Former RIIL Executive Director Tom Mezzanotte honored with conference room dedication
Meeting space will serve as "a daily reminder of his contributions and his spirit"
Many current and former members of the Principals' Committee on Athletics gathered for the Thomas A. Mezzanotte Conference Room Dedication Ceremony on November 27, 2025. (PHOTO/CAROLYN THORNTON, RIIL)
Rhode Island Interscholastic League
WARWICK, RI (December 1, 2025) - “The space where ideas are shared, decisions are made, and the future of Rhode Island athletics and activities continues to evolve now bears the name of the man who helped shape its past and present.”
Shortly after convening for its November meeting in the conference room of the Rhode Island Interscholastic League’s Warwick office, the Principals’ Committee on Athletics then dedicated that very meeting space to the individual who was instrumental in the RIIL relocating to its current home on Centerville Road.
Joined by members of his family and many current and former members of the PCOA with whom he had worked beside for decades as both a principal and the Executive Director of the RIIL, Tom Mezzanotte and his wife Kathy unveiled a plaque in what is now known as the “Thomas A. Mezzanotte Conference Room.”
Tom Mezzanotte and his wife Kathy unveil the commemorative plaque as current RIIL Executive Director Mike Lunney looks on. (PHOTO/CAROLYN THORNTON, RIIL)
The plaque reads: “RIIL Executive Director 2004-2020. In recognition of his exceptional leadership, service, and unwavering commitment to interscholastic athletics in Rhode Island. A lasting tribute to his vision, passion, and legacy. Dedicated November 17, 2025.”
“This conference room will serve as a daily reminder of his contributions and his spirit,” said Mike Lunney, who succeeded Mezzanotte as Executive Director in 2020 after serving as Assistant Executive Director of the RIIL for nine years.
“What set Tom apart was not just his strategic vision—it was his humanity,” Lunney said. “He knew every administrator by name, every coach by story, and took genuine pride in the achievements of every student-athlete. His legacy is not measured in administering state championships, but in the countless young lives he inspired and the enduring community he built.”
“The years here were great. I was very blessed,” Mezzanotte said. “I had two unbelievable careers – principal in the city of Providence . . . and then coming here. . . . We had a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it. I look back and I don’t regret one day, not one day. . . . I had a great tenure and a great run and I really enjoyed it.”
Tom Mezzanotte poses with Mike Lunney, left, and Richard Magarian, who both served as Assistant Directors during Mezzanotte's 16 years as Executive Director. (PHOTO/CAROLYN THORNTON, RIIL)
Mezzanotte’s career in education, athletics and administration spanned nearly five decades, including 30 years within the Providence School System. During that time, he served as a coach, a social studies teacher, an assistant principal at Mt. Pleasant High School, the principal at Bridgham Middle School and then principal at Classical High School before finally becoming Executive Director of Student Support Services.
While principal at Classical, Mezzanotte sat on the Principals’ Committee on Athletics from 1990 to 1999 and served as Chairman of the PCOA for three years in addition to serving as the RIIL’s Director of Football. He became Executive Director of the Rhode Island Interscholastic League in 2004, serving in that position for 16 years.
“Tom and I, we served as principals, and he never lost that perspective throughout all of his time as executive director of the Interscholastic League,” said Bob Littlefield, now Executive Director of the R.I. Association of School Principals. “He still had the mindset of a principal that learning was more important than winning. And for anybody who felt that winning was more important than learning, Tom would say in no uncertain terms that's not what we are about. He was always a principal first. That approach carried through. It created the atmosphere that exists here in this office building that Mike (Lunney) and (assistant executive director) Tom (Marcello) are carrying on, and that's your legacy, and that's something that you and your family should be very, very proud of.”
RIASP Executive Director Bob Littlefield noted that Mezzanotte never lost sight of "the mindset of a principal that learning was more important than winning." (PHOTO/CAROLYN THORNTON, RIIL)
During his tenure as the RIIL’s executive director, Mezzanotte expanded the opportunities offered within the league’s education-based athletics program, which included working with Special Olympics Rhode Island to implement a unified high school sports program for students with intellectual disabilities. He also implemented a mandatory certification requirement for coaches, helped develop the R.I. Concussion Law and initiated a student leadership program for student-athletes.
“As a member of the Principals' Committee on Athletics in 2005, I was a first-hand witness to Tom's leadership, bringing the organization to prominence in the nation,” said Kevin McNamara, former PCOA chair and now superintendent of schools in Lincoln. “He set the organization on a path to financial independence, ultimately culminating in the purchase of this very property. He navigated the tumultuous process of insisting on standards and training of our officials. He modernized scheduling, tournament ticketing, and sought advantageous partnerships for the benefit of our member schools. We expanded traditional sport offerings, began unified sports and e-sports, and none of this would have been possible without Tom's dynamic, energetic and skilled leadership.”
Former PCOA Chair Kevin McNamara, left, noted that Mezzanotte's "forward-thinking leadership" helped establish Rhode Island as "a national leader in the creation of unified sports, insisting on coaches' education and elevating the role and the status of our athletic directors." (PHOTO/CAROLYN THORNTON, RIIL)
Nationally, Mezzanotte became the first Rhode Islander to serve a term on the National Federation of State High School Associations’ Board of Directors in 2011, a term that culminated with his selection as the 55th NFHS President in 2014-15, another first for Rhode Island.
“A funny thing happened on the way to the office for Tom around 2004, 2005,” former PCOA chair Gerry Foley said. “He realized. . . there was more to the world than Rhode Island. There was a bigger world out there, and he thought, `If I could explore this particular world, I probably could learn some stuff, and I could bring it back to Rhode Island.' And he sure did. What kind of programs were needed to make us a world-class organization? What had to be done for teachers, coaches, officials? What kind of programs could be set up to benefit kids? The unified games - my god. Tremendous undertakings and tremendous contributions. I would say to you all here today that it's the principal’s vision that brought us here today....Long overdue.”
Former PCOA Chair Gerry Foley coined the phrase “Mezzafication, which he defined as "a movement to better conditions" adding "I will say things are better now than they were way back when." (PHOTO/CAROLYN THORNTON, RIIL)
Mezzanotte commended the current members of the Principals’ Committee on Athletics and noted the vital role they play as the governing body of the Rhode Island Interscholastic League.
“I remember we used to talk about it all the time. The responsibility that you have,” he said. “It’s so important for principals to be active in athletics. There’s nothing better than to go to a game and watch your kids play. It’s the best way to spend part of your day. I know today principals have a much different job than when I was a principal; no question about it. But it’s still important to make sure that you’re involved with athletics and involved with the kids in your school.”
Reflecting back on his long and storied career in education and athletics, Tom Mezzanotte said, "I was very blessed. . . I look back and I don’t regret one day, not one day ." (PHOTO/CAROLYN THORNTON, RIIL)
