Educator

Michael McElroy

Biology Teacher and Coach at Dondero High School 1971-1998

Oakland County Track Coach of the Year, 1993

National Gatorade Coaches Care Award Winner

Inducted into the Royal Oak High School Hall of Fame, 2014

Michael McElroy graduated from another high school in Michigan--Lincoln Park. There he excelled in academics and athletics. He served as the president of his senior class, lettered in football and captained the track team. Mr. McElroy has a degree from Hillsdale College where he also participated in football and track and served as class president. He also holds a master’s degree in biology from Eastern Michigan University.

Mike McElroy returned to Lincoln Park to begin his teaching career. Mike then moved to Royal Oak where he became a respected member of the Dondero faculty. For 27 years he taught biology at the high school, and coached swimming, football and track. One year he coached both the Dondero and Kimball swim teams at the same time integrating their schedules and alternating their practice sites.

Mike served as a role model for his students and players. He included students with special needs on his teams and made them active participants. In 1992 he was honored with the National Gatorade Coaches Care Award.

Mike saw a need to improve the conditioning of his athletes. He led the efforts to raise money for the creation of a weight room in the high school. Mike later developed and implemented the original strength training program for Dondero athletes. He also sponsored an award winning weight lifting club as well as the varsity club.

Over his career, Mike McElroy coached over 100 all-league athletes—ten of whom also won all-state honors. At his track meets you would find his wife Mary Beth and many of the parents of his athletes providing volunteer services to create a total team atmosphere. His track teams won seven league championships and he was honored as the Oakland County Track Coach of the Year in 1993.

Coach Mac, as he was called by his athletes, is also active as a volunteer in the community. He has served as both a deacon and a trustee at his church. He has coached tee ball in Royal Oak and served for 15 years as a director for the Royal Oak Baseball Federation. He currently resides in the Upper Peninsula where he is a member of the local sports booster club and an officer in the local Lions Club.