Brewer High School

Dennis Kiah has spent his entire life around interscholastic athletics. Although mostly serving Brewer High School, the footprint of his work and his passion reaches across the State of Maine.  His passion for athletics began as a youth playing little league baseball and PAL basketball. Kiah attended John Bapst High School where he played football as a guard for the offense and linebacker for the defense.  He was also a catcher on the Bapst baseball team but served as pitcher when needed.  Upon graduating from Bapst in 1965, Kiah attended the University of Maine where he continued to master his skills behind the plate for the Maine baseball team his freshman to his junior year and then pitched his senior year.  Kiah’s coaching career began in 1970 as an assistant football coach under renowned Brewer Athletic Hall of Fame coach Ken Perrone.  The Brewer Football team was legendary in the community and beyond as it captured the 1970 Class A State Championship Title.  The undefeated team was ranked number one in New England and fifth in the nation.  Upon graduation from the University of Maine in 1971, Kiah taught math as well as the first AP biology class in the state at Foxcroft Academy where he also coached football, basketball and baseball until 1977.  After leaving Foxcroft Academy, Kiah embarked on a career at Brewer High School that spanned over 40 years.  In addition to his teaching duties, Kiah also coached several sports including football, basketball and baseball. In 1988, Kiah was named Maine’s Baseball “Coach of the Year” for his work with the Brewer Witches team that finished as the state Runner-Up. 

After a 13 year teaching career, Kiah transitioned to administration.  Following a brief stint at Hermon High School as Assistant Principal from 1990 to 1993 and earning his master’s degree in Education Administration in 1993, Kiah was hired as the Athletic Administrator at Brewer High School. After three years, his position was combined into a role as Assistant Principal/Athletic Administrator until 2001. In 2001, Kiah’s duties returned to focus solely on athletic administration at Brewer High School until his retirement in 2012.  The Witches flourished during Kiah’s leadership at the helm of the Athletic Department of Brewer High School. Kiah’s Witches went on to win 9 State Championships and accumulated 14 State Runner-Up titles, 27 Regional Championships and 22 Regional Runner-Up titles between the fall of 1993 and the spring of 2012. 

Dennis Kiah was a fiery competitor as an athlete and even more so as a coach and athletic director. Former player and 2014 Brewer Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee Chad White recalls, “Dennis Kiah was a great coach and motivator who was intense yet fun to play for and he was a stickler for executing the little details correctly.  A huge positive influence, he always emphasized to “Never Quit” no matter what, in athletics or life.  Coach Kiah was an inspiration to all of us fortunate to be coached by him but especially to me in his support and encouragement to continue to play baseball at a higher level.”  Kiah is famously remembered for his trademark greeting, “Fire Up”. This slogan epitomizes Kiah’s passion for athletics.  To Dennis Kiah, interscholastic athletics are more than “just a game.” As a professional, Kiah always felt interscholastic athletics are an extension of the classroom and an opportunity to teach lessons that cannot be learned through academics.  Kiah has been an advocate for interscholastic athletics both in Brewer and at the state level.  He has served on numerous Maine Principals Association (MPA) committees including baseball, softball, and ice hockey as well as the MPA Athletic Administrators Athletic Advisory Committee. In addition, Kiah was instrumental in coaching education throughout the state piloting the ‘Sports Done Right’ initiative.  Within the Maine Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (MIAAA), Kiah served many roles over the years including president of the organization.   

For his lifelong work, Dennis Kiah has been recognized by many organizations, throughout Maine as well as nationally.  In 2010 coaches at Brewer High School honored Kiah by creating a scholarship fund to award to a graduating male and female senior who best exemplify Coach Kiah’s attributes of sportsmanship, character, determination and passion for sports. Additionally, a golf tournament was created to supplement this venture named the “Dennis Kiah Golf Classic”. The Penobscot Valley Conference’s “Dennis Kiah Player of the Year Award” is given to the outstanding baseball player from the conference.  At the state level, Kiah earned the Athletic Administrator Distinguished Service Award in 1999, the MIAAA Bob Lahey Athletic Administrator of the Year award in 2011, the Gerry Durgin Excellence in Leadership Award in 2012 and the Martin E. Ryan Award of Excellence in 2013. Additionally in 2012, Kiah was inducted into the Maine Sports Legends “Hall of Honors”.  Nationally, he was one of eight regional winners in the country of the National Federation of State High School Associations prestigious Citation Award in 2012.  That same year, beloved by the athletes at Brewer High School past and present, the Trident Yearbook was dedicated to Mr. Kiah.

Following his retirement from everyday administrative work, Kiah went back to his roots and became an assistant coach with the Brewer High School football and baseball teams where he continues to inspire the youth of today.  He also performs many other duties within the athletic department including operating the scoreboard for home basketball and wrestling events as well as maintaining the athletic fields in the fall and spring.  Kiah also serves on the Brewer Athletic Hall of Fame Committee. 

Dennis Kiah resides in Brewer with his wife of 46 years, Betty Ellen. Dennis and Betty Ellen have two children who graduated from Brewer High School, Jill and Andy. Dennis is a proud grandfather to four grandchildren, Delaney, Ian, Kayleigh and Mikenna. In his spare time, Kiah enjoys coaching, golfing, spending time at his camp and visiting his children and grandchildren in South Carolina and North Carolina.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE INDUCTION AND ACCEPTANCE SPEECH OF DENNIS KIAH

                     Dennis Kiah and his presenter Andy Kiah