA advisory committee and executive committee, and executive director. In an online tribute, former colleagues there called him “a respected leader in education and sport. A consummate professional.”
Steve Timko, his successor as executive director, told the Times of Trenton in 2005: “He has taken the association to the next level.” In 2003, Mr. Sands told the Record of Hackensack: “I really just enjoy high school athletics.”
He joined Delsea in 1966 as assistant principal, was promoted to principal, and served as district superintendent from 1971 to 1994. Before school, he was known to greet students as they exited the buses in the morning. After school, he handed out programs at events, prowled the sidelines at Delsea, and officiated games at other high schools.
He taught social studies and coached football for six years at two high schools in North Jersey before going to Delsea. He oversaw the building of the district’s middle school in the 1970s, and colleagues named the entrance road leading to the new building after him.
“His influence lives on in the students he inspired, the educators he mentored, and the community he helped shape,” Delsea superintendent Fran Ciociola said in a tribute.
Mr. Sands was onetime president of the Camden County chapter of the New Jersey Baseball Umpires Association. He won achievement awards from the NJSIAA, the National Federation of Interscholastic Athletic Officials, and the Union County Interscholastic Athletic Conference.
He was an executive committee member of the National Federation of State High School Associations and lifetime member of the International Association of Approved Basketball Officials. “His spirit, kindness, and dedication will be remembered always,” colleagues at the IAABO said in a tribute.
Mr. Sands was inducted into the Gloucester County Sports Hall of Fame in 1989, the NJSIAA Hall of Fame in 2007, and the South Jersey Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009. He attended many continuing education classes and earned certifications at Rowan, Rutgers, and Seton Hall Universities, and elsewhere.
He never changed his signature flattop crew cut. “Bear of a man, great guy,” a former student said in a Facebook tribute. A friend said online: “Boyd was a wonderful man and terrific mentor.”
Boyd August Sands was born Feb. 16, 1937, in Newark, N.J. He played football and basketball in high school, and earned a bachelor’s degree in education at Colby College in Maine and a master’s degree in administration at what is now Kean University in New Jersey.
He met Frances Curto at a New Year’s Eve party, and they married in 1958. They lived in North Jersey, moved to Glassboro when he worked at Delsea, and had daughters Susan, Nancy, Karen, and Lori, and a son, Michael. His son died earlier.
Mr. Sands studied history and enjoyed road trips to family reunions in Florida and stops at historical sites along the way. He loved his dogs, followed the Eagles and Phillies closely, and was sure to be greeted by former students and old colleagues whenever the family went out.
He and his wife moved to Cape Canaveral in 2006, and he helped run spring training for the Washington Nationals baseball team and worked security for a cruise line. He had bypass surgery in 2015.
“My father was a man who found joy in two of life’s greatest gifts: family and sports,” said his daughter Nancy. “My dad was a man who always showed up and pushed us hard to do our best.”
His daughter Susan said: “He saw everyone as a person.”
Nearly everyone has a memorable umpiring story about Mr. Sands, like the time he got drilled by a line drive down the first base line. In 1994, he told The Inquirer that he enjoyed officiating high school baseball and basketball games more than anything.
“It was my hobby and outlet,” he said. “I tried golf, and I figured I’d rather get hit by a hard ball.”
In addition to his wife and daughters, Mr. Sands is survived by 16 grandchildren, 28 great-grandchildren, a brother, and other relatives. A brother died earlier.
Services were held earlier.
Donations in his name may be made to the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office Animal Care Center, 5100 W. Eau Gallie Blvd., Melbourne, Fla. 32934; and the Church of Our Saviour, 5301 N. Atlantic Ave., Cocoa Beach, Fla. 32931.
