Officials

Howie Burns

Year Inducted: 1995

Category: Officials

Schools / Organizations:
IHSA
(Streator) Woodland High School
Streator High School

Biography:

At the time of his induction, Howard L. Burns, of Aurora, had been a registered Illinois High School Association official for nearly 40 years.  Burns didn’t restrict his basketball officiating to just Class A Regionals, which he had worked since 1972, or Class AA boys’ regionals that he had worked beginning in 1964.  He worked Class A and AA girls’ regionals since 1979, girls A and AA sectionals since 1982.

Burns, who on February 12, 1993, received the National Inter-Scholastic Officials Association (NFIOA) Distinguished Service Award for Illinois basketball, worked girls A and AA IHSA Super-sectionals beginning in 1984 and three times worked in the state finals, 1988, 1989, and 1991.

Burns worked the Lockport Thanksgiving Tournament for 31 years, the Proviso West Christmas Tournament for 29 years, the Plano Christmas Tournament for 30 years as well as spending 20 years at the York and 19 at the DeKalb Holiday tournaments.

The Girl’s Tournaments for which Burns was a regular included:  Bolingbrook Shashbuckle (12 years), West Chicago Holiday (12), Waubonsee Valley Shootout (11) and the Glenbard East Invitational (10).

Many coaches consider Howie as one of the top officials in the state of Illinois.