Robert Crosswhite, a former coach, educator and administrator at Joseph City School District, has been inducted into the Arizona Interscholastic Association Hall of Fame. Crosswhite served as a coach at Joseph City High School and prior to that at Winslow High School. His reputation prior to coming to Joseph City in 1994, preceded him and this was solidified immediately in the results that he attained with the teams he coached and in the other programs which he worked with. In 1994-95 he led the wrestling team to a 25-5 record, third place in the school’s region, and eighth place at the 1A-2A State Tournament. This was done with a program that was in decline. He resurrected it, increased interest and enthusiasm and made it a healthy and viable program for the student athletes to participate in. It has remained healthy to this day. The following year his team was the 1A-2A State Runner Up. By the 1996-97 season the Joseph City team was the 1A-2A State Champions, the first for the school in 20 years. Coach Crosswhite became the athletic director and his impact was felt across all of the athletics that the school put forth. He stepped forward to make tough decisions when necessary for the sake of students, regardless of the political ramifications that could have resulted. He was soon promoted to principal of Joseph City High School where his efforts resulted in an A-rated school based on the state’s formula for academic performance. Over his career he taught science, biology and physical education. In addition to being an athletic director and principal, he also served as superintendent of the school district. In his seven-year tenure as a wrestling coach for the school, he had 14 individual state champions, two team state championships and three runner-up titles. His teams set records such as: most pins in a season 1A-5A, totaling 298; most matches won in a season with 520; most dual meet wins in a season, totaling 35; and most dual meet points in a season, totaling 2,275. His wrestling coaching record is 278 wins, 47 losses, and one tie. He has been named the Arizona Coach of the Year, Region 8 Coach of the Year and was nominated for the National Coach of the Year in 1997, 1998 and 1999. On Nov. 8, 2009, Coach Crosswhite was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. He retired from education in 2005.
