The New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) has announced its 2026 Hall of Fame Class which will be inducted on Wednesday, July 29th at The Hyatt Regency in Buffalo, NY. The NYSPHSAA Hall of Fame, launched in 2002, is sponsored by Zolnier Championship Rings, Crown Awards and Pupil Benefits Plan, Inc. Ticket information and other event details will be released at a later time.
The Class of 2026 is Julie Stimik Bergman (Contributor, Section IV), Fred Fusaro (Coach, Section XI), Dan Gillespie (Coach, Section 2), Paul McClintock (Official, Section I), Walter Munze (Official, Section III) and Carla Tagliente (Athlete, Section IV). Inductees were chosen using a two-level selection and rating process involving a screening committee and a selection committee. Nominations were endorsed by each inductee’s member section of the Association—a preliminary requirement in the nomination process—before going on to the NYSPHSAA Screening Committee for consideration, then finally to the Selection Committee. Nominations can be submitted by anyone as long as a section endorsement letter accompanies the submission. The NYSPHSAA Hall of Fame is modeled after the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) program which recognizes individuals in the categories of athlete, coach, official, administrator and related contributor.
JULIE STIMIK BERGMAN, Contributor (Section IV)
Julie Stimik Bergman has been a respected administrator in Section IV for over three decades and served NYSPHSAA in numerous capacities including as President from 2020-22. During her time as President, she navigated the association through the COVID pandemic and chaired or was an active member of numerous NYSPHSAA ad hoc and standing committees including Budget & Audit Committee, Compensation, Handbook and the Strategic Planning Committee. Bergman also served as the Section IV female representative on the NYSPHSAA Executive Committee from 2005-2016 and served as the Section IV Midstate Athletic Conference Chair. She began her career at Delaware Academy and Central School District as a physical education teacher in 1992 before becoming the Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics from 2000-06. Julie transitioned to principal of the elementary school from 2006-10 then the middle and high school from 2010-11. She additionally served as a principal at Walton Central School, Franklin Central School and Hancock Central School, the latter of which she was interim superintendent for a short stint. Prior to becoming an administrator, Julie was a teacher and coached basketball, softball and soccer at the modified, JV and varsity levels from 1992-2006. Just two years ago in 2024, she was honored for her accomplished career with an induction into the Section IV Hall of Fame. A graduate of Binghamton High School, Bergman earned her bachelor’s degree and certificate of advanced study from SUNY Cortland then earned a master’s degree from Texas A&M University.
FRED FUSARO, Coach (Section XI)
Fred Fusaro is among the winningest high school football coaches in New York State and among the best to have ever coached on Long Island. From 1971-2002 he built one of the greatest programs in state history while coaching varsity football at Sachem High School in Section XI. There, he accumulated a 192-95 career record, won six Suffolk County Championships, 15 league titles and took his teams to 22 consecutive playoff appearances. In addition to having dozens of players go on to play collegiately, he’s had several reach the NFL including Jumbo Elliott, Chris Manno, Brian Bravy and Doug Shanahan. Individually, Fusaro was named Suffolk County Coach of the Year 15 times with the award now named in his honor. At Sachem, the school named the football field after Fred in 1999 and inducted him into its Hall of Fame in 2016. In 2003, he was inducted into the Suffolk County Hall of Fame and, in 2005, he was inducted into the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame. Following his retirement from teaching and head coaching in 2002, Fusaro served as an assistant coach at John Glenn High School until 2024, then in 2025, he came full circle by joining the coaching staff at Huntington High School—his alma mater—as a line coach. Many credit Fusaro for consistently having a disciplined approach, emphasis on character and shaping young men into leaders for all 31 years of his career. A graduate of Huntington High School (Section XI), Fusaro earned a bachelor’s degree from Ithaca College where he played four years as nose tackle. He earned a master’s degree from St. Lawrence University.
DAN GILLESPIE, Coach (Section 2)
Dan Gillespie is the all-time winningest high school boys soccer coach in New York State history having tallied a remarkable 773-203-45 career record all while at Maple Hill High School (Section 2) from 1974 through the 2025 season. He has guided his teams to three NYSPHSAA State Championships, 24 Section Championships and 27 league championships. In addition, he led his teams to two undefeated seasons and went 48 consecutive games without a loss between 2000-01. Gillespie was inducted into the New York State Soccer Hall of Fame in 2009 and is a two-time United Soccer New York State Coach of the Year recipient. His coaching success isn’t just in soccer. Gillespie coached varsity boys basketball at Maple Hill from 1995-2008 going 174-101 overall and winning two league championships. He’s has also been the boys varsity outdoor track head coach since 1978 where he’s led the school to 12 sectional championships and nine league titles. Dan has been known for preaching character, hard work and teamwork to all his teams and has seen hundreds of his athletes continue on to college programs, national programs and elite travel programs. A graduate of Cobleskill High School (Section 2), he earned an associate’s degree from SUNY Cobleskill, where he is a member of the Hall of Fame for his accomplishments as a cross country, basketball and outdoor track athlete, as well as a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from University at Albany.
PAUL MCCLINTOCK, Official (Section I)
Paul McClintock is one of the most respected swimming and diving officials in New York State with a long, decorated career that began in 1984. For 25 consecutive years, he held the head diving referee position at the NYSPHSAA Boys State Championships then served as head swim referee of that event for five years, all while he was the head referee for 40 postseason Section I Boys and Girls Championship meets that led up to states. McClintock has been the official rules interpreter for Section I since 1997, and he’s been in the same capacity with NYSPHSAA since 2018. Spanning over three decades, he was also a level 1A official along with the meet referee, starter, and strokes/turns official at over 30 meets per season during the regular season and in totality, has officiated nearly 2,000 scholastic swimming and diving meets. From 1991-97, Paul served as President of the Westchester County Swim Officials Association and was President of the New York State Certified Swim Officials Association in 2022-23. From 1996-2007, McClintock was the Commissioner of the Westchester Fairfield Swim League which began naming its highest award, given to the top high school male and female swimmer, after McClintock in 2007. That same year, he was awarded the prestigious USA Swimming Conoco Phillips Award for Outstanding Service and, a year later, was inducted into the Westchester Sports Hall of Fame. Paul’s valuable experience has also been utilized at the next level as a certified official at NCAA meets for over 30 years and as Meet Referee of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championships for 14 years. A graduate of Archbishop Stepinac High School, McClintock earned a bachelor’s degree at Villanova and a master’s degree from Long Island University.
WALTER MUNZE, Official (Section III)
Walter Munze is one of the most respected and longest tenured lacrosse officials in New York State having officiated and served numerous officiating organizations since 1977, including 50 years in varsity lacrosse and 20 years in varsity soccer. He’s been selected to officiate in 12 NYSPHSAA Boys Lacrosse State Tournaments, numerous sectional postseason tournaments, and has been the official NYSPHSAA Boys Lacrosse Rules Interpreter for the past 30 years. Munze has also served on the NFHS Boys Lacrosse Rules Committee and on the USA Lacrosse Rules Committee, following a long term as the President of the Central New York Officials Association and New York State Lacrosse Officials Association. Just three years ago, Walter was instrumental in making New York the first state in the country to bring the shot clock to high school lacrosse as a two-year experiment. Beyond his contributions as an official, he is responsible for initiating the lacrosse programs at CBA Syracuse and East Syracuse Minoa High School in Section III. In 1968, he started one of the first ever lacrosse camps in the United States called the All American Lacrosse Camp. At the next level, he officiated in six NCAA Division 1 Lacrosse Championships and currently serves as the Regional Assignor for the Big 10, Big East and MAAC Conferences. Walt has been recognized on several occasions including being awarded the Section III Golden Whistle Award, the Section III Service Award and being inducted into the Upstate New York Lacrosse Hall of Fame. A graduate of Rye High School (Section I), Munze earned a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from SUNY Cortland.
CARLA TAGLIENTE, Athlete (Section IV)
Carla Tagliente is one of the best field hockey players to ever play in New York State and one of the most successful athletes in Marathon High School (Section IV) history. In field hockey, she is 4th all-time in goals scored in a career (159) and 8th all-time in goals scored in a season (51) while leading Marathon to three NYSPHSAA State Championships from 1994-96. She played five years on the varsity team from 1992-96 setting school records that still exist today including most career points and goals in addition to most assists in a season. In basketball, Carla is the second all-time leading scorer at Marathon with 1,692 career points and led her teams to five Section Championship appearances and a Sectional title. In track, she was a First Team Section All-Star and currently holds the Marathon High School record in the triple jump. As a senior in high school, Tagliente was touted as the top field hockey recruit in the state before committing to the University of Maryland. While at Maryland she played for the US National Team and following college, she pursued a coaching career that took her to Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan and Northwestern, where she was an assistant under NYSPHSAA Hall of Famer Tracy Fuchs. She returned to UMass for a head coaching job for five years before landing at Princeton in 2016, leading her teams to two NCAA National Championship games and earning numerous conference and region coach of the year honors. A graduate of Marathon High School, Tagliente earned her bachelor’s degree from Maryland and her master’s degree from Michigan.