RACINE, Wis. — Ron Torbert, Hanover, Md., and Rob Wigod, Los Alamitos, Calif., were elected to the NASO Board of Directors. They replace outgoing board members Carl Cheffers and the recently passed Tom Robinson.
Torbert is an NFL referee who first joined the NFL officiating staff in 2010. He worked Super Bowl LVI this past February in Los Angeles. Away from the field, he serves as a public speaker after a lengthy career as vice president and general counsel for the Barton Malow Company, a large construction and contracting firm.
Wigod is commissioner of athletics for the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section. His areas of responsibility include athletic administration, character development, committee management and membership. He is a former high school football and baseball coach and served as an athletic director. He works closely with the California Basketball Officials Association, an NASO partner, and was influential in securing support for the 2023 NASO Summit in Riverside, Calif.
Barry Mano, NASO president, said, “Both Ron and Rob will bring to the board extraordinary skills coupled with their passion for officiating. I believe both men will play key roles in NASO’s continuing fulfillment of being the leading advocate on behalf of sports officials. The context they bring will be invaluable to us.”
Board members are elected for a two-year term and can serve up to two terms consecutively.
In addition to the new members, the board elected Dana Pappas, director of officiating services for the National Federation of State High School Associations, as the new board chair. She had been filling that role in an interim capacity following the passing of Robinson in April after a cancer battle. Robert Smith, a longtime Big 10 football official, was elected vice chair, while Bill Carollo (treasurer), Bill Topp (secretary) and Ron Foxcroft (special advisor) were also re-elected to their non-voting positions.
The National Association of Sports Officials, Racine, Wis., is the world’s largest voluntary membership organization for sports officials at every level and all sports. More than 21,000 sports officials belong to NASO, enjoying membership benefits that include advocacy for the industry, robust insurance and legal protections, and educational materials, including Referee magazine.
