INDIANAPOLIS, IN (October 7, 2002) - Everything old is new again for the 2002 National High School Activities Week.    The annual week-long observance and appreciation of high school activities resumes its late October place on the calendar, after spending last year in mid-September. From October 20 to 26, in high schools across the country, interscholastic athletics and activities take center stage with a week's worth of themed days.    The week kicks off on Sunday, October 20, with National Be A Sport Day. It is a day to encourage awareness and discussion about the importance of sportsmanship, ethics and integrity to the conduct of interscholastic sports.    National Fine Arts Activities Day is celebrated Monday, October 21. The day will focus on the students, coaches and sponsors involved in fine arts programs.    On National Officials Day, Tuesday, October 22, students should take time to salute and thank the approximately 500,000 individuals who serve as contest officials and judges.    Wednesday, October 23 is National Youth Health Awareness Day, which is a time to promote education and prevention efforts that encourage healthy lifestyles.    National Coaches Day is held on Thursday, October 24. It is a time to recognize and honor the contributions of high school coaches.    National Fan Appreciation Day will take place on Friday, October 25. This day provides students the opportunity to thank the spectators and volunteers who support activity programs throughout the year.    Saturday's National Community Service/Participation Day wraps up the week with an opportunity for students to give back to their community and show support for their programs. The day can also be used to promote fund-raising efforts that support interscholastic programs.    The NFHS created the week in 1980 to increase the public's awareness of the values and needs of interscholastic activity programs. During the week, the nation's high schools are encouraged to promote the values inherent in high school athletics and other activities, such as speech, music, theatre, band and spirit squads.    "High school sports and activity programs provide one of the best bargains in our community and nation and will continue to do so as long as our nation supports them as an integral part of the education of our young people," NFHS Executive Director Bob Kanaby said.    Last year, the NFHS Citizenship Committee decided to move the week closer to the beginning of the school year so schools could use it to kick off the year. It was thought that the week got lost during the fall sports season, but it instead got lost during the back-to-school time and was moved back to its original dates.    NFHS Director of Educational Services Elliot Hopkins believes the week gives schools a chance to acknowledge and thank a significant number of people who are involved in high school activities.    "It is an opportunity to see how many lives we touch in high school activities, which, including fine arts, speech and debate, is a lot of kids."    The NFHS produces a binder each year to help give ideas for activities and programs.    "It is a great start, but schools make it work best for them," Hopkins said.    Every day in the week is given a theme and ideas on what activities can be done on that day. The kit also includes testimonials from student-participants, teachers, coaches and administrators on the value of high school activities and the Case for High School Activities, produced bythe NFHS to show research and statistics of the importance of the activities.    Also included are ad slicks and public-service announcements for the school to use to promote the week.